Mercury vs Polar
Mercury and Polar are both payments & billing tools. Mercury is aimed at small businesses and developers, while Polar is aimed at developers. Polar costs less, from $20/mo versus $29.90/mo for Mercury. Both have a free plan.
| Pricing | Freemium · $30 | Freemium · $20 |
| Starting price | $29.90/mo | $20/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Built for | Small businesses, Developers | Developers |
| Platforms | web, ios, android | web |
| Country | US · 2017 | SE · 2022 |
| Rating | — | — |
Choose Mercury if
US-incorporated startups.
- Fast, founder-friendly onboarding
- No monthly fees on core
- Excellent UI
Look elsewhere if: Non-US entities.
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).
Mercury vs Polar pricing
Mercury
- Mercury$0Banking, cards, invoicing, bill pay, expense management
- Plus$29.90/moRecurring invoices, ACH debit invoicing; 15% off annually
- Pro$299/moRelationship manager, NetSuite categorizations
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
Mercury · Key features
- Business checking and savings
- Debit and credit cards
- Treasury and yield
- Invoicing and bill pay
- International wires
- API and integrations
Cons
- US entities only
- Cash deposits limited
- Not a full-service bank
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
Mercury vs Polar: FAQ
Which is cheaper, Mercury or Polar?
Polar starts at $20/mo and Mercury at $29.90/mo. Both prices are checked on the vendors' own pricing pages.
Do Mercury and Polar have a free plan?
Yes, both Mercury and Polar have a free plan; paid plans add more usage and features.
Which is better for small businesses, Mercury or Polar?
Mercury lists small businesses as a core audience, while Polar is aimed more at developers.