Linktree Fees in 2026: The 12% Commerce Cut Most Creators Miss
Quick Answer
Linktree charges a seller fee on every digital product sale across all plans except Premium. The fee is 12% on Linktree Free, 9% on Linktree Starter ($8/mo), 9% on Linktree Pro ($15/mo), and 0% only on Linktree Premium ($35/mo). These fees are separate from Stripe's standard processing fees (roughly 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction). For creators selling more than $250/month, Linktree's seller fees often exceed the monthly subscription cost. Linklay charges 0% commerce fees on every plan including Free.
Linktree Seller Fees by Plan: The Full Breakdown
Linktree's seller fee is a separate line item from the monthly subscription. It applies to every digital product sale processed through Linktree's built-in commerce — paid downloads, tip jars, paid memberships. The fee tier depends on which Linktree plan you're on, and only the top tier (Premium) drops it to zero.
| Linktree Plan | Monthly Price | Commerce Fee on Digital Sales | Annual Equivalent |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | 12% | $0 |
| Starter | $8/mo | 9% | $60/yr ($5/mo annual) |
| Pro | $15/mo | 9% | $144/yr ($12/mo annual) |
| Premium | $35/mo | 0% | $288/yr ($24/mo annual) |
How Linktree Fees Work on Digital Product Sales
When a buyer clicks a paid product link on your Linktree page and completes checkout, Linktree's platform takes its commerce fee (12% / 9% / 0% depending on your plan) off the top before depositing to your connected Stripe account. Stripe then deducts its own processing fee (roughly 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction) before the net amount lands in your bank account.
Concrete example on Linktree Pro: a $20 digital product sale loses $1.80 to Linktree's 9% commerce fee, plus roughly $0.88 to Stripe's processing fee — about 13.4% gone before you see any money. On the same sale on Linktree Free, the platform takes $2.40 (12%) plus the same $0.88 Stripe fee — about 16.4% total.
The Linktree seller fee applies only to commerce transactions, not to free links or external affiliate clicks. So if your bio link is purely routing traffic to external pages, no Linktree commerce fee applies — only the subscription cost. The fee question only matters once you start selling through Linktree's built-in commerce.
Linktree Fees vs Stripe Processing Fees: What's the Difference
Linktree's seller fee and Stripe's processing fee are two separate charges that both apply to every sale. Linktree's fee is the platform commission (12% / 9% / 0%). Stripe's fee is the payment-processing cost — about 2.9% + $0.30 for U.S. card transactions, slightly higher for international cards.
You cannot avoid the Stripe processing fee on any link-in-bio tool that accepts card payments — Linklay, Beacons, Stan Store all pay Stripe roughly the same rate. What varies between tools is the platform commission. Linktree's 9-12% on most plans is among the highest in the category. Linklay charges 0% platform commission on every plan; only the Stripe fee applies. Beacons charges 9% on its free tier and 0% on paid plans. Stan Store charges a flat 5% on every plan.
Real-World Examples: What Linktree Actually Takes at Different Sales Volumes
These numbers assume one $50 transaction per ~$50 in sales — i.e., 6 transactions at $500/mo, 20 at $1,000/mo. Stripe fees stack per transaction, so higher transaction counts at lower price points cost more in absolute Stripe fees.
| Monthly Sales | Linktree Free (12%) | Linktree Starter (9%) | Linktree Pro (9%) | Linktree Premium (0%) | Linklay Pro (0%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $250 | $30 + ~$9 Stripe = ~$39 | $8 sub + $22.50 + ~$9 = ~$39.50 | $15 sub + $22.50 + ~$9 = ~$46.50 | $35 sub + $0 + ~$9 = ~$44 | $9.99 sub + $0 + ~$9 = ~$18.99 |
| $500 | $60 + ~$18 = ~$78 | $8 + $45 + ~$18 = ~$71 | $15 + $45 + ~$18 = ~$78 | $35 + $0 + ~$18 = ~$53 | $9.99 + $0 + ~$18 = ~$27.99 |
| $1,000 | $120 + ~$36 = ~$156 | $8 + $90 + ~$36 = ~$134 | $15 + $90 + ~$36 = ~$141 | $35 + $0 + ~$36 = ~$71 | $9.99 + $0 + ~$36 = ~$45.99 |
| $2,500 | $300 + ~$90 = ~$390 | $8 + $225 + ~$90 = ~$323 | $15 + $225 + ~$90 = ~$330 | $35 + $0 + ~$90 = ~$125 | $9.99 + $0 + ~$90 = ~$99.99 |
| $5,000 | $600 + ~$180 = ~$780 | $8 + $450 + ~$180 = ~$638 | $15 + $450 + ~$180 = ~$645 | $35 + $0 + ~$180 = ~$215 | $9.99 + $0 + ~$180 = ~$189.99 |
Linktree Fees vs Stan Store, Beacons, and Linklay
Across the four most-cited link-in-bio commerce tools in 2026, the fee structures look like this:
- Linktree: 12% on Free, 9% on Starter and Pro, 0% only on Premium ($35/mo). Highest platform commission of the four on most plans.
- Stan Store: flat 5% on every plan including Pro ($99/mo). Lowest entry commission but no free tier; cheapest paid plan is $29/mo.
- Beacons: 9% on Free, 0% on every paid plan (Creator Pro starts at $10/mo). Best paid-tier fee math after Linktree Premium.
- Linklay: 0% commerce fees on every plan including Free. No platform commission at any tier; only Stripe processing applies.
How to Avoid Linktree Fees Entirely
Three ways to avoid Linktree's 9-12% commerce fee. First, upgrade to Linktree Premium at $35/mo — the only Linktree tier with 0% platform commission. Second, route your bio link to an external checkout (Gumroad, Stripe Checkout, Shopify) instead of using Linktree's built-in commerce. You'll lose attribution and conversion data, but Linktree won't take a cut because the transaction never touches their platform.
Third, switch to a link-in-bio tool that doesn't charge a platform commission. Linklay Pro at $9.99/mo charges 0% on every sale across every plan including Free. Beacons paid plans (Creator Pro at $10/mo and above) also charge 0%. For creators selling at any meaningful volume through their bio link, the platform-commission line item is usually the single biggest fee they can eliminate by switching tools.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does Linktree take from each sale?
Linktree takes 12% on the Free plan, 9% on Starter ($8/mo), 9% on Pro ($15/mo), and 0% on Premium ($35/mo). These are platform commission fees separate from Stripe's processing fee (roughly 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction). On a $20 sale via Linktree Pro, that's $1.80 to Linktree + about $0.88 to Stripe — roughly 13.4% gone before you see the money.
Does Linktree have a transaction fee?
Yes. Linktree charges a platform commission on every digital product sale processed through its built-in commerce — 12% on Free, 9% on Starter and Pro, and 0% only on Premium ($35/mo). This fee is taken off the top before Stripe deducts its own processing fee. For creators selling at any volume, the Linktree commission is often the single largest fee line item.
What percentage does Linktree charge?
Linktree charges 12% on the Free plan, 9% on Starter ($8/mo) and Pro ($15/mo), and 0% on Premium ($35/mo) as a platform commission on digital product sales. Stripe's processing fee (around 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction) is separate and stacks on top. So the effective rate on a Linktree Pro sale is roughly 12% combined, and on a Linktree Free sale it's roughly 15%.
Is there a Linktree plan with no commerce fee?
Yes — Linktree Premium at $35/month is the only Linktree plan with a 0% commerce fee. Every cheaper Linktree tier (Free, Starter, Pro) charges 9-12% on digital sales. Premium pays off vs Pro at roughly $670/month in sales because the fee savings start exceeding the $20/mo subscription gap. Below that volume, Linktree Pro is cheaper overall despite the 9% fee.
Does Linktree charge fees on the free plan?
Yes. Linktree Free charges the highest commerce fee of any Linktree tier: 12% on every digital product sale. That's separate from Stripe's processing fee (roughly 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction). So on a $20 sale through Linktree Free, you net about $16.72 after Linktree and Stripe combined. For creators selling more than ~$70/month, the 12% fee on Free costs more than upgrading to Linktree Starter at $8/mo.
How do Linktree fees compare to Stan Store and Beacons?
Linktree is the most expensive of the three on most plans. Stan Store charges a flat 5% on every plan including Pro ($99/mo) but has no free tier and starts at $29/mo. Beacons charges 9% on Free and 0% on every paid plan (Creator Pro at $10/mo and above). Linktree charges 9-12% on every plan except Premium ($35/mo). For paid-tier fee math, Beacons Creator Pro ($10/mo, 0%) and Linklay Pro ($9.99/mo, 0%) are the cheapest options.
Can I avoid Linktree's commerce fee?
Three ways. First, upgrade to Linktree Premium at $35/month — the only Linktree tier with 0%. Second, route your bio link to an external checkout (Gumroad, Stripe Checkout, Shopify) so the transaction never touches Linktree's platform. Third, switch to a link-in-bio tool that doesn't charge a platform commission at all — Linklay Pro is $9.99/mo with 0% on every plan, Beacons paid plans are 0%, and both undercut Linktree's commerce-fee math at any volume.
What's the cheapest link-in-bio tool with 0% fees?
Linklay is the cheapest link-in-bio tool with 0% commerce fees on every plan including Free. Linklay Pro is $9.99/month or $99/year. Beacons Creator Pro is $10/month with 0% on paid plans but 9% on Free. Linktree Premium is the only Linktree tier with 0% fees but costs $35/month — 3.5x the price of Linklay Pro. For creators optimizing for the cheapest combined subscription + fee total, Linklay Pro is the lowest-cost option in 2026.