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Moving to Paddle

Kirby Tools is switching from Lemon Squeezy to Paddle for payment processing. Existing licenses are unaffected.
Johann Schopplich
Johann Schopplich@johannschopplich

When I launched Kirby Tools, Lemon Squeezy was the obvious choice for handling payments. It was built for indie developers, the integration was quick, and as a Merchant of Record it handled all the tax complexity I didn't want to deal with. It worked well for a long time.

Then Stripe acquired Lemon Squeezy in mid-2024. Since then, the platform has largely stagnated – fewer updates, persistent checkout bugs, slower support responses, and an unclear roadmap. I wasn't the only one noticing. Many indie developers have been quietly migrating away over the past year.

So I did the same.

Why Paddle

Paddle is a Merchant of Record: it sells the license to you and handles VAT and sales tax for every country itself. It supports more payment methods than the previous provider, and its API covers everything the license flow needs.

The most visible improvement: checkout is now an overlay that stays on kirby.tools. No more redirecting to a third-party page to complete your purchase. It's a small thing, but it makes the experience feel more cohesive.

What Changes for New Customers

If you're buying a plugin license going forward:

  • Checkout stays on kirby.tools – an overlay instead of a redirect to Lemon Squeezy.
  • Receipt emails come from Paddle – not Lemon Squeezy. Your receipt contains your order number, which you'll need to manage your license in the Hub.
  • Order numbers look different – something like 81357-10001 instead of a plain number. No functional difference.

Pricing, the 30-day money-back guarantee, and all license terms remain the same. It's a one-time purchase, same as before.

What Changes for Existing Customers

Nothing. Your license key is unchanged. The Hub works exactly as before – log in with your email and the order number from your original Lemon Squeezy receipt.

If you ever need to look up your order number, check the receipt email you got when you purchased. It came from Lemon Squeezy.

Updated Legal Docs

The license agreement and privacy policy now reference Paddle as the Authorized Reseller. The terms themselves haven't changed in any meaningful way.

Business as Usual

That's it. Same plugins, same pricing, better checkout. If you run into any issues, reach out.