Payments · Info Products7 min readUpdated November 2, 2026

Info Product Processing Fees and Reserves

What course and coaching sellers pay in 2026: platform fees, card rates, dispute costs, and how a rolling reserve ties up launch cash.

Nick Bonnassies, CMO at Tagada · checked against 16 sources

Article summary

TL;DR

A course or coaching seller pays three layers: a platform subscription or fee, card processing, and dispute costs. Standard card rates start around 2.9% + 30¢ in the US; high-risk coaching accounts quote higher. The bigger cost is often the reserve: a share of each sale held for weeks or months to cover refunds and disputes.

Stripe's standard US card rate is 2.9% + 30¢ per successful transaction (read November 2, 2026).
PaymentCloud says coaching merchants "could be paying closer to 3.95% + $0.25 per transaction" (read November 2, 2026).
Teachable's Starter plan takes a 7.5% transaction fee; Podia's Mover plan takes 5% (November 2026).
PayPal gives a reserve example of "10% and held for a 90-day rolling period" (User Agreement, September 14, 2026).
Soar Payments publishes reserves of 5% to 10% of volume for high-risk merchants.

Want to go further? Ask

On this page

This guide is part of our hub on info product payment processing. The general guides, for any business: processing fees and reserves.

What an info product seller pays

Most creators look at the card rate. The total has more layers.

Cost layer	Typical form	Who charges it
Platform	Monthly plan, sometimes a % of each sale	Course platform or store builder1 2
Card processing	% + fixed fee per transaction	Processor7
Store gateway fee	% per order when you use an outside processor	Shopify12
Disputes	Fee per chargeback, plus the lost sale	Processor or platform2 6
Reserve	Share of sales held, not a fee but a cash cost	Processor10 11

Course platforms compared

List prices as of November 2026. Check each page before you choose: plans change often.

Platform	Monthly plan (billed monthly)	Platform fee per sale	Card processing
Kajabi	$179, $249 or $4991	2%, 1% or 0.5% with a third-party processor1	Kajabi Payments (US): 2.9%, 2.8% or 2.7% + $0.301
Teachable	$39, $89 or $1892	7.5% on Starter, 0% on other plans2	US card 2.9% + 30¢, international 3.9% + 30¢2
Thinkific	$109, $219 or $4993	None with Thinkific Payments3	"in line with other processors like Stripe and Paypal at 2.9%"3
Podia	$49, $99 or $1794	5% on Mover, "No fees" on higher plans4	Processor fees on top4
Stan	$29 or $995	"Stan doesn't charge transaction fees"5	Processor fees on top5
Whop	NoSubscription6	NoSeparate platform commission shown6	Domestic card 2.7% + $0.30; +1.5% international card6

On a $997 course sold on Teachable Starter, the 7.5% fee is about $75 per sale, before card processing2.

Fig. 1Platform fee per sale, on each platform's entry plan

Teachable Starter7.5%
Podia Mover5%
Kajabi, third-party processor$179 plan2%
Thinkific, Thinkific PaymentsNone0%
StanNo transaction fees0%

Source: Platform pricing pages, read November 2, 2026

Card processing comes on top, on every platform.

Kajabi, Teachable, Thinkific, Podia and Stan pricing pages, read November 2, 2026.

What processors publish

Outside course platforms, rates depend on your risk profile.

Source	Rate	Note
Stripe (US)	2.9% + 30¢ per successful domestic card transaction7	Add-ons for international cards and conversion7
PaymentCloud, coaching	"between 1.5% and 3.5%" on average; coaching "closer to 3.95% + $0.25"8	High-risk processor, published on its coaching page
Shopify, outside processor	+2%, 1%, 0.6% or 0.2% per order by plan12	On top of the processor's rate

2.9% + 30¢

Stripe US, per successful domestic card transaction

3.95% + $0.25

What PaymentCloud says coaching is closer to

+2%

Shopify's outside-processor fee on its smallest plan

High-risk figures are quotes from sellers of merchant accounts, not market data. Ask for the full schedule in writing.

Why course sellers get reserves

A reserve protects the processor against refunds and disputes it may have to cover later. Info products trigger several of the reasons processors list.

Reason	Source	Info product case
"an industry with longer-than-average delivery windows"	Stripe10	6- or 12-month coaching paid upfront
"an unexplainable sharp increase in processing volume"	Stripe10	A launch or webinar weekend on a new account
"elevated dispute activity"	Stripe10	"Not as described" disputes after a cohort
"increased risk of not fulfilling customer orders"	Stripe10	A small team selling more seats than it can coach
Protection "against the risk of liability"	PayPal, holds "for up to 180 days"11	Any of the above

Fig. 2Four reasons Stripe gives for a reserve, as they show up in a course business

Reserve on your accountStripe's listed reasons

Longer-than-average delivery windows6- or 12-month coaching paid upfront
Sharp increase in processing volumeA launch or webinar weekend on a new account
Elevated dispute activity"Not as described" disputes after a cohort
Risk of not fulfilling ordersA small team selling more seats than it can coach

Stripe Support, Reserves: frequently asked questions, read November 2, 2026.

Delivery timing matters for disputes too. A Visa "not received" dispute can be filed up to 120 days after the last date the buyer expected the service, capped at 540 days after processing15. A long program extends your exposure.

Stripe adds: "In some rare cases, a reserve may be required indefinitely to support a business on Stripe"10.

How a rolling reserve ties up launch cash

A rolling reserve holds a share of each day's sales and releases it after a set period.

Example

You sell $50,000 a month of coaching, with a 10% reserve held 90 days, the structure PayPal uses as its example11. Each month $5,000 is held. By month three, $15,000 sits in the reserve. From month four, each month's release roughly matches the new hold, so about $15,000 stays locked as long as sales are steady.

Fig. 3The reserve from the example, coming back month by month

Held by month three, at $50,000 a month

$15,000

Still held by the processor Paid back to you

$5,000Held until month 4Paid back month 4
$5,000Held until month 5Paid back month 5
$5,000Held until month 6Paid back month 6

Each month's 10% returns 90 days later.

Illustrative example. $50,000 a month, 10% reserve held 90 days; real releases follow your processor's terms.

Plan cash around that number:

Launches make it worse: one $60,000 launch with a 10% reserve locks $6,000 for the full period.
Monthly billing instead of upfront payment shortens what the processor carries.
A clean dispute history is the usual basis to ask for a lower reserve at review.

When the money arrives: payout timing for info product sellers.

Dispute and add-on costs

Each dispute costs a fee on top of the refunded sale. Course platforms publish theirs.

Item	Published fee
Teachable chargeback	$152
Whop dispute	$156
Whop RDR alert	$296
Whop 3D Secure	$0.03 per check6
Visa VAMP, merchant at "Excessive" level	$8 per fraud report or dispute, as reported by Chargeback Gurus14

Visa monitors US merchants from a 1.5% ratio of fraud reports plus disputes13. Tagada follows Visa and Mastercard rules and the laws that apply to payments. Prevention: chargebacks for info product sellers and chargeback alerts.

What to ask before you sign

The full fee schedule: rate, fixed fee, monthly fees, international and currency add-ons.
The reserve: type, percentage, duration and the review date.
The dispute fee, and whether it is refunded when you win.
Payout timing, and whether the first payouts are delayed.
Early termination fees and how long funds are held after closure.
Limits per transaction, important for high-ticket coaching: see high-ticket merchant accounts.

Get every answer in writing before the first sale.

Getting the account: how to get an info product merchant account approved.

How Tagada helps

Published pricing, and more than one place to process

TagadaPay publishes its pricing: "From 2.9% + $0.29," with "No setup fees, no monthly minimums." "High-risk verticals and edge cases are priced case by case."16

Who it serves: "DTC, subscriptions, info products, supplements, SaaS, coaching, high-ticket." "If you sell something real, we will get you paid." "Enhanced review for regulated verticals."16
Onboarding: "Live in 24h. You own your vault."16
Routing: "Route to the processor most likely to approve it, retry on decline. No engineering required." TagadaPay reports a "+18% approval uplift."
Payouts: "Daily payouts, 135+ currencies."
A vault you own: "Export your vault, cards, and customers anytime."

Apply on TagadaPay: "Apply today. Ship tomorrow."

Apply today · Go live in under 24 hours

Apply for processing

Published pricing, and more than one place to process

Updated on November 2, 2026

Nick Bonnassies

CMO at Tagada

CMO at Tagada. Before Tagada, Nick built direct-to-consumer brands that generated over $115M in sales, raised over $25M in crowdfunding and sold two of them. He also works as a fractional CMO on marketing operations and AI systems.

Frequently asked questions

How much does a coaching merchant account cost?

It depends on risk. Stripe's standard US rate is 2.9% + 30¢. PaymentCloud says coaching merchants could pay "closer to 3.95% + $0.25". Add platform fees, dispute fees and, often, a reserve of 5% to 10% of volume as published by Soar Payments.

Why did my processor put a reserve on my course business?

Processors list long delivery windows, sudden volume jumps, elevated disputes and fulfillment risk as reasons. A multi-month coaching program, a big launch on a new account, or "not as described" disputes after a cohort each match one of them.

When is a rolling reserve released?

Each day's held amount is released after the reserve period ends, for example 90 days in PayPal's example. Stripe sends the reserve terms, including the "time period for which the reserve will be applied," by email, and says a reserve may in rare cases be required "indefinitely".

Which course platform has the lowest fees?

It depends on your volume. Platforms with a higher monthly plan often drop the per-sale fee: Teachable charges 7.5% on Starter but 0% above it, and Podia 5% on Mover but none on higher plans. Compare total cost at your expected monthly sales.

Do I pay Shopify fees if I sell my course with another processor?

Yes: 2% per order on Basic, 1% on Grow, 0.6% on Advanced and 0.2% on Plus, on top of your processor's fees. More: can you sell info products on Shopify?