Processing online payments

Once you've linked your bank account information to your online payments account, you can begin processing client payments without using card readers or terminals.

Note: For a walkthrough of how to set up your online payments account, see Getting started with online payments.

• Online payments processing fees
• Adding a card to a client's file
• Setting a default card and adding nicknames
• Deleting a card from a client's file
• Charging a client
• Refunding a client
• FAQs

Note: You can track your online payments transactions at Billing > Card transactions. For more information, see Keeping track of your payouts and Online payments payout FAQs.

Online payments processing fees

SimplePractice is partnered with Stripe to provide a secure, integrated payment processing solution.

The integration fee for online payments is 3.15% + $0.30 for each successful transaction, whether the card is charged at the time of service or stored for later use.

Some processors offer lower in-person rates but higher card-absent fees. Our integrated processor supports faster, more reliable payments.

Adding a card to a client's file

Once you’re ready to process online payments, client cards can be securely stored in their file. You can manually add a card or request the information through the Client Portal.

To manually add a card:

1. Navigate to the client’s profile
2. Click Edit > Billing and Insurance
3. Scroll to Credit & Debit Cards and click + Card
4. Enter the client’s card information

5. Click Save card

If the client has an international card, the zip code must be entered in a standard 5-digit format.

If the zip code is longer than 5 characters, a dash is added automatically. If this format doesn’t work, you may use any 5-digit US zip code as a placeholder.

To request card information through the Client Portal:

1. Navigate to the client’s profile
2. Click Share in the upper right corner

3. Select the Credit card information form

4. Click Continue to Email > Continue to Review > Share & Send Now

Important: Card information should only be stored in designated payment fields within SimplePractice.

Setting a default card and adding nicknames

Multiple cards can be stored for a client. One card can be set as the default, and nicknames can be added for clarity.

1. Navigate to the client’s Overview page
2. Click Edit > Billing and Insurance
3. Locate the card under Credit & Debit Cards
4. Click Edit
5. In the flyout, enter a nickname and use the Make this the default card? toggle
   • Clients can’t view or edit card nicknames in the Client Portal

6. Click Save card

Note: The first card added is automatically set as the default. Additional cards aren’t set as default automatically.

Deleting a card from a client's file

You can delete a client’s card at any time.

1. Navigate to the client’s profile
2. Click Edit > Billing and Insurance
3. Scroll to Credit & Debit Cards
4. Click the trash icon next to the card

Note: Transactions tied to deleted cards can’t be refunded to that card. If needed, you can refund outside SimplePractice and mark the transaction as manually refunded

Charging a client

There are multiple ways to add a client payment:

• From the appointment fly-out on the calendar
• From the client’s Overview page
• From an unpaid invoice

Adding a payment opens the Add Payment flow.

1. Select the invoice

2. Select Online card on file as the payment method

3. Click Change to select a different card if needed
4. Click +New online card to add a new card
5. Review the Summary and click Charge

Refunding a client

You can issue a full or partial refund as needed. For more information, see Refunding a client. 

FAQs

• What payment methods can I accept?
• How can I find a total of the credit card processing fees I've paid?
• Why are my clients being charged $1 by SimplePractice?
• What does the credit card request form look like?
• How do I know which card to select if my client has multiple cards on file?
• Is there a report I can share with my accountant that includes my card processing fees from the previous year? 
• What is the maximum amount I can charge?
• What will online payments charges look like for my clients?
• I tried to charge my client’s credit card, but I chose the wrong payment type. How do I fix it?
• Why did a refund fail?
• What happens if a client’s credit card details change?

What payment methods can I accept?

With online payments, you can charge almost any kind of credit or debit card, including:

• Visa, MasterCard, American Express, JCB, Discover, and Diners Club
• FSA and HSA cards for client payments
• Link by Stripe can be used for any clients that have signed up to use Link
  • To learn more, see Using Link as a payment method

Note: To learn about using vCards in SimplePractice, see Processing a Vcard or insurance credit card.

How can I find a total of the credit card processing fees I've paid?

If you want to see the total of all card processing fees you've paid for a certain time period:

• Navigate to Billing > Card transactions
• Expand the date range of the report as needed
  • You can export this report as a CSV file by clicking Export transactions

You can open the file in a spreadsheet program (Microsoft Excel, Google Sheets, etc.) to quickly add the values in the Fee column to find your total.

Why are my clients being charged $1 by SimplePractice?

When a client’s credit card is added or updated in SimplePractice, they may see a pending authorization charge for $1 on their credit card statement. This isn’t an actual charge, but a temporary authorization held by our payment processor to verify that a client’s credit card account is active and valid for future transactions.

A transaction may be listed as pending on your client’s bank statement, but they aren’t being charged and no amount is collected by our processor. The pending charge should automatically be reversed and removed from your client’s bank statement after 7 business days.

If the charge doesn’t reverse after 7 business days, submit a help request so that our team can assist you further.

Note: This pre-authorization may be declined by the client's bank, preventing you from processing the card. In this case, the client will need to reach out to their bank to allow the pre-authorization. To learn more, see Handling credit card declines.

What does the credit card request form look like?

How do I know which card to select if my client has multiple cards on file?

You can add a card nickname to easily keep track of multiple cards stored within a client's file. This makes it easier to quickly distinguish between multiple cards without needing to review the full credit card details.

This can be especially useful when working with couples, minors, or clients with FSA/HSA cards.

Is there a report I can share with my accountant that includes my card processing fees from the previous year?

You can generate an annual financial activity report for the previous year that includes your total processing fees. To access this, navigate to Analytics > Reports, and click on the desired year-end report. Your total processing fees will be listed as ​​Stripe processing expenses.

Note: To learn more about our annual financial activity report, see Annual financial activity report FAQs.

What is the maximum amount I can charge?

There is no limit on how much you can charge your clients through your online payments account.

What will online payments charges look like for my clients?

You can customize the statement descriptor that appears on your clients’ bank statements when you charge their cards.

To edit your statement descriptor:

• Navigate to Settings > Payment processing > Online payments
• Under Business details, click Edit details

• Customize the Statement descriptor field to what you would like to appear on your clients’ bank statements
  • The statement descriptor field only supports between 5-22 characters 
  • If your business name is longer than 22 characters, we recommend creating a short-hand version of it that your clients will still recognize
    
• Click Save changes

Note: For every transaction you process in your online payments account, our processor sends your statement descriptor and business details to the client’s bank. However, banks are free to truncate, format, or re-order this information when they show it to their cardholders. As a result, there may be instances where the information that appears in a client’s bank statement is different from your statement descriptor.

I tried to charge my client’s credit card, but I chose the wrong payment type. How do I fix it?

If you selected the wrong payment type when trying to add an Online card on file payment, you can delete the payment and re-add it with the correct payment type.

To do this:

• Delete the payment
• Re-add the payment using the Online card on file payment method

Why did a refund fail?

There are times when a cardholder's bank won’t accept a refund, and the refund will fail. When a refund fails, the funds from that transaction will be returned to your online payments account and included in your next payout. 

We aren’t able to reverse this action, and the refund can’t be processed through your online payments account. We recommend refunding the client outside of SimplePractice, and then marking the payment as refunded via Cash, Check, or External card. To do this:

• Navigate to the client’s Billing page
• Use the Transactions by client filter
• Locate the Refund reversal and click View

• Click Refund in the top right corner
• In the refund flyout, use the Method dropdown and choose Cash, Check, or External card
  • The Online card on file option will be blocked to prevent additional refunds from failing
• Enter the Refund Amount
• Click Refund

For more information, see Refunding a client.

What happens if a client’s credit card details change?

Online payments uses an Account Updater feature that allows card issuers to send updates when a cardholder’s account information changes. The Account Updater maintains accurate card data, which in turn helps you:

• Avoid unnecessary failed transactions
• Minimize payment disruptions
• Reduce the need for manual updates to your clients’ card information

Whether or not a card can be updated using the Account Updater is dependent on the cardholder’s bank participating with this feature. If a client’s card is outdated and gets declined, we recommend requesting new credit card information from the client.