What Gathrings charges
One all-in fee per transaction, with card processing included. Rates, worked examples, and where to see what you netted.
What Gathrings charges
One fee per transaction: a percentage plus 30¢. It varies by what the money is for.
What | Fee |
|---|---|
Tickets | 5% + CA$0.30 |
Donations (one-time) | 4.5% + CA$0.30 |
Recurring donations | 4% + CA$0.30 |
Sponsorship | 4% + CA$0.30 |
All in Canadian dollars.
Card processing is included
This is the part worth understanding, because most platforms work differently.
Our fee is the whole fee. You are not billed separately for card processing — we pay Stripe out of what we charge you. When you see 5% on a ticket, that is everything coming off.
Compare that with how it's usually quoted. A platform advertising "3.5% plus processing" means 3.5% and then roughly 2.9% + 30¢ on top — closer to 6.4% + $1.59 once both land. One number is easier to plan around than two.
What that looks like
A $25 ticket
- Fee: 5% of $25, plus 30¢ = $1.55
- You keep $23.45
A $10 donation
- Fee: 4.5% of $10, plus 30¢ = $0.75
- You keep $9.25
A $10/month recurring donation
- Fee: 4% of $10, plus 30¢ = $0.70 each month
- You keep $9.30 each month
Small amounts cost proportionally more
The 30¢ is flat, so it weighs more on small transactions:
Ticket price | Effective rate |
|---|---|
$5 | 11.0% |
$10 | 8.0% |
$25 | 6.2% |
$50 | 5.6% |
$200 | 5.2% |
This is true of every payment platform — the card networks charge a fixed amount per transaction regardless of size. It's worth knowing when you set a donation minimum: at $2, nearly a fifth of the gift goes to fees. A $5 minimum is kinder to everyone.
Recurring donations are cheaper on purpose
Monthly gifts are charged 4% rather than the 4.5% on one-time donations. Recurring support is the most valuable thing a community group can build, and we'd rather not tax it hardest.
The fee applies to every instalment, not just the first.
Where to see what you actually netted
The fee isn't shown before a transaction — there's no "you'll receive $X" preview when you set a price. You see it afterwards, as a total:
- Tickets — the event's Sales overview shows Net … · fees … beneath gross revenue.
- Donations — Settings → Donations shows … net · … fees beneath total raised.
Both figures are aggregate and pre-tax. The fee line is our platform fee, not GST or QST — tax is tracked separately.
What the fee doesn't include
Refunds. If you refund an order, the buyer gets the full amount back. Our fee on that transaction is not returned to you.
Disputes. If a cardholder disputes a charge, there are separate costs. Refunding an unhappy buyer directly is always cheaper than letting it become a chargeback.
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