SamCart is an advanced shopping cart platform starting at $79/mo, while Easy Digital Downloads is a WordPress plugin starting at $99.50/yr. Both help you sell digital products online, but they differ in pricing, recurring payment ownership, and platform approach.
Trapped: You Can’t Leave Without Losing Revenue
Here’s something most people don’t check before comparing SamCart vs Easy Digital Downloads.
SamCart does not let you keep your recurring payments if you leave. If you’ve been selling your digital products through SamCart and your customers are paying you on a subscription basis, those recurring payments stay with SamCart’s billing system when you cancel. Stripe fixed-term subscriptions, all PayPal subscriptions, and any non-Stripe recurring billing. All gone.
You could connect your own Stripe or PayPal account and still lose those recurring payments when you walk away.
So every month you stay, you’re building income on a platform that holds it captive. And every month you think about leaving, you face the same question: can I afford to lose that revenue?
Easy Digital Downloads does not have this problem. If you sell online through EDD and decide to move, your recurring payments stay yours. You own those customer relationships.
This one difference matters. A platform for selling your products should never be the reason you can’t leave.
How to Stop Losing Customers When You Switch Platforms
If recurring payment ownership is the first thing to check, what else matters?
A few things: protected download links so your customers to download files stay secure, personal customer support that responds in hours (not days), transparent pricing with no revenue caps, and reliable digital product delivery.
That’s the approach behind CartMango (full disclosure: this post is published by CartMango, and we include our limitations alongside the comparison). CartMango is a digital product platform where you keep your recurring payments, your customers get protected download link access, and there are zero monthly fees or commissions. It’s free until 2027. The support is founder-led with an average response time of 2 hours 16 minutes.
It’s simple to use, and it’s not trying to be everything. But for solo creators who want to keep what they earn, it’s worth a look.
SamCart vs Easy Digital Downloads vs CartMango
| Feature | SamCart | Easy Digital Downloads | CartMango |
|---|---|---|---|
| Your recurring payments gone if you leave? | ❌ Recurring payments lost if you leave: – Stripe fixed-term subs – All PayPal & non-Stripe subs – Still lost even when connected to your own Stripe / PayPal | ✅ You keep recurring payments | ✅ You keep recurring payments |
| Completely free? (note: Stripe / PayPal fees are standard across all cart platforms) | ❌ $79/mo for up to $3,000/mo revenue. $219/mo for up to $10,000/mo revenue. $849/mo for up to $100,000/mo revenue. | ❌ Personal: $99.50/yr. Extended: $199.50/yr. Professional: $299.50/yr. All Access: $499.50/yr. | ✅ Yes, 0 monthly fees, 0% commission. All features included (until 2027). |
| Learning management system (LMS) | ✅ Yes | ❌ No | ❌ Future |
| Funnels (upsells & downsells) after customers paid for the main product | ✅ Yes | ✅ Professional plan & above ($299.50 – $499.50/yr) | ✅ Yes |
| Customer support | $19/mo add-on for live support, available Mon-Fri, 9-5 CT | No live chat, but good customer support. Standard support for Personal & Extended plan ($99.50 – $199.50/yr). Premium support for Professional & All Access plan ($299.50 – $499.50/yr). | Founder-led personal support, no chatbots, no live chat. Average response time is 2hr+. |
| Buy now, pay later (BNPL) for your customers (boost your sales) | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| Order bumps to boost sales | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| Subscriptions (support trials & set up fees) | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| Flexible coupons & discounts | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| Quick & fast checkouts | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| Customers need NOT log in before buying (quick checkout experience) | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| Direct, instant payout to your Stripe / PayPal (no withholding payments) | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| If download links are shared by rogue customers, will they work? | ✅ Links are protected | ✅ Links are protected | ✅ Links are protected |
| Integrations | ✅ Works with HighLevel, iContact, Shopify, Slack, Digital Access Pass, and more. Connects to thousands of extra apps through Zapier. | ✅ Wide app lineup: Stripe, PayPal, Mailchimp, Kit, ActiveCampaign, Dropbox, Amazon S3, Zapier (Extended plan $199.50/yr), Slack (Professional plan $299.50/yr). | ⚠️ Limited native connections for now, but the Make.com connector gives you access to 3,000+ apps. Current native apps: Stripe, PayPal, Kit, ActiveCampaign, Beehiiv, and BirdSend, with more coming soon. |
| Affiliate management | ✅ Yes | ❌ No | ❌ Coming soon |
| Best for | Affluent creators who don’t mind paying premium prices for a full feature set, whether or not they use half of it. | WordPress users who sell digital products like ebooks and software, and also offer physical products. | Solo digital creators who don’t want their recurring revenue held hostage, plus instant setup, human support, and 0 platform fees (free until 2027). |
| Free migration | ❌ No free migration | ❌ No free migration | ✅ Free migration included |
These are the links for each platform: SamCart, Easy Digital Downloads, CartMango.
CartMango Isn’t for Everyone. Here’s Who It’s Built For.
CartMango is built for a specific kind of seller: independent creators selling ebooks, PDF guides, online course content, membership access, and other digital products.
If you need to sell digital downloads without giving up your recurring revenue, and you don’t want to pay monthly platform fees, CartMango is worth a look. It specializes in selling digital products with zero commissions and zero monthly costs (free until 2027).
But I’ll be direct about the trade-offs.
There’s no LMS yet (it’s on the roadmap). Native connections are still growing, though Make.com gives you access to over 3,000 apps right now. Affiliate management is coming soon. And there’s no live chat for support, just direct, personal responses from the founder.
If you need an all-in-one platform with a built-in course hosting system, SamCart is a better fit today. If you need deep WordPress plugin support with dozens of add-ons, EDD makes more sense.
CartMango is for the solo creator who wants to keep things lean. If you want to sell without monthly fees and complex setup, it’s built for that. No subscription hostage situation. No surprise fees. Just a clean way to sell your products and keep what you earn.
SamCart: The Premium Shopping Cart for Course Creators
SamCart positions itself as a high-end shopping cart built for course creators and digital product sellers who want maximum conversion tools.
What SamCart offers
- Built-in marketing tools including upsells, downsells, order bumps, and checkout pages designed for higher conversions
- Full learning management system (LMS) for hosting and delivering courses
- Affiliate management so others can promote your products
- Buy now, pay later (BNPL) support
- Shopping cart with coupon and discount support
- Connects with HighLevel, iContact, Shopify, Slack, Digital Access Pass, and thousands more through Zapier
- SamCart offers a 14-day free trial to test the platform
SamCart pricing structure
SamCart’s pricing is based on your monthly revenue:
- $79/mo for up to $3,000/mo in revenue
- $219/mo for up to $10,000/mo in revenue
- $849/mo for up to $100,000/mo in revenue
Live customer support is an extra $19/mo (Mon-Fri, 9-5 CT). Without it, you’re limited to email and help docs.
The limitations
The biggest issue: your recurring payments are lost if you leave. Even with your own Stripe or PayPal connected. That’s a deal-breaker for many creators who depend on recurring income.
The pricing also scales fast. If you’re earning $5,000/mo, you’re already on the $219/mo plan. Cross $10,000/mo and you jump to $849/mo. These costs add up.
No free migration either. You’re on your own if you want to switch.
Best for
Creators who want a full-featured shopping cart with LMS, funnels, affiliate management, and don’t mind paying premium monthly fees for it.
This is the link for SamCart.
Easy Digital Downloads: The WordPress Plugin for Digital Product Sellers
Easy Digital Downloads (EDD) is one of the most popular WordPress plugins for selling digital products. It’s built specifically for file downloads, ebooks, software, and other downloadable content, and it also handles physical products.
What Easy Digital Downloads offers
- Runs on WordPress, giving you full control over your site and content
- Supports digital products like ebooks, software, PDF files, music, and more
- Funnels with upsells and downsells (Professional plan and above)
- Subscriptions with trial periods and setup fees
- Flexible coupon and create discount codes support
- Allow customers to buy without creating an account
- Protected file downloads to prevent unauthorized sharing
- Wide app lineup: Stripe, PayPal, Mailchimp, Kit, ActiveCampaign, Dropbox, Amazon S3, Zapier, Slack
Easy Digital Downloads pricing structure
EDD uses yearly pricing:
- Personal: $99.50/yr
- Extended: $199.50/yr
- Professional: $299.50/yr
- All Access: $499.50/yr
Features are tiered. Funnels require the Professional plan ($299.50/yr). Zapier requires the Extended plan ($199.50/yr). Slack requires Professional.
The limitations
EDD requires WordPress. That means you need hosting, you need to manage WordPress plugins and updates, and you need some comfort with the WordPress setup. It’s not a standalone platform.
There’s no LMS. No affiliate management. And no live chat support (you get email-based support with standard or premium tiers depending on your plan).
No free migration either.
Best for
WordPress users who sell digital products and also want to sell physical products. If you’re already running a WordPress site, EDD fits right in.
This is the link for Easy Digital Downloads.
Pricing Simulation
All three platforms charge standard Stripe/PayPal processing fees (2.9% + $0.30 per transaction fee). The difference is in platform fees. Assuming an average order of $50:
| Monthly Revenue | SamCart Cost (per month) | Easy Digital Downloads Cost (per month) | CartMango Cost (per month) | CartMango Savings vs SamCart (per year) | CartMango Savings vs Easy Digital Downloads (per year) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $1,000 (20 orders) | $79 platform + $35 processing = $114 | $8.29 platform + $35 processing = $43.29 | $0 platform + $35 processing = $35 | $948/yr | $99.50/yr |
| $5,000 (100 orders) | $219 platform + $175 processing = $394 | $8.29 platform + $175 processing = $183.29 | $0 platform + $175 processing = $175 | $2,628/yr | $99.50/yr |
| $10,000 (200 orders) | $219 platform + $350 processing = $569 | $8.29 platform + $350 processing = $358.29 | $0 platform + $350 processing = $350 | $2,628/yr | $99.50/yr |
| $50,000 (1000 orders) | $849 platform + $1,750 processing = $2,599 | $8.29 platform + $1,750 processing = $1,758.29 | $0 platform + $1,750 processing = $1,750 | $10,188/yr | $99.50/yr |
EDD’s yearly cost ($99.50) is converted to $8.29/mo for this comparison. CartMango charges $0 in platform fees (free until 2027), so savings equal the competitor’s platform fees annualized.
The savings vs SamCart add up fast. At $10,000/mo in revenue, you’d save $2,628 per year with CartMango. At $50,000/mo, the difference is over $10,000 per year.
EDD is already affordable, so the CartMango savings there are modest at $99.50/yr. The real advantage of CartMango over EDD isn’t pricing, it’s that you don’t need to manage a WordPress site, and you still keep your recurring revenue.
SamCart vs Easy Digital Downloads vs CartMango: Which Fits Your Business?
These are the links for each platform: SamCart, Easy Digital Downloads, CartMango.
When comparing SamCart vs Easy Digital Downloads, the right choice depends on what you need and how much you’re willing to spend.
Choose SamCart if you want a full-featured shopping cart with a built-in LMS, affiliate management, and funnels on every plan. You’re OK with $79-$849/mo in platform fees, and the recurring payment lock-in is something you can live with.
Choose Easy Digital Downloads if you’re already on WordPress and want an e-commerce platform built for selling digital products. The pricing is affordable starting at $99.50/yr, and you keep your recurring payments. You’ll need to manage WordPress hosting and updates, but you get deep plugin support and a wide range of apps to connect with.
Choose CartMango if you need to sell digital products without monthly fees, without commissions, and without your recurring revenue being held hostage. It’s the better choice for solo creators who want profitable digital products to sell without platform overhead. CartMango is free until 2027, gives you free migration, and you can create discount codes and set up your entire store in minutes.
If you’re trying to choose the right platform among many platforms in this space (including Gumroad, Payhip, SendOwl, and Sellfy), the choice for your business comes down to three things: can you keep your recurring revenue, what does the platform cost, and does it match how you want to sell?
To choose the best platform you can use to sell, look at what each one actually does with your recurring payments. The best platforms to sell digital products are the ones that don’t hold your income hostage and don’t eat into your profits with rising fees. That’s the right choice worth making.
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