Standard payouts move your balance to your bank on Stripe's normal schedule at no separate payout fee, arriving 1–2 business days after Stripe submits them, with a 2-business-day default settlement timing in the United States. Instant payouts reach a linked debit card within about 30 minutes but cost a Stripe fee of 1.5% in the US, Australia, New Zealand and the UAE, or 1% in Canada, the EU, the UK, Singapore, Norway, Hong Kong and Malaysia — and only once Stripe has marked your account eligible.
Instant Payouts and Connect payouts documentation, Stripe's published pricing, and FanBell's own pricing page.
Both options move the same money — what a fan pays for a Tip, a Paid Private Question, a Personalized Shoutout, a Creator Service, or a Wishlist / Project Support contribution, minus the 12% platform fee. The only thing that changes is how fast that balance reaches your bank and whether Stripe charges extra to get it there faster. FanBell does not run its own payout system; every payout, instant or standard, is a Stripe mechanic tied to the Stripe Express account a creator connects during onboarding (how it works).
What's the actual difference between instant and standard payouts?
The difference between instant and standard payouts is speed and cost, not amount. Standard payouts are Stripe's free default schedule and arrive in 1–2 business days. Instant payouts move eligible funds to a linked debit card within about 30 minutes for a Stripe fee of 1% or 1.5%, depending on the account's country. Neither choice changes the 12% FanBell platform fee.
| Payout type | Typical speed | Extra Stripe fee | Who can use it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard (all countries) | Arrives 1–2 business days after Stripe submits it to the bank; the United States default settlement timing is 2 business days | None | Every connected Stripe account, by default |
| Instant — US, AU, NZ, AE | Within minutes; typically under 30 minutes | 1.5% of the amount moved (US: minimum 0.50 USD, maximum 9,999 USD per payout) | Only accounts Stripe has marked eligible, with an eligible debit card linked |
| Instant — CA, EU, UK, SG, NO, HK, MY | Within minutes; typically under 30 minutes | 1% of the amount moved (per-payout minimums vary by currency: 0.40 GBP in the UK, 0.40 EUR in the euro area, 0.60 CAD in Canada) | Only accounts Stripe has marked eligible, with an eligible debit card linked |
Table sources: instant fees, minimums and maximums from Stripe, Instant Payouts; standard-payout arrival timing from Stripe, Payouts to connected accounts; United States settlement timing from Stripe, Receive payouts.
Stripe's own documentation describes what Instant Payouts do:
"With Instant Payouts, Stripe Dashboard users can access their Stripe balances immediately following a successful charge. You can request an Instant Payout any day or time, including weekends and holidays, and funds typically settle in the associated payout account within 30 minutes." — Stripe, Instant Payouts documentation
Instant Payouts is not available everywhere: Stripe lists 36 countries where Instant Payouts is supported, including the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and Singapore.
How fast is a standard payout, realistically?
A standard payout on FanBell is a Stripe payout: no separate payout fee, automatic, and scheduled by Stripe rather than by FanBell. The first payout takes the longest, because Stripe schedules a brand-new account's initial payout within 7–14 days of its first live payment. Every payout after the first arrives on the account's ongoing schedule — for a closer look at that recurring cadence, see how often creator payouts are actually sent.
Stripe's Connect payouts documentation states that a standard payout reaches the external account "1-2 business days after submission". How long funds wait before that submission depends on country: Stripe's payout documentation lists a 2-business-day default settlement timing for the United States, against a 3-business-day default settlement timing in most other supported countries. Stripe also states that a connected account's balance "is paid out on a daily rolling basis" by default.
The first payout is the exception to those recurring timings:
"After you successfully receive your first live payment, Stripe typically schedules your initial payout to complete within 7–14 days. It can take longer depending on your industry, country of operation, and risk level." — Stripe, Receive payouts documentation
Nothing about the payout timeline is set by FanBell — it is the same Stripe mechanic every connected account goes through, compared across platforms in creator payout speed and minimum payout thresholds compared.
How fast is an instant payout, and what does it cost?
An instant payout moves eligible funds to a linked debit card within about 30 minutes instead of days, and Stripe deducts a percentage fee before the money arrives. The instant-payout fee is 1.5% in the US, Australia, New Zealand and the UAE, and 1% in Canada, the EU, the UK, Singapore, Norway, Hong Kong and Malaysia. Choosing instant is a per-payout decision, not a permanent setting.
Stripe's pricing section states that Stripe "charges Dashboard users a 1% fee for all Instant Payouts for CA, EU, UK, SG, NO, HK and MY, and a 1.5% fee for US, AU, NZ, and AE". In the United States, each Instant Payout must be at least 0.50 USD and no more than 9,999 USD (Stripe). Stripe additionally caps every account at "a maximum of 10 Instant Payouts per day". A full breakdown of how that fee interacts with FanBell's 12% platform fee is in do creators pay a fee to receive payouts.
Who is actually eligible for instant payouts?
Instant-payout eligibility is set by Stripe, not by the creator and not by FanBell. Stripe evaluates each account and states plainly that new users are not immediately eligible, so a brand-new FanBell creator normally sees only the standard option at first. Eligibility also requires an eligible payout destination, which in the United States means a supported debit card.
Stripe writes that "New Stripe users aren't immediately eligible for Instant Payouts" and directs account holders to "Check your eligibility in the Dashboard". For United States accounts, Stripe lists the eligible external account type as "Debit card; some bank accounts". Stripe publishes a per-institution support table for the United States and notes that the values in it "indicate whether the institution supports all debit cards or only some debit cards," so a specific card should be checked against that table rather than assumed (Stripe, Institution support for Instant Payouts). A missing instant option is a normal early-account state, not a FanBell restriction, and standard payouts keep working the entire time.
Is there a minimum balance or account age before you get paid at all?
No FanBell-imposed minimum balance or account age applies before a creator's first standard payout. FanBell's published pricing lists a 12% platform fee per paid transaction and $0/month during the beta as the only platform-side charges, and states that Stripe handles the creator's payout schedule. The only balance floor that exists is Stripe's own minimum payout amount.
FanBell's pricing page names a 12% platform fee per paid transaction and $0/month as the platform's only charges, with no balance or account-age threshold attached to payouts; FanBell's how-it-works page states that payouts run on Stripe. On the Stripe side, the minimum payout amount in the United States is 0.01 USD, and Stripe says that "If your available account balance is less than the minimum payout amount, it remains in your Stripe account until your balance increases".
A minimum balance for standard payouts is a separate question from instant-payout eligibility, which has its own qualification. A creator can be fully able to receive standard payouts while still not qualifying for the instant option. See do creators need to hit a minimum before getting paid for how that compares with platforms that do impose a minimum-payout floor.
Does choosing instant payouts add a separate FanBell fee?
No. FanBell charges nothing extra for choosing instant over standard. The only FanBell-side charge on either payout method is the 12% platform fee, taken once when a fan pays. The instant-payout fee of 1% or 1.5% is charged by Stripe, applies only to the portion moved instantly, and never reaches FanBell.
Stripe is the primary source for standard payouts carrying no separate transfer fee: Stripe states that "standard payouts on default settlement schedules are included in Stripe's transactions fees," with extra cost applying only to "accelerated settlement speeds or multicurrency settlements" (Stripe, Payouts explained). Using instant payouts also does not change the 12% platform fee math, because that fee is deducted when the fan pays, before any payout method moves the balance. A creator who never uses instant payouts pays nothing beyond the 12% platform fee and Stripe's processing on the original sale, which is 2.9% + 30¢ per successful online card transaction for US domestic cards (Stripe, Pricing).
Which one should a creator actually use?
For most creators the free standard schedule is the better default, because it requires no setup, costs nothing extra, and lands 1–2 business days after Stripe submits it. Instant payouts are worth their 1% or 1.5% fee as an occasional tool for a specific cash-timing need — rent, a bill, a time-sensitive purchase — rather than as a permanent switch.
| Situation | Better choice | Why |
|---|---|---|
| No hard deadline on the money | Standard | No separate payout fee, and funds arrive 1–2 business days after submission |
| A bill is due before the next scheduled payout | Instant | Funds typically settle within 30 minutes, for 1% or 1.5% of the amount moved |
| Large balance, no urgency | Standard | The instant fee is a percentage, so it costs more in dollars as the balance grows |
| Brand-new account, first payout pending | Standard (only option) | Stripe states new users aren't immediately eligible for Instant Payouts |
A reasonable approach: leave the account on standard payouts by default, and reach for instant only when a real deadline makes the fee worth paying for a few minutes of speed. Because the fee is a percentage of the amount moved, a 1.5% US instant payout on a 1,000 USD balance costs 15 USD, which is worth weighing before making instant the habit rather than the exception.
Frequently asked questions
Short answers to the questions creators ask most about FanBell payouts: standard payouts carry no separate FanBell or Stripe transfer fee, a brand-new account's first Stripe payout is scheduled within 7–14 days of its first live payment, instant and standard can be chosen per payout once eligible, and the 12% FanBell platform fee never changes with the payout method.
Is a standard payout actually free on FanBell?
Yes. Standard payouts carry no separate FanBell fee and no separate Stripe transfer fee: Stripe states that "standard payouts on default settlement schedules are included in Stripe's transactions fees", and FanBell's only charge is the 12% platform fee taken once when a fan pays.
How long until my very first payout arrives?
Stripe typically schedules a brand-new account's first payout to complete within 7–14 days of the first successful live payment, and that window can extend further depending on industry, country and risk level. Every payout after the first one follows the account's shorter recurring schedule.
Can I switch between instant and standard payouts whenever I want?
Yes, once Stripe has marked the account eligible. Stripe's Dashboard flow asks the account holder to "select a Standard or Instant payout" each time funds are paid out, and Stripe states that "Any funds not accessed through Instant Payouts continue to be paid out according to your default payout schedule (standard payouts)". The choice is therefore made per payout rather than as a one-time setting.
Does using instant payouts change the 12% FanBell fee?
No. The 12% platform fee is calculated once, at the moment a fan pays, regardless of which payout method later moves the resulting balance to a bank. An instant payout adds only Stripe's own 1% or 1.5% fee on top of that already-settled amount.
Why doesn't my dashboard show an instant payout option yet?
New Stripe accounts aren't immediately eligible: Stripe evaluates each account and tells holders to "Check your eligibility in the Dashboard". A missing instant option does not affect standard payouts, which keep arriving 1–2 business days after Stripe submits them the entire time.
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