The short answer
Braintree is billed per transaction (2.59% + $0.49). It has a free tier: Free sandbox account; live rates not always published. The paid plans we list start at 2.89% + $0.29 (Braintree Direct (standard card)).
Plans and prices
| Plan | Price | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| Braintree Direct (standard card) | 2.89% + $0.29 | Per successful US card/digital-wallet transaction; no monthly or setup fee. (Advanced Credit/Debit raised from 2.59% to 2.89% effective Jan 13, 2025.) |
| Venmo | 3.49% + $0.49 | Per Venmo transaction, US only. |
| ACH Direct Debit | 0.75% (capped at $5.00) | Standard ACH; same-day ACH is 1.5% + $0.10. |
| International / foreign card surcharge | +1% + 1% | Additional 1% for non-USD currency presentment and additional 1% for cards issued outside the US. |
| Chargeback fee | $15.00 | Per chargeback. |
| Custom / high-volume | Custom (contact sales) | Interchange-plus or discounted flat rate for businesses processing roughly $80,000+/month. |
How Braintree bills you
The pricing model is per transaction (2.59% + $0.49). PayPal-owned gateway with REST + GraphQL APIs, client SDKs for iOS/Android/JS and 6 server languages, plus native PayPal/Venmo support. Best suited to: paypal/venmo-native card gateway.
What to watch for on the bill
- January 2025 price increase moved Advanced Credit/Debit from 2.59% to 2.89% + $0.29
- Less competitive for cross-border: stacked +1%/+1% surcharges on foreign currency and foreign-issued cards
- ACH pricing and setup reported as clunkier/less competitive than some alternatives
The pricing page we read
Source: https://developer.paypal.com/braintree/docs/. Prices change, so confirm there before you commit.
Compare Braintree with alternatives
Other payments apis: Stripe, Square, Razorpay, Mollie, Checkout.com.
Looking at quality rather than price? See the Braintree score on APIbenchmarks. Full entry: Braintree pricing.