Every service is paid one of two ways: `Stripe checkout`, where the customer pays through your connected Stripe account from inside their dashboard, or `Your own link`, where the platform sends them to a page you control.
You can mix both. A monthly management service can use Stripe checkout while a free strategy call uses a Calendly link.
Side by side
| Stripe checkout | Your own link | |
|---|---|---|
| Needs Stripe connected | Yes | No |
| Where the customer pays | Stripe checkout on your connected account | Wherever your link goes |
| Order in `Business -> Customers -> Orders` | Yes | No |
| Email to you when someone buys | Yes | No |
| Monthly and yearly billing | Charged automatically by Stripe | Shown on the card only, you bill them |
| Tax | Calculated by Stripe when `Enable Stripe Tax` is on | Handled by your payment page |
| Promotion codes | Accepted on Stripe checkout | Depends on your page |
| Shipping address | Optional `Collect a shipping address` | Handled by your page |
| Customer details filled in | Uses the customer's existing Stripe billing account | Name and email for Calendly and Cal.com, email for Stripe Payment Links |
When to use Stripe checkout
Checkout is tied to the customer's existing Stripe customer in your account, so the purchase appears in the same Stripe billing portal as their plan. Stripe checkout shows the payment methods you have enabled in Stripe, such as cards, iDEAL, or SEPA Direct Debit.
Your settings from `Business -> Billing & Revenue -> Connect Stripe` also apply: `Enable Stripe Tax`, and under `Checkout Customization`, `Collect Company name`, `Require Terms of Service consent`, and `Message under the submit button`. If Stripe rejects one of the `Checkout Customization` settings, for example Terms of Service consent without a Terms of service URL on your Stripe account, checkout still opens but without those customizations.
- You want the money to go through your connected Stripe account
- You sell monthly or yearly add-ons and want Stripe to renew them
- You want an order record, a purchase email, and an `Active` badge for the customer
- You sell physical items and need a shipping address
When to use your own link
- The service is a booked call or consultation (Calendly or Cal.com)
- You sell it through another platform, such as a course platform, PayPal, or your website checkout
- You have not connected Stripe
- You do not want to show a price
Nothing is recorded for link purchases: no order, no email, and no `Active` badge. Follow up from wherever the payment or booking lands.
How customer details are filled in on your link
When a customer clicks a link button, the platform adds their details to supported links so they do not have to type them again. Any parameter already in your link is kept as it is.
| Link starts with | What is added |
|---|---|
| `calendly.com` | The customer's name and email |
| `cal.com` (including subdomains) | The customer's name and email |
| `buy.stripe.com` (Stripe Payment Links) | The customer's email, plus a client reference starting with `emr-` that includes the customer's ID and the service ID. Stripe shows it on the checkout session |
| Anything else | Nothing. The link opens exactly as you entered it |
Under the `Link` field, the editor confirms when your link is one of the supported pages.
Stripe Payment Link or Stripe checkout?
A Stripe Payment Link used as `Your own link` creates a separate Stripe customer and is not connected to the customer's account in the platform, so it does not appear in `Orders` or in their billing portal alongside their plan.
If the customer already uses your platform, choose `Stripe checkout` instead and select `Use an existing Stripe price ID` if you want to reuse the same Stripe price.
Switching a service between the two
- Open the service, change `How do customers pay?`, fill in the fields for the new option, and click `Save changes`
- Switching from Stripe checkout to a link does not cancel existing Stripe subscriptions for that service. Cancel them in Stripe if needed
- Orders already recorded stay in `Orders`