Why this site exists
Invoice Fee Calculator is a one-person project, built and maintained by an independent product creator based in Fort Worth, Texas. There's no parent company and no investor behind it — just someone who got tired of watching small operators lose money to fees they never saw coming.
The problem it solves
Every time a client pays an invoice by card, the processor takes a cut — usually 2.9% plus 30 cents, sometimes more. That's not a typo or a one-off; it comes out of every single card payment, and most freelancers and small businesses don't realize how much it adds up to over a year. They price their work, send the invoice, and then discover the deposit is smaller than they expected. This tool exists so that doesn't happen — you can see the fee before you send the invoice, adjust your price to cover it, or pick a cheaper payment method like ACH.
How the fee data is sourced
The rates built into the calculator come directly from the published pricing pages of the major payment processors — Stripe, PayPal, and Square — along with standard ACH transfer rates. When a processor changes a published rate, the preset is updated here. The full breakdown of where each number comes from, including links to the source pages, is on the Methodology & Sources page. If you spot a rate that looks wrong, that page is the place to verify it, and the contact form is the place to tell me about it.
Why it's free
The calculator, the blog, the glossary, the checklists — all of it is free, with no account, no paywall, and no limit on how many times you use it. It's supported by ads. That's the trade: you get a useful tool at no cost, and the ads keep the lights on so the site stays online and independent.
What's next
New fee presets get added as processors update their pricing or as new ones enter the market, and the educational content grows over time. If there's a processor, a feature, or a topic you'd like to see covered, the fastest way to reach me is through the contact page.