ChatGPT answers, unedited

For a solo developer building a headless storefront for digital downloads, I’d optimize for:

1. minimal backend work,
2. easy checkout integration,
3. automatic file delivery,
4. tax/VAT handling,
5. simple webhooks,
6. good docs.

My ranking for simplest API + developer experience:

1. Lemon Squeezy — best fit for most solo builders

Best if: you sell ebooks, templates, assets, courses, plugins, software downloads, etc.

Why it’s attractive:

• Digital downloads are a first-class use case.
• Hosted checkout means you don’t build payment flows.
• Handles taxes as a merchant of record.
• API is straightforward REST-style, with products, orders, files, checkouts, and webhooks. Lemon Squeezy Docs Lemon Squeezy Docs
• Official JavaScript SDK exists if you’re using a JS stack. GitHub
• You can start with simple checkout URLs and later move to API-generated checkouts. Lemon Squeezy Docs

Typical architecture:

Next.js / React storefront
        |
        | fetch products
        v
Lemon Squeezy API
        |
        | checkout
        v
Customer pays
        |
        | webhook
        v
Your database → unlock download

For a one-person project, this is probably the shortest path from “I have a product” to “people can buy and download it.”

2. Gumroad — simplest overall, less headless

Best if: you want almost no infrastructure.

Pros:

• Extremely easy setup.
• Great creator workflow.
• Built-in product pages and delivery.

Cons:

• Less “build your own storefront” oriented.
• API flexibility is not as strong as developer-focused platforms.

I’d choose Gumroad if the storefront itself is not a major product feature.

3. Stripe — best primitives, more engineering

Best if: you want total control.

Pros:

• Excellent APIs.
• Great SDKs.
• Checkout, payments, customer portal, subscriptions, etc.

Cons:

• You own more: - download fulfillment,
• tax setup (unless using Stripe Tax),
• product logic,
• edge cases.

For a developer building a commerce platform rather than just selling downloads, Stripe is the better foundation.

4. Shopify Storefront API — powerful but probably overkill

Shopify’s headless APIs are very capable, including products, carts, and custom storefronts. Shopify But for digital downloads alone, you’re adopting a full commerce platform.

Good when you need:

• inventory,
• multiple sales channels,
• merchandising,
• large catalog management.

Less ideal for:

• “I have 10 digital products and want a custom Next.js site.”

My recommendation

For a solo developer:

If I were building a headless Next.js digital download store today, I’d likely use:

• Frontend: Next.js
• CMS/catalog: simple database or CMS
• Payments + delivery: Lemon Squeezy
• Storage: S3/R2 for files that need custom handling
• Webhook handler: server route that grants access

That gives you the least amount of code while keeping your storefront fully custom. Lemon Squeezy Docs lemonsqueezy.com

For a solo developer building a headless storefront for digital downloads, I’d pick Lemon Squeezy if your priority is the simplest overall developer experience.

My ranking

Why Lemon Squeezy: its API directly models the things you need—products, variants, prices, files, orders, checkouts, customers, discounts, and webhooks. It also has an official TypeScript/JavaScript SDK and a test mode. docs.lemonsqueezy.com

That means your architecture can stay very small:

Your Next.js storefront → Lemon Squeezy API → checkout → webhook → grant download

You don't have to build payment processing, download fulfillment, tax handling, order management, or licensing from scratch. Its developer docs specifically cover taking payments, syncing via webhooks, customer portals, and testing. docs.lemonsqueezy.com

When I'd choose something else

Polar is worth serious consideration if you're selling primarily to developers—especially software, templates, or SaaS—and want a particularly developer-first platform. Current comparisons characterize Polar as more API-first/open-source-oriented, whereas Lemon Squeezy is the more established general digital-commerce option. trybuildpilot.com

Stripe has arguably the cleanest payment API. Its Checkout Sessions API is explicitly designed to minimize code and can give you hosted or embedded checkout. docs.stripe.com But for digital downloads, Stripe alone leaves more of the commerce/fulfillment layer for you to build.

Bottom line:
If you want to spend your time building the storefront, not an e-commerce backend, I'd start with Lemon Squeezy. If you're building a very developer-centric product and want a more API-first/open-source ecosystem, I'd investigate Polar next.

If your priority is the simplest API + best solo-dev experience for a headless digital-download storefront, I’d pick Lemon Squeezy.

My ranking

1. Lemon Squeezy — best overall for simplicity

• Built specifically around digital products, subscriptions, licenses, and downloads.
• Straightforward REST API with products, variants, prices, files, orders, checkouts, and webhooks. Lemon Squeezy Docs Lemon Squeezy Docs
• Official JavaScript SDK available.
• You can create a product, attach downloadable files, and let Lemon Squeezy handle checkout/delivery. Lemon Squeezy Docs
• Particularly attractive for a solo developer because it also handles the merchant-of-record/tax side.
• Paddle — best if you expect to scale internationally

• Excellent API and documentation, with a clean REST API and strong SDK/checkout tooling. Paddle Developer Docs Paddle Developer Docs
• Explicitly supports digital downloads and one-time products. Paddle Developer Docs
• More sophisticated product/price/transaction model than Lemon Squeezy, so I'd consider it slightly more complexity than you need for a small storefront.
• Gumroad — simplest non-headless experience, but not my first choice for headless

• Great if you're essentially selling through Gumroad's own storefront.
• For a custom headless frontend, I'd favor Lemon Squeezy or Paddle.

What I'd choose

For something like:

Next.js storefront → product catalog → custom product page → checkout → webhook → download/access

I'd use Lemon Squeezy.

The API is reasonably easy to work with, and its resource model maps naturally onto a digital-download store. The main caveat is that its API uses JSON:API, so it's not quite as minimalist as a conventional REST/JSON API—you need the Accept and Content-Type JSON:API headers and deal with JSON:API response structures. Lemon Squeezy Docs Lemon Squeezy Docs

If you tell me what you're selling (ebooks, templates, software, courses, etc.) and your frontend stack (Next.js, Astro, Nuxt, etc.), I can also compare Lemon Squeezy vs Paddle vs Stripe specifically for your architecture.

For a solo developer building a headless storefront for digital downloads, I’d pick Lemon Squeezy for the simplest overall API/dev experience.

My ranking

Why Lemon Squeezy: its API is a conventional REST API with predictable resource URLs, JSON responses, API-key auth, and an official JavaScript SDK. It also has first-class checkout, orders, licenses, and webhooks, so you don't have to assemble a bunch of services yourself. docs.lemonsqueezy.com

For a headless storefront, the flow can stay very small:

Your storefront
     ↓
Create/open checkout
     ↓
Lemon Squeezy
     ↓
Payment
     ↓
Webhook → your backend
     ↓
Grant download/access

Its webhook system covers events such as order_created, order_refunded, and license_key_created, and you can pass your own customer/user identifiers through checkout. docs.lemonsqueezy.comdocs.lemonsqueezy.com

When I'd choose Paddle instead

Choose Paddle if your priority is maximum global commerce infrastructure rather than absolute API simplicity. It's particularly strong if you're selling software internationally: it acts as merchant of record and handles tax, VAT/GST, localization, fraud, and payment methods. Paddle explicitly supports one-time digital downloads and fulfillment via transaction.completed. developer.paddle.com

Its API is good, but the product/price/transaction model is somewhat more elaborate than what I'd want for a tiny solo-built download shop.

Where Gumroad fits

Gumroad is arguably the easiest if you don't actually need a sophisticated headless commerce backend. Its license API, for example, is extremely straightforward. gumroad.com

But once you're deliberately building a headless storefront, I think Lemon Squeezy gives you a better foundation.

Bottom line:
Lemon Squeezy → simplest headless implementation.
Paddle → best if international tax/compliance infrastructure is the bigger concern.
Gumroad → simplest if you want the platform to do more of the storefront work.

If you're using Next.js + Stripe-like checkout UX + S3/R2 downloads, I'd lean particularly strongly toward Lemon Squeezy. docs.lemonsqueezy.com

Lemon Squeezy API docs · Paddle developer docs

For a solo developer building a headless storefront for digital downloads, I’d pick Lemon Squeezy for the simplest overall API/dev experience.

My ranking

Why Lemon Squeezy: its API is conventional REST/JSON:API with bearer auth, and you can get surprisingly far without building much payment infrastructure yourself. docs.lemonsqueezy.comdeveloper.paddle.com

For a headless storefront, the basic flow can be:

Your storefront
     ↓
Lemon Squeezy product/catalog
     ↓
Create checkout / checkout URL
     ↓
Lemon Squeezy hosted checkout
     ↓
Webhook → your backend
     ↓
Grant download access

You can even start with a pre-generated checkout URL rather than implementing checkout logic yourself. If you need customization later, the Checkout API lets you create checkouts dynamically and attach your own user/session metadata. docs.lemonsqueezy.com

Lemon Squeezy API docs

When I'd choose Paddle instead

Paddle is probably the better choice if you expect the business to become more sophisticated—especially international sales, multiple price points, subscriptions, or more complex billing. Paddle explicitly supports digital downloads and acts as merchant of record, handling tax, payments, fraud, and compliance. developer.paddle.com

Its modern checkout is also very easy to embed; the overlay can be launched with just a few lines of code. developer.paddle.com

Paddle Developer Docs

The important distinction

If by "simplest API" you mean fewest concepts and least code, I'd go:

Lemon Squeezy → Gumroad → Paddle → Stripe

If you mean best developer experience for a serious headless commerce backend, I'd go:

Lemon Squeezy → Paddle → Stripe → Gumroad

For your particular use case—solo dev + headless + downloadable products—I'd start with Lemon Squeezy, unless you have a specific reason to prefer Paddle.

If you tell me your stack (e.g. Next.js + Supabase, Astro, Laravel, etc.), I can also compare the actual implementation complexity of Lemon Squeezy vs Paddle for that stack.

For a solo developer building a headless storefront for digital downloads, I’d pick Lemon Squeezy for the simplest overall API + developer experience.

My ranking

Why Lemon Squeezy: it gives you a REST API, webhooks, hosted/embeddable checkout, product/variant management, and license-key functionality while acting as a Merchant of Record, so you don't have to build the international tax/compliance machinery yourself. www.creatorstackclub.com

The basic architecture can be very clean:

Your Next.js/React storefront
        │
        ├── Product catalog → Lemon Squeezy API
        │
        └── Buy button → Lemon Squeezy Checkout
                              │
                              ▼
                         Payment
                              │
                              ▼
                     Webhook → Your API
                              │
                              └── Grant download/license

One caveat: Polar

I'd seriously consider Polar if you're comfortable with a newer platform. Current comparisons describe it as more API-first, with a clean REST API, TypeScript SDK, webhooks, CLI, and framework integrations. www.snagr.sh

So my practical choice would be:

• "I want to ship this weekend and not think about payments/tax" → Lemon Squeezy
• "I'm a developer building a developer-oriented product and want the nicest API" → Polar
• "I need sophisticated SaaS billing" → Paddle
• "I don't really need headless; just give me a storefront" → Gumroad
• "I want complete control and don't mind owning more infrastructure" → Stripe

One other consideration: Lemon Squeezy was acquired by Stripe, and its JS SDK appears less actively maintained than Paddle's current SDKs, so I'd favor direct REST API + webhooks rather than coupling your architecture heavily to its SDK. solodevstack.com

For your exact use case, I'd start with Lemon Squeezy unless you're specifically targeting developers—in that case I'd lean Polar.

If you mean payment + checkout + fulfillment for a headless digital-download storefront, I’d pick Lemon Squeezy for the simplest overall solo-developer experience.

My ranking

Why Lemon Squeezy: its API is a conventional REST API, and the model maps nicely to a digital-download store: products → variants/prices → files → checkout → orders → webhooks. It also has an official JavaScript SDK. docs.lemonsqueezy.comdeveloper.paddle.com

For a headless storefront, you can essentially have:

Your Next.js storefront
        ↓
Lemon Squeezy checkout
        ↓
payment
        ↓
webhook
        ↓
your backend
        ↓
grant download/access

The nice part is that Lemon Squeezy already understands files, products, orders and checkout, rather than forcing you to assemble those pieces yourself. docs.lemonsqueezy.com

Paddle is the runner-up

Paddle is arguably the better platform, particularly if you're selling software internationally. It handles payments, tax, fraud and merchant-of-record responsibilities, and its current API/SDK experience is quite strong. developer.paddle.com

Its checkout is also extremely easy to drop into a headless frontend:

Paddle.Checkout.open({
  items: [
    { priceId: "pri_...", quantity: 1 }
  ]
})

That's a very clean integration. developer.paddle.com

I'd choose Paddle over Lemon Squeezy if you're building something that may become a serious software-commerce platform rather than a relatively simple digital-download shop.

What I'd use in your shoes

If the product is something like ebooks, PDFs, templates, assets, presets, courses, or downloadable files:

→ Lemon Squeezy.

If it's software licenses/SaaS with international sales and potentially substantial scale:

→ Paddle.

If you specifically want maximum control over the commerce layer and don't mind building more yourself:

→ Stripe.

For a solo developer, I'd optimize for how little commerce infrastructure you have to own, not merely which API has the nicest syntax. On that criterion, Lemon Squeezy is particularly attractive. docs.lemonsqueezy.com

Lemon Squeezy API docs · Paddle developer docs

If your priority is the simplest API + best solo-developer experience for a headless digital-download storefront, I’d pick Lemon Squeezy.

My ranking

Why Lemon Squeezy: its API directly models the things you need—products, files, customers, orders, discounts, checkouts, and licenses—and it explicitly supports showing your products inside your own app and creating checkout links. docs.lemonsqueezy.com

It also has a fairly straightforward REST API, test mode, API keys, and versioned /v1 endpoints. The one annoyance is that it uses JSON:API, so requests aren't quite as pleasantly minimal as a conventional REST API. docs.lemonsqueezy.com

For a headless frontend, the architecture I'd use is essentially:

Your Next.js/Astro/etc. storefront
        ↓
Lemon Squeezy API
        ↓
Products / prices / checkout
        ↓
Lemon Squeezy-hosted payment
        ↓
Webhook → your backend
        ↓
Grant download/access

Paddle is a very close second. Its checkout integration is arguably even simpler—overlay checkout can be launched with just a few lines of JavaScript—and it handles payments, tax, compliance, and subscriptions as a Merchant of Record. developer.paddle.com The tradeoff is that Paddle's product model and documentation feel more oriented toward SaaS/billing than a simple downloadable-product shop.

Gumroad wins if your only criterion is "get a digital product sold with almost no engineering." But for a headless storefront, I'd rather have Lemon Squeezy's API as the underlying commerce system.

Bottom line:

• Digital assets/templates/fonts/books + custom storefront → Lemon Squeezy
• SaaS + subscriptions + global billing → Paddle
• Just want to sell a few creator products → Gumroad

If you tell me your stack (e.g. Next.js + Supabase + S3/R2), I can also compare the actual implementation complexity of Lemon Squeezy vs Paddle for your architecture.

For a solo developer building a headless storefront for digital downloads, I’d pick Lemon Squeezy for the simplest overall developer experience.

My ranking

Why Lemon Squeezy

Its API is a conventional REST API with predictable resource URLs, JSON:API responses, standard HTTP methods, and bearer-token authentication. It covers products, customers, files, orders, checkouts, discounts, and license keys. docs.lemonsqueezy.com

More importantly for your architecture, you can keep your storefront completely independent:

Your frontend
    ↓
Your product/catalog API
    ↓
Lemon Squeezy checkout
    ↓
Lemon Squeezy webhook
    ↓
Your backend
    ↓
Grant download access

You can create a checkout through the API and pass things like a redirect URL and custom product options. docs.lemonsqueezy.com

Webhooks are also straightforward: order_created, order_refunded, license_key_created, etc., with signed requests and automatic retries. docs.lemonsqueezy.com

Paddle is the runner-up

Paddle is arguably the better platform today. Its developer tooling is quite polished, with official Node/PHP/Python/Go SDKs, Paddle.js, starter kits, a webhook simulator, and an MCP server. docs.lemonsqueezy.comdocs.lemonsqueezy.comdeveloper.paddle.com

For digital downloads specifically, Paddle has a clean one-time-product flow: create product + price → checkout → transaction.completed → fulfill the download. It also handles tax and compliance as merchant of record. developer.paddle.com

The downside is that Paddle's API/domain model feels somewhat heavier than you need for a tiny download store.

The important distinction

If your priority is:

"I want the fewest moving pieces and the least code."

I'd choose Lemon Squeezy.

If it's:

"I want the best developer platform and expect this to evolve into SaaS/subscriptions."

I'd choose Paddle.

If it's:

"I want maximum control and don't mind building the commerce layer myself."

I'd choose Stripe.

For a solo developer, I'd start with Lemon Squeezy and make your own product/download abstraction sit in front of it. That way, if you later switch to Paddle or Stripe, your storefront doesn't need to know.

For a solo developer building a headless storefront for digital downloads, the simplest API + best developer experience is usually:

1. Lemon Squeezy — best overall fit for a solo dev

Lemon Squeezy

Why it tends to win for this use case:

• You can keep your own frontend (Next.js, Remix, Astro, etc.) and use Lemon Squeezy only for commerce.
• It handles checkout, payment, file delivery, taxes/VAT, receipts, refunds, and customer management. www.lemonsqueezy.com
• The API is straightforward REST/JSON: products, variants, checkouts, orders, customers, licenses, and webhooks. docs.lemonsqueezy.com
• A typical flow is simple:
  1. Create product in dashboard
  2. Store product/variant ID in your app
  3. Generate checkout URL
  4. Listen for webhook
  5. Grant download access in your database

Example architecture:

Your Storefront
      |
      | create checkout
      v
Lemon Squeezy
      |
      | webhook: order_created
      v
Your Backend
      |
      v
Unlock download for customer

The tradeoff: you pay higher fees than Stripe because you are buying simplicity and merchant-of-record handling. solodevstack.com

2. Stripe — best API, but more engineering

Stripe

Stripe has arguably the strongest developer experience:

• Excellent SDKs
• Great docs
• Powerful webhooks
• Flexible checkout flows

But for digital downloads you’ll likely need to assemble more pieces:

• Stripe Checkout
• Stripe Tax (if needed)
• File storage
• Download authorization
• Customer portal
• Tax compliance workflow

Choose Stripe if you expect to evolve into:

• SaaS subscriptions
• Usage-based billing
• Marketplace payments
• Complex pricing

For a simple “sell files and unlock downloads” product, it is often more infrastructure than you need. apiscout.dev

3. Gumroad — simplest selling experience, weaker headless option

Gumroad

Great if your goal is:

• “I have PDFs/templates/assets and want a checkout link today.”

Less ideal if you want:

• Your own storefront UX
• Custom accounts
• A real product catalog
• A polished app-like buying experience

My recommendation by scenario

For a solo dev building a headless digital download store, I would start with Lemon Squeezy + your own frontend + a tiny backend for entitlements/downloads. It gives you the least code while still feeling like you built your own product. docs.lemonsqueezy.com

A close alternative worth considering is Paddle if you want merchant-of-record features, but for a small indie storefront Lemon Squeezy is usually the smoother starting point.

For a solo developer building a headless storefront for digital downloads, I’d pick Lemon Squeezy for the simplest overall API/dev experience.

My ranking

Why Lemon Squeezy: its checkout API is straightforward, you can create checkout URLs dynamically, pass your own user/campaign metadata through checkout, and receive order/license events via webhooks. docs.lemonsqueezy.com

That maps nicely to a headless architecture:

Your storefront
      ↓
Create checkout
      ↓
Lemon Squeezy checkout
      ↓
Payment
      ↓
Webhook → your backend
      ↓
Grant download/access

You also get test mode, API versioning, hosted/overlay checkout, and built-in licensing, which reduces the amount of commerce infrastructure you have to maintain yourself. docs.lemonsqueezy.com

When I'd choose Paddle instead

Paddle is probably my second choice—and arguably the better choice if you're building something that could become a substantial SaaS/product business. Paddle explicitly supports one-time digital downloads and acts as merchant of record, handling tax, localization, payment methods, etc. developer.paddle.com

Its current developer experience is quite good: a framework-agnostic quickstart takes you through catalog → pricing → checkout → webhooks, and it has SDKs and developer tooling. developer.paddle.com

The tradeoff is that Paddle's model/API feels somewhat more elaborate than Lemon Squeezy for a simple "customer buys a ZIP → give them access" workflow.

What about Stripe?

I'd choose Stripe if you specifically want maximum control over the commerce layer and don't mind implementing more yourself. For a solo developer whose priority is "get my headless download store working with the fewest moving parts", I wouldn't start there.

Bottom line:
Lemon Squeezy → simplest.
Paddle → slightly more sophisticated, excellent alternative.
Stripe → maximum flexibility, maximum DIY.

If you're using Next.js/React, I can also compare the actual implementation of a product page → checkout → webhook → secure download URL in Lemon Squeezy vs Paddle, which makes the DX difference pretty obvious. docs.lemonsqueezy.comdocs.lemonsqueezy.comdeveloper.paddle.com

If your priority is the simplest API + least developer overhead for a headless digital-download storefront, I’d pick Lemon Squeezy.

My ranking for a solo developer

Why Lemon Squeezy: its API is straightforward REST/JSON:API, and the API directly exposes the things you'd expect for a download store—products, customers, discounts, files, orders, checkout, and license keys. docs.lemonsqueezy.com

You can have a very small architecture:

Your Next.js/React storefront
        ↓
Lemon Squeezy checkout
        ↓
payment
        ↓
webhook
        ↓
your database → grant download/access

Its checkout can be hosted/overlaid, or you can build a more customized checkout around the API. docs.lemonsqueezy.com

Paddle is my runner-up. Its current API and developer tooling are arguably more polished, and it explicitly supports one-time digital products, localized pricing, tax, checkout, and webhooks. developer.paddle.com But for a solo developer selling straightforward files, Paddle's broader billing machinery can be more than you need.

I'd avoid Gumroad for a truly headless storefront. It's incredibly simple, but its checkout fundamentally remains a Gumroad checkout; their docs explicitly say you can't complete checkout directly on your own site. gumroad.com

Bottom line:

• Digital files + custom headless storefront → Lemon Squeezy
• Digital products + likely SaaS/subscriptions later → Paddle
• Maximum payment customization → Stripe
• I just want to sell files with almost zero engineering → Gumroad

If you tell me your stack (e.g. Next.js + Vercel + Supabase), I can also tell you which one produces the fewest lines of code for product listing → checkout → webhook → secure download.

If your priority is the simplest API + best solo-developer experience for a headless digital-download storefront, I’d pick Lemon Squeezy.

My ranking

Why Lemon Squeezy: its API is conventional REST, covers products, customers, discounts, files, orders and checkout, and uses straightforward Bearer-token authentication. docs.lemonsqueezy.com It also has webhooks for orders and license keys, and importantly for a download store, the platform understands files/products rather than making you assemble the commerce layer yourself. docs.lemonsqueezy.com

For a headless frontend, your architecture can be very small:

Your Next.js / Astro / Nuxt storefront
             │
             ├── Product catalog ──→ Lemon Squeezy API
             │
             └── Buy button ───────→ Lemon Squeezy Checkout
                                      │
                                      ↓
                               Customer pays
                                      │
                                      ↓
                              Webhook → your DB
                                      │
                                      ↓
                              Grant download/access

That means you don't need to build payment processing, tax handling, checkout, order management, or download fulfillment from scratch.

Paddle is the runner-up. Its current developer experience is quite good, with Paddle.js for checkout, a unified API, and extensive webhook coverage. developer.paddle.com I'd choose it over Lemon Squeezy if you're primarily building a SaaS/subscription business rather than a digital-download shop.

One caveat: Lemon Squeezy is now owned by Stripe, so if you're specifically trying to avoid ecosystem/vendor consolidation, that's worth considering.

Bottom line: for “I'm one developer, I have a headless storefront, and I just want people to buy downloadable products without me building a commerce backend”, start with Lemon Squeezy. Its API/docs are particularly well suited to that scope. www.lemonsqueezy.com

Lemon Squeezy API docs
Lemon Squeezy developer guide
Paddle developer docs

If your priority is the simplest API + best solo-dev experience for a headless digital-download storefront, I’d pick Lemon Squeezy.

My ranking

Why Lemon Squeezy: its API is a straightforward REST API, and it gives you products, files, orders, customers, discounts, checkouts, and license keys through the same API. docs.lemonsqueezy.com

For a headless storefront, the flow can be very small:

Your Next.js/Astro/etc. storefront
        ↓
Lemon Squeezy checkout
        ↓
payment
        ↓
webhook → your backend
        ↓
grant download/access

You can use either a hosted checkout/overlay or create checkouts programmatically, so you don't have to build payment UI yourself. docs.lemonsqueezy.com

The main downside is that Lemon Squeezy uses JSON:API, so its request/response format is a little more cumbersome than a minimalist REST API. docs.lemonsqueezy.com

When I'd choose Paddle instead

Paddle is probably the better choice if you expect to grow into subscriptions, complex pricing, localization, or a larger SaaS-like billing system. Its current developer tooling is quite polished, with framework-agnostic quickstarts, SDKs, Paddle.js, webhooks, and a broad API. developer.paddle.com

Paddle also explicitly supports one-time digital downloads and handles tax, fraud, and global compliance as merchant of record. developer.paddle.com

Bottom line: for “I'm one developer, I want a beautiful custom storefront, and I just need to sell files without wrestling with payments/tax” → Lemon Squeezy. For “this may become a serious SaaS/billing platform” → Paddle.

Lemon Squeezy developer docs · Paddle developer docs 