Stripe is the company that actually processes the credit card payments your clients make through ApptOnly. We do not touch the card data ourselves. When a client enters their card, the information goes directly to Stripe, and Stripe sends the money to your bank account.
This is the same arrangement that nearly every modern booking, e-commerce, or subscription app uses. Stripe handles the regulated parts (PCI compliance, fraud prevention, bank settlement, dispute handling), and we focus on the booking experience.
What gets created when you connect
When you click Connect with Stripe on the Payments setup screen, ApptOnly hands you off to Stripe's own site. There, you create a Stripe account in your name (or sign in to one you already have). Stripe needs a few things to set up the account:
- A government-issued ID
- A tax identifier (SSN or EIN in the US)
- A bank account for payouts
The whole thing usually takes about five minutes. When you finish, Stripe sends you back to ApptOnly and your account is connected.
What clients see at checkout
Clients see ApptOnly's checkout. The card form is Stripe's, embedded into the page. Your business name appears on the receipt and on the client's credit card statement. They never visit a separate Stripe page, and they do not need a Stripe account.
Money flow and timing
A client pays. The money lands in your Stripe balance, usually within a few minutes. Stripe then pays out to your linked bank account on the schedule you set in your Stripe dashboard. The default is daily after a short rolling delay; you can switch to weekly or monthly if you prefer.
ApptOnly never holds the money. We do not have a connected account that receives your payouts. The funds belong to you from the moment Stripe captures them.
Fees
Stripe takes 2.9% plus 30 cents per successful card transaction (US standard rate). ApptOnly does not take a percentage on top of that. The Stripe fee is the only payment processing cost.
If something goes wrong
Common things that come up:
- A payment is disputed. Stripe handles the chargeback process directly. You will see the dispute in your Stripe dashboard and ApptOnly will surface it in the affected booking's timeline.
- A payout is delayed. Stripe holds payouts for new accounts during a brief review period. Once your account is fully verified, payouts run on schedule.
- You want to refund a payment. You can refund from inside ApptOnly (Bookings → the payment, or Finances → Transactions). The refund flows back through Stripe to your client.
If you ever need to look at the raw payment record, your Stripe dashboard is one click away from any payment row in ApptOnly.