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Patreon tried to play a shell game with how fees were charged. The system they had deducted fees out of whatever patrons pledged, as I described in the above example: if a patron pledges a dollar, the payment processor fee would be deducted from that dollar, along with Patreon own fee, with the creator receiving the difference.

In addition to unbundling the charges, such that there would be dramatically higher payment processor fees, Patreon explains that their plan was not to deduct it from what was pledged, but to add it. No longer would the amount that a patron pledged be the amount that their credit card would be charged. The amount a patron will be charged would be the amount they pledged plus the payment processor fee. If you pledged a dollar, you would be charged a $1.33 – the dollar you pledged plus 2.9% (3¢) plus the 30¢ flat fee.