How to run a paid Telegram group in 2026: Stars, bots, costs, and when to move
Charge for a Telegram group with Stars or a bot like InviteMember. What each one costs, how payouts work, and the signs it's time to move to a platform.
There are two ways to charge for Telegram. Telegram's own subscriptions let you put a monthly price in Stars on a channel invite link. You cash out in Toncoin after a 21-day hold, and by our math you keep about 65% of what members pay. Or use a paid bot like InviteMember, which takes cards through Stripe or PayPal, adds people when they pay, and removes them when they stop. It costs from $39 a month. Move to a platform once your members keep asking the same questions, you want to sell a course or coaching next to the group, or you need an email list you own.
Full disclosure: we make Eden, which has a Telegram-style community chat. Prices and terms were checked on October 8, 2026.
Option 1: Telegram Stars subscriptions
Telegram added paid subscriptions in 2024. You create an invite link for your channel with a monthly price in Stars. Anyone who joins through it pays that price every month in Stars.
How to set it up
- Open your channel's settings and go to invite links.
- Create a new link and turn on the monthly fee.
- Set the price in Stars and share the link.
How you get paid
- Members buy Stars inside Telegram. Prices vary by country and app store. Resellers list about $1.99 for 100.
- You withdraw Stars through Fragment, paid in Toncoin (TON). Guides put the rate at about $0.013 per Star.
- Newly earned Stars wait 21 days before you can withdraw them, and you need at least 1,000.
- To get dollars or euros, you sell the Toncoin on an exchange.
What that means for your money (our math)
| Line | Amount |
|---|---|
| Member buys 1,000 Stars for a monthly sub | About $20 |
| You withdraw 1,000 Stars at about $0.013 | About $13 |
| Share you keep | About 65% |
Rates move, so check the live rate in your channel's Stars balance before you price. The gap is mostly app store fees on buying Stars.
Good for: small channels, tips, and testing an idea with zero setup. Not good for: a group chat that needs card payments, refunds, or a real payout in your currency.
Option 2: A paid bot like InviteMember
A membership bot sells access through Stripe, PayPal, or crypto. When someone pays, the bot sends them a private invite link. When they stop paying, it removes them. It works for groups and channels.
| InviteMember plan | Sales covered | Billed monthly | Billed yearly (per month) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Leader | Up to $1,000/mo | $39 | $32.50 |
| Visionary | Up to $2,000/mo | $79 | $65.83 |
| Innovator | Up to $5,000/mo | $149 | $124.17 |
Card processing comes on top, about 2.9% + 30¢ per payment on Stripe.
Good for: a real paid group with card payments, trials, and coupons, while staying on Telegram.
What it costs at three sizes
Members pay $20 a month. Monthly cost to you.
| Monthly revenue | Telegram Stars (our math) | InviteMember + Stripe | Eden Starter + Stripe |
|---|---|---|---|
| $1,000 (50 members) | About $350 | $83 | $123 |
| $2,000 (100 members) | About $700 | $167 | $217 |
| $5,000 (250 members) | About $1,750 | $369 | $499 |
InviteMember at monthly billing. Eden Starter is $29 a month plus 5% per sale. On cost alone, a Telegram bot beats Eden. What Eden adds is below.
How to run the group well
- Pin a "start here" message. What the group is for, the rules, and the first thing to do.
- Turn on topics. Telegram's topics split one group into rooms, like Wins, Help, and Off topic.
- Keep announcements apart. Use a channel for your updates and the group for talk.
- Show up on a schedule. One weekly voice chat or Q&A gives people a reason to open it.
- Save the best answers. Copy great replies into a pinned post or a doc, because chat buries them.
For the numbers behind what keeps groups alive, see how to keep a community active.
When to move off Telegram
Telegram is great at chat. These are the signs you've outgrown it:
- The same questions every week. Topics help, but old answers still sink, and search only helps people who use it.
- You want to sell more than the group. A course, coaching calls, a template. Telegram has no store.
- You don't own your list. You can't email your members from Telegram.
- Some buyers aren't on Telegram. Where Telegram isn't common, asking people to install it loses some of them.
- You want events, recordings, and a calendar. Telegram has voice chats, but no events page or calendar sync.
Moving to Eden
Eden's community chat is built to feel like Telegram, so members feel at home on day one:
- Bubbles like Telegram. Yours on the right, photo grids, and voice notes you record by holding the mic, with 1.5x and 2x speed and a button to turn one into text.
- Channels that show their last message, like Telegram topics, in the order you set. Each member can pin their own favorites to the top.
- Telegram Desktop on the web. A thin icon bar on the left beside one list of channels. In more than one community? They all line up down that bar.
- The same gestures on phones. Swipe right to reply, double-tap to like, long-press for the menu.
- Threads, forwarding, and a pinned bar at the top of the chat.
Then it adds what Telegram doesn't have: a Library (Eden's forum) with categories that keeps answers, events with "Sync to calendar," member profiles, courses members get with the community, and email to your list. Members use it on the web and in the Eden app on iPhone and Android.
How the switch works. Eden can't pull members out of Telegram. Here's the usual way to move:
- Create the community in Eden as a product in your store, with a monthly price.
- Post the join link in Telegram and pin it.
- If your bot or Stripe has members' emails, import them in Eden and give them access. Imported access doesn't charge anyone, so paying members start their membership again on Eden.
- Run both for a few weeks. Then make the Telegram group read-only, with the link pinned.
Price: Starter $29 a month (1 community), Pro $79 (3), Max $199 (unlimited, 2% fee). 5% per sale on Starter and Pro, plus Stripe. No member caps. See Communities.
Where Eden falls short
A Telegram bot costs less. Eden has no voice chat rooms that stay open all day, and members can't message each other privately. Members use the Eden app, with Eden's name on it. And some members will never leave Telegram, so expect to lose a few.
Frequently asked questions
Can you charge for a Telegram group?
Yes. Use Telegram Stars subscriptions on a channel invite link, or a bot like InviteMember that takes cards and manages access.
How much does Telegram take from Stars subscriptions?
Telegram doesn't publish one number. By our math, between buying Stars and cashing them out, creators keep about 65% of what members pay. Check the live rate before you price.
How do I get paid from Telegram Stars?
Withdraw through Fragment once you have at least 1,000 Stars that are 21 days old. You're paid in Toncoin, which you sell on an exchange.
Is InviteMember worth it?
For a paid Telegram group taking card payments, yes. It costs from $39 a month and handles joining and removing members for you.
Can I move my Telegram members to Eden?
Not automatically. Share your Eden join link in the group. If you have members' emails, you can import them and give them access.
Sources
- Telegram: Super Channels, Star Reactions and Subscriptions
- InviteMember on withdrawing Stars as Toncoin and Such.chat on Stars withdrawals, for the 21-day hold, the 1,000-Star minimum, and the rate
- TOPUPlive on Telegram Stars prices, for the price of 100 Stars
- InviteMember pricing, checked October 8, 2026
Want a Telegram-style chat with a store, a Library, and email behind it? Start Eden free and create a community.