tiun vs Polar: Why Teams Are Making the Switch

Compare tiun and Polar for SaaS billing. See how MoR features, authentication, customer database, and developer experience come together in one system, for less

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Lower all-in pricing

Polar’s base pricing begins at 5% + 50¢. International cards add 1.5%. tiun includes international card fees in a flat 3.4% + 30¢ rate

POLAR ALL-IN

6.5% + 50¢

TIUN ALL-IN

3.4% + 30¢

Auth + customer DB included

Polar handles billing. tiun handles auth, customer data, billing, and AI analytics behind one SDK. Skip the Auth0 bill and the glue code

AI-powered analytics, built in

Ask plain-language questions across signups, revenue, and product usage. No SQL, no separate BI tool, and your whole team can use it

Both are MoR. Scope differs.

Both Polar and tiun act as your Merchant of Record. tiun extends the model to authentication, customer database, and analytics in one system

tiun vs Polar, side by side

tiun	Polar
3.4% + 30¢ all-in · international subscription	6.5% + 50¢ all-in · international subscription
✓ Authentication included	✗ Auth is your responsibility (Auth0 ~$35/mo)
✓ International card fees included	✗ International cards +1.5% on top
✓ AI analytics included	✗ Basic Analytics
✓ No pass-through Stripe fees	✗ Stripe Connect payout fees per transfer

	tiun	Polar
Merchant of record	✓	✓
Platform fee	Free	Free
Base Transaction	2.9% + $0.30	5% + $0.50
Subscription Billing	+0.5%	Included
International cards	Included	+1.5%
Currency conversion	Included	Included
Tax compliance	Included	Included
Webhook & sync logic	Included	DIY
All-in, Transaction Fees	~3.4% + $0.30	~6.5% + $0.50
	Additional Fees
Payout fees	1.5%	$2/mo + 0.25% + $0.25
Per dispute	$15	$15

How much you save switching from Polar to tiun

Annual fees on international subscription revenue with currency conversion. The percentage looks small. The number doesn't

The fee gap compounds

On $500k of international subscription revenue with a $50 AOV, Polar's 6.5% + 50¢ runs $17,500 more than tiun's 3.4% + 30¢, and that's before counting the engineering hours you'd otherwise spend on auth, webhooks, and entitlement code

tiun replaces Polar, Auth0, and your customer DB

Polar replaces Stripe + Stripe Tax. tiun replaces Stripe + Stripe Tax + Auth0 + your customer database + your analytics tool

Skip the Auth0 bill and the webhook handlers

Polar handles billing. You still need auth (Clerk, Auth0, build-your-own) and the webhook handlers that keep auth state in sync with billing state. tiun ships authentication, social login, multifactor, and entitlements as part of the platform, queryable through the same SDK

Email + password login — included
Social SSO (Google, GitHub) — included
Multifactor auth (SMS + Email) — included
User profile + entitlements — live state

Customer, subscription, and payment state in one query

No more reconciling webhook payloads from Stripe, Auth0, and a tax service to figure out what your customer can access right now

{
  isAuthenticated: true,
  user: {
    userId: 'u-abc123',
    email: 'user@example.com',
    productAccess: ['p-live-light', 'p-live-pro']
  }
}

{
  isAuthenticated: true,
  user: {
    userId: 'u-abc123',
    email: 'user@example.com',
    productAccess: ['p-live-light', 'p-live-pro']
  }
}

{
  isAuthenticated: true,
  user: {
    userId: 'u-abc123',
    email: 'user@example.com',
    productAccess: ['p-live-light', 'p-live-pro']
  }
}

MCP server + GitHub Skill for AI coding agents

Install once. Your agent reads tiun's API as native context, wires up auth and billing in your codebase, and the integration is live in minutes

# Cursor, Claude Code,
# Copilot, Windsurf, +40

gh skill install tiun-app/skills tiun-sdk

# connect mcp https://mcp.tiun.business/

# done.

# Cursor, Claude Code,
# Copilot, Windsurf, +40

gh skill install tiun-app/skills tiun-sdk

# connect mcp https://mcp.tiun.business/

# done.

# Cursor, Claude Code,
# Copilot, Windsurf, +40

gh skill install tiun-app/skills tiun-sdk

# connect mcp https://mcp.tiun.business/

# done.

FAQs

Is Polar a Merchant of Record?

Yes. Polar is a Merchant of Record, and so is tiun. Both sell on your behalf and handle tax, VAT, refunds, and chargebacks, so the MoR coverage is not the deciding factor between them. The difference is what sits around the payment: tiun adds authentication, a customer database, and analytics that Polar leaves you to build.

Does tiun handle VAT and tax the way Polar does?

Yes. As a Merchant of Record, tiun remits VAT, GST, and sales tax across global jurisdictions, validates EU VAT IDs at checkout, and absorbs the tax liability, the same model Polar uses. You receive net revenue and never deal with the tax authority directly.

How hard is it to migrate from Polar to tiun?

tiun ships an MCP server and a GitHub Skill for AI coding agents. Your agent reads tiun's API as native context, wires up auth and billing directly in your codebase, and the integration goes live in minutes rather than days of manual SDK work.

Is tiun a good Polar alternative for SaaS?

tiun is a strong fit if you want Merchant of Record coverage and the rest of your billing stack in one system. You get the same MoR tax handling as Polar at a lower 3.4% + 30¢ rate, plus authentication, a customer database, and AI analytics that would otherwise be three more vendors to integrate and reconcile.

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