A platform comparison between Fanvault and Passes comes down to two numbers and one structural gap. Fanvault charges a flat 8% and creators keep 92%. Passes charges 10% plus $0.30 per transaction, so creators keep roughly 90% before processing, and the fixed $0.30 stacks harder on small-cart subs per Passes. Both are 18+, brand-safe platforms competing for the non-explicit creator lane. The real divergence is what each one monetizes: Passes runs a clean subscription stack, while Fanvault adds an authenticated-memorabilia storefront and a Telegram-based automation layer Passes does not offer.
⚡ Key Takeaways
- Fanvault charges a flat 8% (creators keep 92%); Passes charges 10% + $0.30 per transaction (~90% before processing).
- On a $10 sub, Passes' effective fee climbs above 13% because the fixed $0.30 stacks; Fanvault stays at 8% at any cart size.
- At $10K/month in small-ticket subs, the fee gap is roughly $6,000 per year in the creator's favor on Fanvault.
- Passes raised ~$50M+ at a reported $150M valuation and signed Olivia Dunne, Bella Thorne, and Shaquille O'Neal; it is the credible A-list pick.
- Fanvault adds an authenticated-memorabilia storefront (auctions, drops, Shippo fulfillment) and Telegram-based conversational setup that Passes does not offer.
- Both are strictly 18+ brand-safe platforms; Passes uses Amazon Rekognition + open application, Fanvault is invite-gated with manual approval.
How do Fanvault and Passes compare side by side?
Headline fees only tell part of the story. The bigger story is what is bundled into each platform, who they are built for, and how the fee math plays out at real revenue tiers. Here is the honest scorecard, with no spin on either side.
| Dimension | Fanvault | Passes |
|---|---|---|
| Platform fee | Flat 8% (creators keep 92%) | 10% + $0.30 per transaction |
| Revenue streams | Subs, paywalled posts, paid DMs, custom requests, tips, wishlists, plus storefront auctions and buy-it-now drops | Subscriptions, paid DMs, group chats, livestreams, merch, digital downloads, 1:1 calls |
| Physical goods | Authenticated memorabilia with proxy bidding, anti-snipe windows, Shippo fulfillment | Generic branded merch storefront, no auctions or provenance layer |
| Setup / automation | Conversational setup on Telegram or in-app, chat-driven listings and DMs | Manual dashboard setup, SMS notifications, DM variables |
| Content rules | 18+ verified, invite-gated, two-strike brand-safe policy | 18+ only (post-2025), no nudity or sexual content, identity verification |
| Sister AI platform | Content Capital, autonomous content generation across IG, TikTok, X | AI-driven analytics, West Hollywood production hub |
| Founded / footprint | 2025, AI-native, 24-country launch | 2022, ~114 employees, ~1,000 creators reported Feb 2024 |
What does the fee math actually look like at $1K and $10K per month?
Headline percentages mislead at small cart sizes because Passes layers a fixed $0.30 on every transaction. The effective fee on a $10 sub on Passes is closer to 13%, not 10%. Fanvault stays at 8% regardless of cart size.
At $1,000/month in subscription gross volume across 100 transactions at $10 each, a Fanvault creator keeps about $920. A Passes creator at the same volume keeps roughly $870 after the percentage and the per-transaction cents stack. That is a $50/month swing, or $600 a year, before processor fees.
At $10,000/month across 1,000 small-ticket transactions, Fanvault still returns $9,200. Passes returns about $8,700. That is roughly a $6,000 annual swing, and it widens as cart sizes shrink. Per Stripe, instant payouts on either platform typically carry an additional 1.5% fee in the US, so the gap compounds when creators withdraw frequently.
Where does Passes legitimately win?
Passes has real strengths and it would be dishonest to skip them. The platform raised a $40M Series A led by Bond Capital with participation from Michael Ovitz and Menlo Ventures per Refresh Miami, bringing total funding to roughly $50M+. That capital has bought serious A-list creator signings.
Olivia Dunne signed a multi-million-dollar deal with Passes per Sportico, and Bella Thorne, Shaquille O'Neal, and Kygo have all been named in platform coverage. As of February 2024, Lucy Guo said Passes had paid out tens of millions to roughly 1,000 creators.
"EXCLUSIVE not EXPLICIT."
Olivia Dunne, Creator, on Passes positioning
On April 22, 2026, Passes officially rebranded as the "Creator Accelerator Platform" per PR Newswire, leaning into bundled production and business infrastructure. If a creator wants celebrity-adjacent positioning and a production hub in West Hollywood, Passes is the credible pick.
What does Fanvault offer that Passes does not?
Two things, and they are structural rather than cosmetic.
- An authenticated-memorabilia storefront with proxy-bidding auctions, reserve prices, anti-snipe windows, and buy-it-now drops for signed and stream-worn items, fulfilled through Shippo. Passes has a generic merch storefront with no provenance layer or auction mechanics.
- A conversational automation layer. A Fanvault creator can spin up listings, schedule content, triage DMs, and manage orders entirely through chat, in-app or on Telegram. Passes setup is manual dashboard work.
The storefront matters because the sports-memorabilia category is a $30B+ market that Fanvault is bringing to creators whose fans already collect. For a streamer auctioning a tournament-used keyboard or an athlete dropping signed gear, that revenue line does not exist on Passes.
How do content rules and creator gating differ?
Both platforms occupy the same 18+, brand-safe lane that Fanvue, OnlyFans, and Fansly do not. Passes prohibits nudity, sexual content, hate speech, and harassment per Passes Community Guidelines, and runs uploads through Amazon Rekognition automated moderation. After 2025 controversy, Passes raised its minimum creator age to 18 per Passionfruit.
Fanvault is also strictly 18+, age-verified at onboarding, with a two-strike brand-safety policy and AI content moderation via Sightengine. The gating difference is that Fanvault is invite-gated with manual approval for every creator, while Passes uses identity verification plus a background check on an open application basis.
Which platform is right for which creator type?
This is where honesty wins trust. Neither platform is universally better. They are built for different creator profiles.
| Creator type | Fanvault | Passes |
|---|---|---|
| Streamer or gaming talent with merch and signed gear | Best fit (auctions, drops, storefront) | Workable but no provenance layer |
| Athlete or fitness creator with physical goods | Best fit (authenticated memorabilia) | Limited (merch only) |
| Celebrity or A-list creator with management | Workable (invite-gated) | Best fit (production hub, bundled services) |
| Virtual or AI creator | Best fit (Content Capital sister platform) | Limited (primarily human creators) |
| Subscription-only creator, no physical goods | Workable (lower fee) | Workable (proven scale) |
| Creator wanting chat-driven setup | Best fit (Telegram automation) | Not available |
Per Goldman Sachs, the creator economy is projected to roughly double from $250B in 2025 to $480B by 2027. Per inBeat Agency, only 4% of creators earn over $100K/year and roughly 50% earn under $15K. In that income distribution, every point of effective fee and every additional revenue surface compounds. Pick the platform whose monetization stack matches the goods you actually sell.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Passes the same as OnlyFans or Fanvue?
No. Passes is explicitly non-explicit. Per the Passes Community Guidelines, the platform prohibits nudity, sexual content, hate speech, and harassment, and Olivia Dunne publicly described its positioning as 'EXCLUSIVE not EXPLICIT.' Fanvault sits in the same brand-safe 18+ lane. Both compete with Fanvue (15%) and Fanfix (~20%) on creator economics, not with OnlyFans or Fansly on content type.
What is the real effective fee on Passes versus Fanvault?
Passes is
Can I sell signed or stream-worn items on Passes?
Not in the authenticated-memorabilia sense. Passes offers a generic branded merch storefront, but it does not provide proxy-bidding auctions, reserve prices, anti-snipe windows, or provenance metadata on signed or worn items. Fanvault was built around that storefront layer with Shippo-powered fulfillment, which is the structural reason streamers, athletes, and combat-sports creators with physical inventory tend to map to Fanvault first.
Who owns Passes and how big is it?
Passes was founded in 2022 by Lucy Guo, a Scale AI co-founder. Per Refresh Miami, Passes raised a $40M Series A led by Bond Capital with Michael Ovitz and Menlo Ventures, bringing total funding to roughly $50M+ at a reported $150M valuation. As of February 2024, the platform had paid out tens of millions to roughly 1,000 creators per Sportico. In April 2026, Passes rebranded as the 'Creator Accelerator Platform.'
Which platform should an AI or virtual creator choose?
Fanvault is the better structural fit. Its sister platform, Content Capital, is an autonomous creator agent that generates on-brand photos and videos, publishes across Instagram, TikTok, and X, and plugs directly into a Fanvault storefront for monetization. Passes primarily supports human creators and bundles services around production and analytics, but it does not offer a native AI-creator stack the way Fanvault does.
Are there any reasons to choose Passes over Fanvault?
Yes, and it's worth being honest about them. If a creator is celebrity-adjacent, already has management, and wants bundled production services with a physical hub, Passes' April 2026 rebrand to a 'Creator Accelerator Platform' is designed for that profile. Passes also has a longer operating history (founded 2022) and a deeper public roster of A-list signings. For creators whose revenue is concentrated in subscriptions and 1:1 calls with no physical-goods component and no need for chat-driven setup, the fee gap may be acceptable given Passes' brand momentum.