Happy Valley

Craftgate vs Polar

Craftgate and Polar are both payments & billing tools. Craftgate is aimed at small businesses and enterprise, while Polar is aimed at developers. Only Polar has a free plan.

Craftgate

One-stop payment orchestration platform

Polar

Open-source monetization platform for developers

PricingPaidFreemium · $20
Starting priceNot published$20/mo
Free planNoYes
Free trial——
Built forSmall businesses, Enterprise, DevelopersDevelopers
Platformswebweb
CountryTRSE · 2022
Rating——

Choose Craftgate if

Merchants, marketplaces and platforms that work with several banks and payment providers.

  • Independent payment orchestration
  • Reduces dependency on one provider
  • Better authorization rates via routing

Look elsewhere if: Small stores using one gateway.

Choose Polar if

Indie developers and small SaaS.

  • Lower fees on paid plans
  • Developer-friendly
  • Open source

Look elsewhere if: Large SaaS needing enterprise invoicing (Paddle).

Craftgate vs Polar pricing

Craftgate

  • CustomCustomCommission agreed per merchant; no public rates

Polar

  • Starter$05% + 50¢ per transaction
  • Pro$20/mo3.8% + 40¢ per transaction, prioritized support
  • Growth$100/mo3.6% + 35¢ per transaction
  • Scale$400/mo3.4% + 30¢ per transaction, Slack support

Craftgate · Key features

  • Single integration to virtual POS, payment institutions and alternative methods
  • Smart and dynamic payment routing
  • Retry of failed payments through an alternative provider
  • Autopilot continuity during POS downtime
  • Payment gateway, card storage, one-click and recurring payments
  • Link and QR payments and fraud management

Cons

  • Value grows with multiple POS agreements
  • Pricing quote-based

Polar · Key features

  • Merchant of record with global tax
  • Checkout and subscriptions
  • Usage-based billing
  • License keys
  • Benefits: GitHub repo, Discord roles, downloads
  • Open source with SDKs

Cons

  • Young company
  • Fewer enterprise features
  • Smaller support team

Craftgate vs Polar: FAQ

Do Craftgate and Polar have a free plan?

Craftgate has no free plan. Polar has a free plan.

Which is better for small businesses, Craftgate or Polar?

Craftgate lists small businesses as a core audience, while Polar is aimed more at developers.

Not sure yet?