Startups > Stripe

Stripe

Stripe helps businesses accept payments and manage financial operations globally via APIs.

Series I $9.81B total Founded 2010 San Francisco, California 8006 employees

Stripe is a developer-first payments platform that simplifies accepting payments online and in-person through a simple seven-line API integration. Beyond payments, it provides a comprehensive suite of tools for treasury management, billing, fraud prevention, and compliance, enabling businesses to manage the full complexity of operating online. Founded by Patrick and John Collison, Stripe serves everyone from startups to enterprise companies across 195+ countries with a platform designed for both simplicity and scale.

Problem solved

Businesses struggle to integrate payment processing, manage global transactions, handle compliance, and build billing infrastructure without significant engineering effort and complexity.

Target customer

Startups, SMBs, and enterprises processing payments online and in-person; SaaS companies, e-commerce platforms, marketplaces, and any business needing payment infrastructure and financial tools.

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Founders

Patrick Collison

CEO & Co-Founder

Irish entrepreneur who studied Mathematics at MIT (2006-2010, did not complete degree). Won the Young Scientist and Technology Exhibition at 16; previously co-founded Auctomatic with his brother, which sold to Live Current Media in 2008 for a multi-million dollar exit.

John Collison

President & Co-Founder

Irish entrepreneur born August 6, 1990. Co-founded Auctomatic with Patrick Collison at age 17 before launching Stripe. Together with Patrick, the brothers hold controlling interest in Stripe.

Funding history

Seed Unknown January 2010 Led by Y Combinator · Unknown

Series A $2M 2011 Led by Sequoia Capital · Andreessen Horowitz, SV Angel, Elon Musk, Peter Thiel

Series B $18M February 2012 Led by Sequoia Capital · Unknown

Series C $150M 2014 Led by Unknown · Unknown

Series F $250M September 2019 Led by Unknown · Unknown

Series G Unknown March 2020 Led by Google Ventures · Unknown

Series H Unknown March 2021 Led by Baillie Gifford · Unknown

Series I $6.87B March 2023 Led by Andreessen Horowitz · Baillie Gifford, Founders Fund, General Catalyst, MSD Partners, Thrive Capital, GIC, Goldman Sachs Asset and Wealth Management, Temasek

Secondary Market $694M April 2024 Led by Unknown · Unknown

Total raised: $9.81B

Industries

Mobile Payments FinTech Finance SaaS

Pricing

Transaction-based pricing: 2.9% + $0.30 per domestic card transaction; 3.1% + $0.30 for international cards plus 1.5% cross-border fee. EEA businesses pay 1.5% + €0.25 for standard cards, UK cards 2.5% + €0.25. ACH transfers cost 0.8% capped at $5. No setup fees or monthly fees. Additional products like Stripe Billing use usage-based pricing.

Integrations

Amazon Web Services, Nginx, Envoy, DocuSign, Contentful, Algolia, Sentry, Google Workspace

Tech stack

MDBootstrap (UI frameworks) Algolia (Search engines) DocuSign Contentful (CMS) Cart Functionality (Ecommerce) Sentry (Issue trackers) Nginx (Reverse proxies) Google Workspace (Email) Amazon Web Services (PaaS) Envoy (Reverse proxies) DigiCert (SSL/TLS certificate authorities)

Website

stripe.com/

Competitors

Square

Focused on point-of-sale and small business payments; less developer-centric API approach and narrower global reach than Stripe.

PayPal

Older, more consumer-focused payment platform; less designed for developers and modern API-first businesses compared to Stripe's streamlined integration.

Adyen

Enterprise-focused global payments platform; stronger in traditional payment processing but less developer-friendly API design than Stripe.

2Checkout (Verifone)

Legacy payments processor; less modern infrastructure and API design compared to Stripe's contemporary developer experience.

Why this matters: Stripe fundamentally changed how businesses accept payments by making it a developer problem rather than a business problem—a 7-line API instead of months of integration work. The company's ability to raise $6.87B at a $50B valuation in 2023 while remaining private demonstrates its outsized impact on global commerce infrastructure; it now serves as the de facto payments backbone for modern internet businesses.

Best for: Any business accepting online or in-person payments that needs developer-friendly infrastructure, from startups building payment flows to enterprises managing global treasury, billing, and compliance at scale.

Use cases

SaaS Subscription Billing

SaaS companies use Stripe Billing to manage recurring subscriptions, usage-based pricing, and dunning workflows without building custom billing logic. Enables complex billing models like tiered pricing and seat-based billing with minimal engineering overhead.

E-Commerce Payment Processing

Online retailers integrate Stripe's payment APIs in 7 lines of code to accept card payments, digital wallets, and local payment methods globally. Reduces PCI compliance burden and fraud risk while supporting 195+ countries and 135+ currencies.

Marketplace Payouts and Splits

Marketplaces and platforms use Stripe Connect to split payments between merchants, handle payouts, and manage complex financial workflows. Enables borderless money movement and seller onboarding at scale.

International Expansion

Businesses expanding globally leverage Stripe's multi-currency support, local payment methods, and compliance handling for each region. Eliminates need to integrate 50+ separate payment processors across different countries.

Alternatives

Square Choose Square for simpler point-of-sale and small business payments; choose Stripe for developer-centric APIs and global scale.

PayPal Choose PayPal for consumer familiarity and established brand trust; choose Stripe for modern API design and developer experience.

Adyen Choose Adyen for enterprise-grade legacy payment processing; choose Stripe for developer-friendly APIs and faster integration cycles.

FAQ

What does Stripe do? +

Stripe is a payments platform that lets businesses accept payments online and in-person, manage billing and subscriptions, handle payouts, and operate globally. It provides developer-friendly APIs that can be integrated in minutes, plus a full suite of financial and compliance tools to manage the entire business operation.

How much does Stripe cost? +

Stripe charges 2.9% + $0.30 per domestic card transaction (3.1% + $0.30 for international cards), with a 1.5% cross-border fee. EEA rates are 1.5% + €0.25 per transaction. There are no setup fees or monthly fees. ACH transfers cost 0.8% capped at $5.

What are alternatives to Stripe? +

Square is simpler for small business and point-of-sale; PayPal offers established trust but less developer focus; Adyen serves enterprise-grade processing. Smaller alternatives include 2Checkout, Authorize.net, and Braintree, each with different strengths in specific verticals or regions.

Who uses Stripe? +

Stripe serves startups, SMBs, and enterprises across all industries, including SaaS companies, e-commerce platforms, marketplaces, nonprofits, and any business processing payments. Notable user base spans from seed-stage startups to Fortune 500 companies, though specific customer names are not publicly disclosed.

How does Stripe compare to PayPal? +

Stripe offers modern, developer-first APIs designed for quick integration in minutes, while PayPal is a legacy consumer-facing platform. Stripe provides better pricing for high-volume businesses, stronger global expansion support, and more flexible billing models. PayPal excels in consumer trust and brand recognition but lags in developer experience.