What Stripe Charges When a Customer Pays Amex
Stripe's pricing page lists card rates, not network rates. Here is what it says an American Express charge costs and when you pay more.
A customer hands over an American Express card and you wonder what Stripe takes. Many shop owners expect a second line on the statement, an Amex surcharge on top of the usual cut. Stripe's pricing page does not work that way. It lists rates for cards as a group, not one price per network. Here is what the page actually says, and when an Amex charge costs more for reasons that have nothing to do with the card's brand.
Does Stripe charge a separate fee for American Express cards?
No, and that is the short answer. Stripe's pricing page says Stripe charges a per-transaction fee depending on the payment method the end customer uses. The page states its card rates for cards generally. It does not break them out by network, so there is no American Express line item and no Amex rate to hunt for.
That means the question to ask is not "what is Stripe's Amex fee" but "what rate applies to this charge." A tapped card, a typed card, and a card from another country each land on a different line of Stripe's pricing page. The network printed on the front of the plastic is not what moves the number.
The card rates Stripe's pricing page states
For a US small business taking cards online, Stripe's pricing page says its standard online rate is 2.9% + 30¢ per successful transaction for domestic cards. For a card tapped or dipped in person, Stripe's pricing page says in-person card payments cost 2.7% + 5¢ per successful transaction for domestic cards.
Stripe's page states these as its card rates. An American Express card charged online or at a reader falls under the same lines. The page does not price by network. A domestic Amex card tapped on a Stripe reader is charged at the in-person card rate. A domestic Amex card charged through your website is charged at the online card rate.
When Stripe's page says you pay more
The add-ons are where the cost of a charge can climb, and none of them care about the card network either.
Stripe's pricing page says manually entered cards add 0.5% to the online card rate. So an Amex number typed in by hand on a phone order costs more. The extra cost comes from the typing, not from the card. A Visa keyed in the same way picks up the same add-on.
Stripe's pricing page says international cards add 1.5% and currency conversion adds 1%. An Amex card from a bank abroad carries the international add-on. If the charge also needs a currency conversion, that adds 1% more. Again, a foreign Mastercard would cost the same bump for the same reason.
Stripe's pricing page also notes that some products and services carry a required tax. Where you operate, what your business does, and your tax situation all shape that tax. That is a line to expect on some accounts, not an Amex surcharge.
If you want a fuller picture of what can stack on a charge, see Stripe charge fees. For how Stripe handles money going back the other way, see Stripe refund fees.
What Stripe's page says about refunds and Amex charges
Refunds are a place where merchants expect fees and often find none. Stripe's pricing page says that for all other payment methods there are no fees for issuing refunds. A card charge, including an Amex charge, falls in that group.
There are two catches. Stripe's pricing page says businesses on standard pricing may face fees for refunds when bank transfers are used. And Stripe's pricing page says the payment processing, Connect and currency conversion fees from the original transaction are not returned. So refunding an Amex sale costs no refund fee. But Stripe keeps the processing cut from the first charge.
Stripe's pricing page says businesses on custom pricing may face fees for issuing refunds depending on their fee schedule with Stripe. If you are on a negotiated plan, check your own schedule rather than the standard page.
Monthly fees, setup fees, and what else Stripe's page says you will not pay
The other worry behind the Amex question is that a surcharge might hide in an account fee. Stripe's pricing page says Stripe does not charge setup fees, monthly fees, or hidden fees like closure fees. Stripe's pricing page also says all fees for businesses on standard pricing are listed on its website. Stripe's pricing page says standard pricing is pay-as-you-go. No monthly bill exists to hide a surprise Amex line.
When pricing stops being standard
High processing volume changes the conversation. Stripe's pricing page says Stripe offers custom pricing for businesses with large processing volumes, and eligibility varies by market. It says custom packages are for businesses with large payments volume or unusual business models.
Stripe's pricing page says it offers volume-based discounts based on volume tiers, commitments, and product usage. It also says it offers optional global single rates, a price that covers all markets. If your processing volume is large, ask Stripe about these. That is the way to lower Stripe fees.
How to check what you actually paid on an Amex charge
Do not take any of this on faith, including this article. Stripe's pricing page says dashboards, tools, and APIs give you transparency into your costs. Open your Stripe dashboard, find a recent Amex charge, and read the fee line on that transaction. That number is the truth for your account, and it will show the card rate plus any add-ons that applied.
Prices move, and Stripe's page can change after this article was written. Check the rates there before you make plans. For more on card network fees, read American Express credit card processing fees and Visa credit card processing fees.