A quick update on Patreon fees

Update : the changes will not be taking place

Aadit Doshi

It's per creator :/

Camui Kushi

Good idea, i’ll do that when I’m working on Monday

Game Maker's Toolkit

Hey Mark, in the meantime I recommend following in Jim Sterling's footsteps: he changed the title of his $1 tier to include that it is in fact $1.38, making it more transparent for potential new patrons.

Parachuting Turtle

Would it be possible to accept payments directly from patrons? Either directly via PayPal or other means (an old school personal check in the mail comes to mind). It's not the most practical, but to be honest I'd rather support directly than to line Patreon's pockets for what is now a significantly less attractive platform especially for small monthly amounts. 35 cents for a $1 pledge is absurd, especially for those of us that support many different creators with $1 pledges. Patreon should charge us one fee for all our pledges, instead of repeatedly for multiple pledges.

Damian Esteves

Thank you!

Game Maker's Toolkit

Patreon are being tool boxes, but I'm sticking with you, Mark. Your content deserves to be funded.

Exactly this. 2.9% + $0.35 is a pretty standard credit card processing fee, so that number in itself isn't suspicious. But Patreon charges all my pledges in one transaction, so, even considering that they might have to pay some fees when paying out to creators (dunno how that works), adding this to each individual pledge makes no sense, other than to buff what Patreon themselves can pocket.

In case you are still undecided about this issue, take a look at this article: <a href="https://www.pretty-terrible.com/funny-money-patreon-style/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://www.pretty-terrible.com/funny-money-patreon-style/</a> . I found it in the comments section of Vi Hart's post about this change, posted by a patron named Shmuel. The math shows that the real reason Patreon has done this is too line their own pocketbooks. Even though creators get a "larger percent" of your pledge, in reality less % of the money you PAY to Patreon goes to the creator. Be outraged! Contact Patreon to express your thoughts about the issue. Mark, it would be great if you could create an alternate payment method. Many people have expressed their desire to leave Patreon if they go through with this change.

Hi - yes. If Patreon goes through with this (the backlash is fierce, they may reconsider) then I will set up a direct payment system and look at other options like Drip in the new year. Everyone will still get the perks, via an email newsletter.

Game Maker's Toolkit

Mark, would you consider setting up an alternative support route, perhaps through a personal website? I realize that's a huge prospect, but I know your fans would enjoy the directness and lack of a middleman. For reference, the author/speaker Sam Harris recently did this: <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/samharris/comments/6pqqvi/sam_harris_and_his_reasons_for_leaving_patreon/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://www.reddit.com/r/samharris/comments/6pqqvi/sam_harris_and_his_reasons_for_leaving_patreon/</a>

I'm sticking with you but I did have to cut a few other creators short because my funds didn't magically increase. I let Patreon know about this and that I'm not happy about it. You are in the elite club of premium creators though &lt;3

Alina Marquardt

As usual sir, you're a professional on every level. I knew about this from outside sources but most of the patreons I'm stuck in on haven't sent out an update like this. Thanks for being you! Definitely will continue backing through the new year.

Michael

Thanks a lot for this Mark - strange that this post is the first I'm hearing of it. I support a bunch of creators with $1 pledges and this is going to both cost me more while giving less to them as a percentage of what I'm paying. So I'm going to be cancelling all of my pledges. I know this isn't your doing, but I find this change shady and disgusting, and I don't want any part of my pledges going to a company like Patreon. Is there anywhere else we can support you?

Mark, I am upset by this change. As people before me have noted, this will impact small creators by punishing small pledges with up to 30% fees for the patron. I support 5 creators with $3 or less, and this will result in a 22.6% fee split between myself and my creators. I will be contacting Patreon about this, and I urge everyone to do the same. In the meantime, Mark, would you consider accepting PayPal directly? Their fees are lower and it would be a great way to send a message to Patreon by boycotting it.

Yeah. We'll stick around. I'm even making a game design DIY based on your videos! We'll start making simple games that use all the tips

I've also sent a complaint to Patreon about this. $1 pledges are important for many people as far as I know.

Parachuting Turtle

You can't get rid of us that easily :P

Aadit Doshi

You're such a respectable person, Mr. Brown. I really appreciate how upfront and clear you've been about the issue. I don't mind terribly, since I only donate a little to Patreon for now, but I can absolutely see the problems that you pose. On the other hand, it does sound nice that creators will be getting more. I'm hoping that the 35 cent fee is a flat fee done only once per Patreon payment, and not per creator, which would really hurt the system's convenience and fairness. And hopefully they will update it so that tiers show the 'full price' including patron fees, so that it stays transparent. Well, we shall see how it pans out. Have a lovely holiday season, Mr. Brown, and do take a vacation for yourself! All work and no play is the way to burnout after all.

Jun Manjoume

I have 6 patreons that I contribute $3 or less to so this would force me to have to make some tough cuts. I've submitted feedback as well voicing my concerns with the changes.

Matthew

In addition to misgivings made by you and others (and my own) about Patreon's new model, this caused you, one of my favorite creators, to have to go about asking your affected donors to bear with you because of how much great content you provide. It's like if my boss would tell me that due to tax changes on his end I need to ask for a raise again just to keep my income. You and other creators shouldn't have to go through this.

Don't fall for this trick. The change was not made to help the creators, it was made because Patreon is greedy. They take $0.35 per pledge, but only pay that fee once to Paypal and the credit card companies. So they earn $0.35 for every additional creator you support. They hope that we still want to support the creators and because it's only a few $ per user we will accept it - but creators should look for alternatives. It's not good that users have to pay $1.38 + tax to give creators $0.95. Patreon should help to reduce costs of micro-transactions - instead they try to make additional profit by this trick. They take 31% fees for $1 pledges now! You should cancel at least all $1 / $2 pledges immediately to make them realize their mistake!

JPS (RetroFPGA)

I think I will upwardly adjust my pledge to a few creators just to make it a bit more worthwhile.

Camui Kushi

Appreciate the forthrightness, Mark. This is indeed pretty frustrating, and frankly we should have heard it from Patreon rather than you. I like the idea of creators receiving a greater cut, but the way Patreon is going about it is... questionable. I wish there was a way to give directly to creators with minimal transaction fee non-sense.

Camui Kushi

Indeed. This makes $1 pledges far less attractive.

Camui Kushi

I'm OK with this.

Alex D.

Thanks for the heads up, it’s cool to see creators looking out for patrons. My support stays as-is, but I had to cut some $1 pledges because of the way this change punishes them with the $0.35 fixed amount. My guess would be that, after patrons adjust their pledges by removing their smaller pledges, bigger creators will have more money and smaller creators less, which is... not good.

Nosgoroth