What are “ThriveCart Application Fees”, and Why it’s Not Additional Charges

Transparency matters when it comes to your revenue. That’s why ThriveCart Pro+ with Stripe Connect+ now displays processing and subscription fees in a single, easy-to-read line, giving you a clearer view of every transaction without changing what you pay. It’s the same fees, just smarter accounting.

If you’re using Stripe Connect+ with ThriveCart Pro+, you may notice a line item in your Stripe dashboard called “ThriveCart Application Fees.” Despite its name, this is not an extra ThriveCart charge — it’s simply a new, consolidated way of displaying Stripe’s standard processing and subscription fees in one clear place.

By combining multiple Stripe fees into a single transaction entry, ThriveCart simplifies your accounting, eliminates confusing multi-day deductions, and provides more transparent financial reporting. The total fees you pay remain exactly the same — they’re just easier to understand.

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📌 TL;DR

• ThriveCart does not charge any additional fees beyond Stripe’s own fees.
• Stripe charges multiple sets of fees on transactions, which is hard to track and creates complex accounting challenges. Some of these are at the time of purchase, some are the next business day, for example a subscription fee surcharge.
• The “ThriveCart Application Fee” includes Stripe’s standard payment processing fee, and — if applicable — Stripe’s Billing (subscription) fee of 0.7%.
• These fees are bundled into a single line item on the transaction instead of appearing in separate places, as they did in older Stripe accounts.

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Stripe Processing Fees Explained

To view the official Stripe fee structure for your region, visit 👉 https://stripe.com/pricing

NOTE: Each country or region has its own fees and rates with Stripe – please ensure you are redirected to your appropriate country’s Stripe Pricing page following the above link.

Stripe typically charges:

• A standard payment processing fee (e.g. 2.9% + 30¢ for domestic cards in the US)
• An additional Billing fee of 0.7% for subscription revenue (only applicable if you’re using Stripe Billing – such as recurring payments for subscriptions and rebills)
  

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Regular Charges vs Subscription Charges

Not every transaction will include a subscription. Here’s how the ThriveCart Application Fee behaves in both cases:

💳 Regular Charges (One-Time Purchases)

• For these transactions, the Application Fee replaces the typical Stripe processing fee.
• You’ll only see the fee (which matches that of Stripe’s standard fees for your region) — no additional Billing/subscription fee is applied.
• It’s simply a rename from what used to be labeled as “Stripe processing fee” to “ThriveCart Application Fee”.
  

🔁 Subscription Charges (Recurring Billing)

• For subscription-based charges, the Application Fee includes both:
  
  • The standard Stripe processing fee, and
  • The 0.7% Stripe Billing fee for subscriptions.
• These two components are combined into one single Application Fee on the transaction.
• This may make the fee look higher than expected — but it’s the same total amount you would’ve paid in a previous setup, just shown in a consolidated way.
  

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How Fees Were Shown in previous Stripe Accounts

In older (non-Connect+) Stripe accounts, fees appeared in two separate places:

1. On the Transaction:
   • You’d see the standard Stripe payment fee (e.g. 2.9% + 30¢ for domestic US cards).
2. On the Payout/Balance Report:
   • The 0.7% subscription fee would be deducted from payouts separately and listed as a distinct line item (e.g., under “Stripe Fees”).
     

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How Fees Are Displayed in Stripe Connect+ Accounts (ThriveCart)

With Stripe Connect+ accounts, ThriveCart now bundles both the standard payment fee and, if applicable, the subscription fee into one Application Fee, shown on each transaction.

✅ Important: THIS IS NOT AN EXTRA OR HIDDEN FEE. ThriveCart is simply collecting the same Stripe fees — just in a single, upfront line item for clarity and accounting ease. 

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Example Breakdown

Transaction Type	Previous Stripe Account	Stripe Connect+ (via ThriveCart)
Regular Charge	Stripe Processing Fee on transaction	ThriveCart Application Fee
Subscription Charge	Stripe Processing Fee + separate 0.7% fee on payout	Single ThriveCart Application Fee (combined)

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Let’s break it down:

Example: A customer is charged $100 for a subscription using a domestic credit card in the US.

• Stripe’s standard base fee: 2.9% + $0.30 = $3.20
• Stripe’s subscription (Billing) fee: 0.7% = $0.70
• Total fee: $3.90

How it appears in Stripe (previous method):

• $3.20 is deducted at the time of the transaction
• The $0.70 subscription fee is billed the following day as a separate account debit from your balance / payout

How it appears in ThriveCart (Stripe Connect+):

• The full $3.90 is charged at the time of the transaction
• This appears as a single ThriveCart Application Fee, combining both the payment and subscription fees upfront
  

✅ The total amount is the same either way — ThriveCart is simply presenting it more transparently, all in one place, which makes reconciliation and tracking easier for vendors.

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How to Track Fees in Your Stripe Dashboard

To view or export your Stripe fees (including Billing fees), follow these steps:

1. Log in to your Stripe Dashboard.
2. Navigate to Reports → Balance report
3. Choose to either:
   • Download the full report, or
   • Use the “Additional Stripe fees” filter
4. Filter the Description for the word Billing to find subscription-related charges.
   

Helpful links:

• Stripe Balance Report Documentation
• Exporting Stripe Fees
  

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How to Track Fees in Your ThriveCart Dashboard

For full Stripe Connect+ transparency, you can also download these Stripe fee invoices right from within your ThriveCart dashboard. To download the fee invoices:

1. Go to the Account menu → Accounting → View Invoices.
2. Click on the Download button for the relevant month to download the fees invoice.

See more in our guide: Downloading your Stripe Connect+ Fee Invoices

Why ThriveCart Bundles the Fees

Stripe allows platforms to collect their Billing fees in multiple ways:

• Some platforms tally up total subscription usage and deduct fees from balances at a later time.
• ThriveCart instead opts to collect all fees at the time of the transaction, using Stripe’s Application Fee feature.
  

This method:

• Provides a clearer, upfront picture of total fees per transaction
• Reduces the need to track deductions later
• Aligns with Stripe’s recommended practices for Connect-based platforms
  

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Lower B2B Card Fees with Automatic Level 2/3 Data

If you sell to businesses and accept Visa commercial cards via Stripe Connect+, ThriveCart now enriches those transactions with the detailed Level 2/3 data Visa requires to unlock reduced interchange fees.

What does that mean in practice? Visa’s Commercial Enhanced Data Program rewards merchants who provide extra purchase details, like tax amounts, product line items, and shipping information, by lowering processing rates. Until now, this often required manual setup. ThriveCart now does it for you, automatically so you can take advantage of level 2/3 data savings.
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How it works:

• If a Visa commercial card is used and the required data is available → ThriveCart passes the Level 2/3 fields to Stripe at checkout.
• If certain data is missing → the transaction still completes normally, just without enrichment.
• If everything is in place → you benefit from reduced B2B interchange fees.

Why it matters:

• Puts money back in your pocket by lowering costs on eligible transactions.
• No setup or ongoing work required, the system handles it in the background.
• Particularly impactful for high-volume B2B merchants processing many commercial card payments.

Example: Imagine you’re selling enterprise licenses for $5,000 each. With enriched Level 2/3 data, those big-ticket B2B payments now qualify for lower fees, adding up to significant savings over time.

👉 Learn more: Visa Commercial Enhanced Data Program (CEDP)

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💬 Common Questions

• Q: Is ThriveCart charging more than Stripe?
  • A: NO — ThriveCart matches Stripe’s fees exactly. The total fee remains unchanged; it’s just presented as a single line item instead of multiple difficult to track, multi-day transactions. 

• Q: Why does the Application Fee look higher than before?
  • A: For subscription charges, the 0.7% Billing fee is now bundled into the Application Fee. It’s not an additional fee — it’s just no longer shown separately on payouts.

• Q: What if it’s not a subscription?
  • A: Then the Application Fee simply reflects the standard Stripe processing fee, just under a new name. No extra Billing fee is included.

• Q: Will this affect my payouts?
  • A: No. In fact, your payouts may now look cleaner, because the 0.7% subscription fee (if applicable) is already taken care of in the Application Fee — no surprises later.

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Related Articles

• Downloading your Stripe Connect+ Fee Invoices
• Generating sales tax reports
• Understanding Subscription Cancellations in ThriveCart