Choose DriveThruRPG when you want an RPG-focused retail channel; choose itch.io when its creator-page and community model fits your release. Before choosing either, decide whether you are selling an original RPG, using a community-content licence, or distributing someone else's protected setting. Those choices can determine where the PDF may be sold before fees enter the discussion.
For independent publishers of original tabletop role-playing PDFs, the useful comparison is distribution, contract freedom and responsibility for the sale. A checkout with a smaller percentage does not create an audience. This article compares published documentation, not storefront tests or measured sales performance.
Check your publishing rights before comparing fees
Start with one release you have the right to sell: your own rules, text, layout and properly licensed art, or third-party material whose exact licence permits the intended distribution. Community Content Programs have their own conditions; do not assume the standard publisher arrangement applies to them.
DriveThru's exclusive and non-exclusive account documentation says exclusive publishers may still sell digital titles through their own website. It distinguishes that from unrestricted non-exclusive distribution, and states a six-month notice period for changing status after the first title is published. Its partner shipping documentation confirms the standard digital royalty rates of 70% for exclusive and 65% for non-exclusive partners.
That does not establish that every hosted storefront qualifies as your own website. Before combining an exclusive DriveThru account with itch.io or a PayRequest-hosted product page, ask Partner Relations about your specific arrangement. Keep the answer with the release records. Do not list the PDF elsewhere first and seek permission afterwards.
Compare the selling job, not just the percentage
| Decision | DriveThruRPG | itch.io | Direct checkout with PayRequest |
|---|---|---|---|
| Main reason to consider it | Dedicated RPG marketplace and publisher tools | Creator project pages and a wider indie community | Sell a file to an audience you bring |
| Contract check | Exclusive/non-exclusive status and any programme-specific terms | Seller terms and rights to the work | Rights to sell directly, including existing distribution agreements |
| Economic starting point | Standard publisher royalty arrangement | Seller-selected revenue share plus payment-related costs | Your connected provider plus the applicable PayRequest plan |
| Distribution to plan | Marketplace listing, preview and release approval | Project presentation and community promotion | Your website, mailing list or other permitted promotion |
| Work you still own | Product quality, rights, description and support obligations | Product quality, rights, description and support obligations | Product quality, rights, promotion, support and seller obligations |
| Not established by choosing it | Guaranteed discovery or sales | Guaranteed community attention or sales | A marketplace audience or automatic legal/tax outsourcing |
DriveThru's Digital Title FAQ describes approval differences for verified and unverified publishers. Build review time into a release plan instead of promising that a new account's title will appear immediately.
For a first release, choose the channel you can maintain well: a clear preview, accurate compatibility statement, complete files and a support contact matter more than launching several neglected listings at once.
Separate itch.io's two payment arrangements
According to itch.io's payments documentation, sellers choose a revenue share, with 10% used as its default example. Processor costs remain separate. Its Direct to you mode makes the seller the merchant of record; its Collected by itch.io/Payouts mode makes itch.io the merchant of record and uses USD. Payout eligibility, review and tax-information requirements also apply.
Choose the mode before budgeting currency, cash availability and responsibilities. Do not interpret a successful sale as an immediate payout, or treat the responsibilities of one mode as applying to the other. Check your actual account eligibility and the current terms before launch.
Use a transparent contribution worksheet
Assume 20 hypothetical pre-tax sales at €10 each, giving €200 gross. The itch.io illustration assumes Direct to you with an account eligible for EUR pricing. It is not a model of USD Payouts or a currency conversion. No transactions were tested.
| Arrangement | Calculation | Amount at this stage |
|---|---|---|
| DriveThru non-exclusive, standard publisher | €200 × 65% | €130 |
| DriveThru exclusive, standard publisher | €200 × 70% | €140 |
| itch.io at an illustrative 10% share | €200 − €20 | €180 before processor/other applicable costs |
| PayRequest Free, standard payments | €200 − 20 × €0.20 | €196 before provider/other applicable costs |
| PayRequest active Premium, one month | €200 − €5 subscription | €195 before provider/other applicable costs |
The DriveThru rows apply the published royalty share; the checkout rows still need their own processing and other costs. This is a partial contribution model, not comparable final bank payouts. Subtract actual account-specific processing, refunds, chargebacks, currency costs, tax treatment and any other applicable charges. Do not add a guessed universal processor percentage to every row.
Download the editable channel worksheet. Replace the quantities, actual share and costs. Include the time spent maintaining more than one listing and answering buyers. If you already pay for Premium for other work, decide consistently how much of that subscription to allocate to this release; the row above assigns a full month.
Ask how many additional sales a channel must bring
In the deliberately simplified model, €196 divided by €6.50 per non-exclusive DriveThru sale is about 30.15. It would take 31 total sales, or 11 more than the assumed 20 direct sales, to exceed €196 at that stage. This calculation ignores costs that differ between the routes, so it is a starting question, not evidence that either channel wins.
For your own decision use:
Then compare that requirement with evidence you actually have. Prior readers, release-specific newsletter clicks or existing sales may inform a plan; they do not guarantee purchases. If you have no audience, do not invent a direct-sales forecast merely because its platform percentage is lower.
A sensible launch can use a marketplace for discovery and a permitted direct offer for readers you reach yourself. Check agreements and pricing obligations before running both. Track each channel separately rather than crediting every order to the last promotional link you shared.
Prepare a buyer-ready RPG download
Provide a readable preview, system/edition compatibility, page count, content boundaries and a precise list of files. Distinguish screen and print-friendly PDFs. State whether maps, character sheets, editable files and future updates are included. Confirm the rights for every illustration, font and external rules reference.
Test your actual release package before advertising compatibility. Open the PDF, check links and bookmarks, print representative pages if you promise print suitability, and check that player-facing handouts do not expose hidden referee information. These are recommended release checks; we did not run them on a publisher's game for this article.
When a PayRequest product page fits
If your rights and agreements permit it and you can bring prospective readers, PayRequest digital products can provide a hosted paid-download page. Upload the actual file, show what the buyer receives, connect a provider eligible for your business/country and review delivery after confirmed payment. It is a checkout route, not a substitute for RPG retail discovery, print production or platform-specific library entitlements.
Digital products are available on Free with a 2% standard payment fee capped at €25 per transaction. Active Premium (€5/month) and Business (€20/month) remove standard platform fees. Provider fees and commission-payment exceptions remain separate. Review current plans; selecting or registering for a paid plan does not activate it. Do not assume tax registration or remittance is transferred to PayRequest by creating a page.
Start with one original PDF whose distribution rights are clear. Create the digital product and a useful preview, then choose the channels you are legally and operationally ready to support.
Editorial note: AI assisted with the draft and illustrative cover. This is a documentation-based comparison with hypothetical arithmetic, not a first-hand platform test or sales forecast. Sources and product pages reviewed on 12 November 2026.
