Aquadratic

Overview

Aquadratic is a merchant-of-record service for creators, developers, and other sellers of digital products. It is best suited to sellers who want checkout, delivery, tax handling, and payouts under one service, with AquaDrop available for more controlled downloads. The core commerce plan has no monthly fee, but its 7% transaction charge plus possible processor fees makes cost a central consideration.

Key features

Products can use a hosted checkout URL, an embeddable widget, or a REST API. That range accommodates a direct checkout link as well as a custom integration. Aquadratic accepts cards through Stripe and PayPal, plus cryptocurrency; it also names Stripe, PayPal, and NOWPayments as payment integrations, with webhooks and API keys for connecting systems.

After payment, the service can email license keys and digital products automatically. As merchant of record, Aquadratic says it calculates, collects, and files sales tax and VAT worldwide, and manages disputes and chargebacks. Those responsibilities can spare independent sellers substantial commerce operations, though the transaction fee may be hard to justify for sellers who already handle them efficiently.

AquaDrop is a separate download-delivery product. It gates downloads with seller-issued license keys and buyer-specific signed URLs that expire quickly, with instant revocation on Starter. This is useful when controlling access matters; it does not replace the broader checkout, tax, and payout service.

Aquadratic displays 99.9% uptime, PCI compliance, and SSL encryption. It says payment data is handled mainly by processors and that it does not keep complete card numbers or other full sensitive payment credentials on its servers. Its privacy policy says it does not sell personal information for third-party marketing. Support covers order, delivery, refund, and general requests by email, with a stated response time of 24–48 business hours.

Digital sales are generally final. Aquadratic may offer a refund, replacement, or credit in specified cases, and requests should be made within seven days unless the law requires otherwise. That policy gives buyers a narrow window and sellers a defined boundary, but it is less flexible than a broadly stated return period.

Pricing

The Aquadratic platform is free with no monthly fee and no per-transaction minimum, but charges 7% per transaction; processor fees may also apply. It suits sellers who value bundled tax and dispute handling and have modest or variable sales. Sellers with higher volume should compare the percentage cost against alternatives before committing, since there is no monthly plan here that lowers the stated rate.

AquaDrop Starter is free forever and includes 100 deliveries per month, 1 GB of storage, signed URLs, license key binding, and instant revocation. It is a practical starting point for low-volume file delivery, but the delivery and storage caps make it a poor fit for a growing catalog or frequent downloads.

AquaDrop Pro costs $19/month and raises the allowance to 10,000 deliveries and 25 GB of storage. It adds webhooks, a custom domain, and download caps, making it the more capable choice for sellers who need integration hooks or more control over delivery. AquaDrop Scale costs $49/month and includes Pro features, 100,000 deliveries, 250 GB of storage, version channels, and full API access. It fits larger libraries and higher delivery volume, though its value depends on needing those expanded quotas and tools.

Platforms

Aquadratic supports web and API access. Its checkout options span hosted links, an embeddable widget, and API integration, so sellers can choose a direct purchase flow or build around the service.

Who it's for

Aquadratic is a strong fit for independent creators, developers, and digital product suppliers who want one service to take responsibility for checkout, automated delivery, global sales tax and VAT, disputes, and seller payouts. It is less compelling for sellers who need low transaction costs above all, want broad refund flexibility, or do not need merchant-of-record coverage. AquaDrop is most relevant when license-gated downloads and delivery quotas matter independently of the commerce service.

Pros and cons

• Pros: Checkout, automated product delivery, global tax handling, dispute management, and seller payouts sit within one merchant-of-record service, reducing the number of commerce tasks a small digital seller must coordinate.
• Pros: Hosted checkout, an embeddable widget, and a REST API give sellers several ways to connect sales to their product.
• Pros: AquaDrop Starter provides signed URLs, license key binding, and instant revocation at no monthly cost.
• Cons: The platform's 7% transaction charge can add up, and processor fees may apply on top.
• Cons: Starter is capped at 100 deliveries per month and 1 GB of storage; higher AquaDrop quotas require paid monthly plans.
• Cons: Digital sales are generally final, with refund requests usually expected within seven days.

Alternatives

Compare merchant-of-record software if you want to weigh other services against Aquadratic's transaction fee and delivery options. Coda is worth considering if a free plan with personal documents that have no size or object limits is more relevant to your needs; its shared documents are limited to 50 objects and 1,000 table rows. Polar offers a free Starter plan with a 5% + 50¢ transaction fee and all selling features, while its Pro plan is $20/month with a 3.80% transaction fee; compare those charges with Aquadratic's 7% rate.

Fungies may suit sellers who prefer a 5% + 50¢ per-sale fee and no monthly, setup, or per-seat charge, with unlimited products, plans, and assets on its free plan. Lemon Squeezy offers ecommerce without monthly charges and charges 5% + $0.50 when sales are generated, so it is a cost comparison for sellers weighing transaction fees.

Tebex is another option with a free Starter plan: it charges £0 monthly and a 5% platform fee for most games, or 15% for FiveM, with unlimited packages. Freemius may be relevant if transaction pricing of 3.8% + 50¢ plus gateway fees, with no setup or monthly fees, better matches your cost priorities. Gumroad charges 10% + $0.50 for direct sales and 30% for Discover marketplace sales. Whop offers tailored rates for high-volume businesses, with country-specific and volume-based pricing and a dedicated account manager.

Verdict

Choose Aquadratic if you are an independent digital seller who wants checkout, delivery, tax compliance, chargeback management, and payouts handled together, and can accept a 7% transaction fee plus potential processor costs. Its free AquaDrop tier also makes controlled, low-volume downloads accessible without a monthly subscription. Look elsewhere if minimizing per-sale fees or offering flexible refunds matters more than outsourcing those commerce responsibilities.