Kickstarter vs Indiegogo: Fees and Funding Risks

For successful standard campaigns, Kickstarter’s U.S. fee schedule lists a 5% platform fee and processing of 3% plus $0.30 per pledge, while Indiegogo’s fee example lists a 5% fee and a $9,180 payout from $10,000 collected through 100 transactions. A creator’s proceeds therefore depend on payment count as well as the amount raised. The choice also determines when pledges become usable funds.

Indiegogo’s platform upgrade ended flexible funding for new campaigns in October 2025 and set processing at 3% plus $0.20 per transaction. A regular campaign on either platform depends on reaching its goal. Indiegogo also offers Express Crowdfunding, which collects payment at checkout, has no campaign goal and can begin creator payouts during the campaign after onboarding.

How payment count changes the payout

For a funded U.S.-dollar campaign whose pledges are all at least $10, the published rates give a useful estimate. Kickstarter proceeds are 92% of the collected amount minus $0.30 per pledge; Indiegogo proceeds are 92% minus $0.20 per transaction. At the same gross amount and payment count, the fixed processing charge leaves $0.10 more per payment on Indiegogo.

These conditional examples assume that every payment is collected, the standard processing rates apply and no pledge falls below Kickstarter’s micropledge threshold:

At $5,000 from 50 payments, estimated proceeds are $4,585 on Kickstarter and $4,590 on Indiegogo.
At $10,000 from 100 payments, estimated proceeds are $9,170 on Kickstarter and $9,180 on Indiegogo.
At the same $10,000 from 500 payments, estimated proceeds fall to $9,050 on Kickstarter and $9,100 on Indiegogo.
At $50,000 from 1,000 payments, estimated proceeds are $45,700 on Kickstarter and $45,800 on Indiegogo.

The two $10,000 cases isolate the effect of pledge count: spreading the same total across more payments increases fixed processing charges without changing the platform fee. Pledge size matters too. Kickstarter applies a different processing rate to pledges under $10, so a campaign expecting many such pledges needs a separate estimate rather than the standard-rate formula above.

The cost of missing a funding goal

A regular campaign that misses its goal pays out no partial production budget to its creator. Neither platform charges its stated platform or processing fees on an unsuccessful goal-based campaign. This protects backers from funding a project below the amount its creator set as necessary, but it makes that threshold decisive for a business that cannot produce rewards without a minimum raise.

The goal must also account for deductions from a successful raise. In the conditional $10,000 example above, neither platform leaves the creator with $10,000 to spend. If a creator needs that amount after platform and processing fees and expects 100 standard-rate payments, the same formula implies a gross raise of at least $10,902.18 on Kickstarter or $10,891.31 on Indiegogo. Production, shipping, taxes and other campaign costs would require additional room in the budget.

A higher goal can cover those costs, but it also raises the amount a regular campaign must collect before its creator receives funding. Older descriptions of Indiegogo’s flexible funding refer to a discontinued option. That former route for keeping funds below a goal does not describe a new regular campaign.

Express changes when orders become commitments

Express serves a different situation: a creator can take confirmed orders without waiting for a collective funding goal. Backers provide payment and shipping details at checkout, and payouts can start while the campaign runs. The mode is intended for projects with products ready to ship or close to fulfillment that do not need a minimum campaign total to deliver.

That can suit a business able to fulfill orders individually. It also means delivery commitments begin as orders are paid, rather than after a goal is cleared. Installment payments add a timing distinction: an order is fully paid only after its last installment, and shipping begins after full payment. A project dependent on a minimum production run has a stronger reason to use a goal-based campaign, where the funding condition matches that requirement.

The payout calculations above compare standard campaigns at stated processing rates. Express changes collection and payout timing, so those figures alone cannot describe its cash flow or the cost of fulfilling individual orders. For either mode, the creator still needs to distinguish money collected from money available after fees and delivery expenses.

What historical platform patterns can tell creators

Platform rules can affect which projects enter each site, making historical averages a weak shortcut for predicting a new campaign’s outcome. In a study of 218,655 completed projects begun from April 2009 through January 2014, Anil R. Doshi estimated that after an unusually successful Kickstarter project, subsequent Kickstarter project entry fell 19.5% relative to Indiegogo entry. The study examined categories shared by the platforms and considered differences in their funding mechanisms and project rules.

Its historical context matters. Indiegogo then allowed creators to choose flexible funding, and the platforms had different fee structures and category rules. The finding concerns subsequent project entry during that early period, not a current success rate for a creator choosing between today’s standard campaigns. It does show why a platform’s observed project mix reflects its rules as well as creators’ preferences.

Which arrangement fits the project

For a project that needs a minimum sum before production, compare the platforms as goal-based campaigns. Estimate proceeds using both the expected gross raise and a plausible payment count, then set a goal high enough to cover fees and the costs of delivering rewards. The fixed processing difference favors Indiegogo at equal gross collections and payment counts, but its size depends on how many payments the campaign receives.

For a product that can be fulfilled order by order, Indiegogo’s Express mode offers earlier collection and earlier delivery commitments. The central decision is whether the project needs a collective funding threshold or can responsibly accept paid orders as they arrive.