2026-10-13
Quay vs Payhip when the download page is the point.
Payhip’s help center, read 13 Oct 2026, says a digital buyer is taken to a download page and also emailed a receipt. In this billing mode Quay’s buy button leaves the site, so that instant file is not Quay’s. The bill and the tools Quay leaves out are the comparison.
The same job, after payment
Payhip’s own note on a custom thank-you redirect says that leaving their download page means the buyer no longer gets the file on the spot, so the page has to tell them to check email. Quay used to stop at the email. The receipt now links to the download page first, and the email is the spare copy.
In this billing mode the buy button leaves Quay. The receipt described below is for an order Quay itself checked out. A pasted Stripe Payment Link, PayPal, Gumroad, or Square link does not create that receipt.
A new store’s download link lasts 72 hours and allows 5 downloads, unless the store or the product sets a stricter cap. Each file save counts as one download. The seller can resend or reset the link from the order. A refund revokes the link and any license key. Files have to be 20 MB or smaller.
The published Payhip bill
Payhip’s pricing page, read 8 Oct 2026, is 5% on the free plan, $29.00 a month plus 2% on Plus, and $99.00 a month and no Payhip fee on Pro. That page says PayPal and Stripe still charge their own rates, and that Payhip can handle EU VAT and UK VAT.
On this server Studio is $29.00 a month. You keep the sale and collect it on your own checkout link. Quay does not add a percent, and Quay does not email a file for that outside payment.
Quay does not file EU VAT or UK VAT. In this mode the buy button can open a PayPal, Gumroad, Square, or Stripe Payment Link. Quay does not charge the card.
Why a seller would pick Quay
Pick this mode when $29.00 a month is the whole Quay bill and you already trust the checkout you paste in. Payhip Pro is the $99 plan with no Payhip fee. Quay will not replace Payhip’s VAT filing, customer accounts, or course login.
Payhip customer accounts keep a library the buyer can log into. Quay’s library is a link emailed to the checkout address. It expires one hour after you request it, and it only opens a download that has not expired or run out of saves.
When Payhip is the better fit
Stay if you need Payhip to file VAT, a PayPal button inside their checkout, or a student login for a course. Quay memberships are a recurring Stripe price and drip files on the same expiring download link. They are not a course site.