How to Collect Deposits Online When Clients Book
How to collect deposits online when clients book: connect Stripe, PayPal, or Square, set a deposit per service, write clear refund terms, show the deposit before checkout, and invoice the remaining balance after the appointment.
Start the GuideHow to Collect Deposits Online When Clients Book This step-by-step guide covers everything you need, from prerequisites to pro tips, so you can complete the process in 20 minutes or less. Browse all how-to guides.
What You Need Before Collect Deposits Online
Make sure you have the following ready:
- A Stripe, PayPal, or Square account (Standard plan and above)
- Deposit amounts decided per service
- Your cancellation and no-show terms written down
How to Collect Deposits Online
8 steps · 20 minutes
Connect your payment processor
Link your Stripe, PayPal, or Square account to SchedulingKit (Standard plan and above). This takes under two minutes and requires no coding.
Stripe is the simplest choice for deposits: when a client cancels a paid booking, the refund is issued automatically. With PayPal and Square you process refunds yourself.
Pick your deposit approach
Use a percentage when your service prices vary, a fixed amount when you want one simple number to communicate, or full prepayment for fixed-price services such as classes and standard treatments. Many businesses land at 25-30% as a balance between commitment and booking friction.
For high-value services ($500+), a flat $50-$100 often feels more reasonable to clients than a large percentage.
Set deposit rules per service
Choose a flat amount or percentage for each service. High-value services typically require 20-50% upfront. Start with your highest-value or most-missed services rather than switching everything at once.
Start with a lower deposit percentage and increase if no-shows persist.
Write your refund and cancellation terms
Spell out the cancellation window, what happens on a no-show, and whether rescheduling keeps the deposit. For example: "Cancel or reschedule with 24+ hours' notice at no cost. Missed appointments without notice forfeit the deposit." With Stripe, a cancelled paid booking is refunded in full automatically; with PayPal or Square, apply your terms when you issue refunds manually.
Display deposit info on the booking page
Make deposit amounts and refund terms visible before checkout, and repeat them in the confirmation email and reminders, so clients know what to expect.
Explain the deposit in client-friendly language
Frame it as reserving their time, not as a penalty: "A deposit of $X secures your time slot and is applied to your total." One sentence is enough; most clients accept deposits when the reason and terms are clear.
Check the booking's invoice
Paid online bookings create an invoice automatically. After a test booking, check that it shows as Partially Paid with the deposit amount and the remaining balance.
Handle remaining balances
SchedulingKit invoices the remaining balance; it never charges the client's card automatically. Send the invoice for remote services, or take the balance at the appointment in person.
Was this article helpful?
Frequently Asked Questions
Related Guides
Continue with these related tutorials
Reduce No-Shows at Your Salon
How to reduce salon no-shows and protect your revenue: measure your no-show rate, turn on text reminders with a reschedule link, take payment or deposits from new clients and big services, publish a clear cancellation policy, and fill cancelled slots quickly.
Set Up Payment Collection
How to set up payment collection for appointments: connect Stripe, PayPal, or Square, choose full payment or a deposit for each service, decide your refund terms, tell clients before they book, and run a real test payment before you go live.
Create a Cancellation Policy
How to create a cancellation policy that protects your business without driving clients away: choose the notice window, set fees and exceptions, write it in plain language, make cancelling in advance easy, and back it with deposits your booking system can actually enforce.
Ready to Get Started?
Sign up free and follow this guide step by step, your scheduling will be live in minutes.
Free forever plan available • No credit card required
When this isn't for you
This is not for you if you've already implemented the workflow. The walkthrough is for first-time setup. Skip if your team already has a working process.