If a project is successfully funded, Kickstarter collects a 5% fee from the funds collected for creators. Stripe, our payments processor, will also collect a payment processing fee (roughly 3-5%). The complete fee breakdowns are available here.
If a project does not reach its funding goal, no fees are collected.
We established this fee structure in 2009 and have set an industry standard for creator-friendly funding.
We use this model because we believe in paying artists as much as possible. We’re a tool for going around traditional gatekeepers like agents, dealers, distributors, fiscal sponsors, record labels, and publishers, and we accordingly take a much lower cut than they do.
In 2015, we furthered our commitment to supporting the health of the creative community by becoming a Public Benefit Corporation. This means we measure our success based on how well we achieve our mission of bringing creative projects to life, not just shareholder profits.
What are the fees for using Kickstarter’s Pledge Manager?
The fees we will collect on payments made through the Pledge Manager are the same as the fees we collect on successful projects.
Our payments processor, Stripe, will collect a variable card processing fee (roughly 3-5%) on the full payment, including any taxes. Kickstarter will collect a 5% platform fee on all funds, except taxes.