An unfamiliar line on your bank statement is always worth checking, and PADDLE.NET is one of the most confusing ones. It looks like a company you never bought anything from, yet it is often a software subscription billed under a different name. The seller is hidden behind the billing company, and finding that seller starts with one lookup once you know where to look.
What is a Paddle.net charge?
Paddle is a merchant of record for more than 6,000 software companies. When you buy software or a subscription sold through Paddle, Paddle is the company that actually charges you, so your statement shows PADDLE.NET instead of the software company’s name. That is why the charge looks unfamiliar even when the purchase behind it is one you made.
A merchant of record handles the payment, billing, and taxes for the software company. Paddle says it provides this payment infrastructure for thousands of software businesses worldwide, and that when you buy one of their products, Paddle is the seller of record and the party responsible for charging you. The descriptor on your statement may read simply PADDLE.NET, or it may include the product name, as in PADDLE.NET CRASHPLAN. Backup software CrashPlan is one seller that bills through Paddle, and its own support pages document both descriptor formats.
Read Also: Escam4.com Charging Your Card? What It Is and How to Stop It
How to find what a Paddle.net charge is for
Start with these checks before you contact your bank.
- Search your email inbox for Paddle and open the receipt for the matching amount and date.
- Go to paddle.net and open the support chat to look up your transaction details.
- Choose the option for not knowing why Paddle charged you, then enter your email or transaction details.
- Match the charge to a subscription renewal, a trial that converted, or a one-time software purchase.
Paddle’s own FAQ points users to its support chat on paddle.net to find transaction details, and notes that the same place handles cancellations and refund requests. If the amount matches a software trial you started, check the trial’s end date first. A subscription that quietly renewed is one possible explanation for a charge that looks new, alongside a second subscription or a one-time purchase you did not connect to Paddle.
The descriptor itself gives you one clue before you even open the lookup. A bare PADDLE.NET line does not name the product, so the lookup is the only way to identify it. A descriptor with a product name attached, such as PADDLE.NET CRASHPLAN, already tells you the product, though the paddle.net lookup still confirms the exact transaction.
How to cancel a Paddle subscription
Cancelling goes through Paddle, not the software alone, because Paddle holds the billing relationship. You have two routes: the support chat, or the customer portal linked from your confirmation email.
- Open the support chat on paddle.net and ask to cancel the subscription.
- Give the email address or transaction details tied to the charge when asked.
- Use the link in a Paddle email if you have one, since it shares your order details automatically.
- Or use the Manage subscription link in your confirmation email to cancel in the customer portal.
Deleting the app or uninstalling the software does not cancel billing. The subscription lives with Paddle, so it keeps renewing until you cancel it through Paddle’s support chat or customer portal. Cancellation takes effect at the end of the current billing period and prevents further payments.
Why is Paddle still charging after I cancelled?
Paddle’s FAQ gives two common reasons. You may have more than one subscription billed by Paddle, and cancelling one does not cancel the others. You may also have bought a one-time product without realizing the purchase was through Paddle, which makes the descriptor hard to connect to anything you remember buying.
In both cases, use the paddle.net lookup. If the lookup shows a charge you did not authorize or a billing error, you can request a refund through Paddle’s virtual assistant there. Approval depends on eligibility, and in some cases the refund policy of the individual product supplier applies instead, so the supplier’s own terms are worth checking if Paddle points you that way. An unauthorised charge may also warrant contacting your card issuer directly.
What if you do not recognize the charge at all?
Run the lookup, because an unrecognized Paddle charge often resolves to a real subscription once the seller’s name appears. Search your email for Paddle receipts, check whether anyone else in your household bought software on the same card, and look for a trial you may have started and forgotten.
If the lookup finds nothing, no receipt exists, and nobody recognizes the purchase, contact your bank or card issuer to dispute the charge. Do not send your full card number or security code to any support chat or support email while investigating. That warning comes from seller support guidance and applies to any billing dispute.
Before you file the dispute, gather details worth having ready: the exact descriptor, the date and amount, and a note that Paddle’s lookup returned no match. Your issuer decides what it requires.
Frequently asked questions
Is Paddle.net legitimate? Yes. Paddle states that it is a legitimate merchant of record for thousands of software companies, and that it follows PCI compliance requirements and uses encryption to protect payment information.
Why does the charge say Paddle instead of the software name? Because Paddle is the seller of record for the transaction. Your statement shows the billing company, not the software company, unless the descriptor also names the product.
Can I get a refund for a Paddle charge? If you are eligible, you can request one through Paddle’s virtual assistant on paddle.net. In some cases the product supplier’s refund policy applies instead of Paddle’s own terms.
Does deleting the app stop Paddle charges? No. Uninstalling software does not cancel a subscription billed by Paddle. Cancel through Paddle’s support chat on paddle.net.
What if the seller is a company I never heard of? That is expected under the merchant-of-record model. The company you bought from uses Paddle for billing, so Paddle’s name appears instead of theirs. The paddle.net lookup exists for exactly this case, and it shows the product behind the charge.
