HoneyBook offers flexible ways for clients to pay you—by card, bank transfer, or cash or check. Processing times and fees vary by payment type, and this article explains each payment option, current transaction fees, and how to manage what cards you accept from your clients.
How your client can pay
Your clients can choose from several secure payment options in HoneyBook. Processing time and fees vary based on the method:
Bank transfer (ACH): Client enters their bank details at checkout. Processing takes longer but costs less.
Credit and debit cards: Clients can pay using most major cards, including Visa, Mastercard, American Express (Amex), and Discover
Card payment (cardholder entered): Client manually enters their card details at checkout
Card-on-file payment: Client’s saved card is automatically charged—perfect for recurring or scheduled payments
Apple Wallet and Google Wallet: Clients can use their mobile wallets to complete payments quickly and securely
Cash or check: Paid outside HoneyBook. You can manually mark the payment as “Paid.”
📚 Tip
You can adjust what payment methods your clients can use for each smart file or lead form. Learn how to set and review client payment options.
Transaction fees
HoneyBook partners with industry-leading payment processors to handle transactions securely. Fees are deducted from each payment before deposit and remain among the most competitive in the market.
Current transaction fees
Transaction type | Fee |
ACH or bank transfers | 1.5% of payment total (flat fee) |
Visa and Mastercard card payments | 2.9% of payment total + $0.25 |
American Express (Amex) and Discover card payments | 3.4% of payment total + $0.09 |
Card-on-file payments | 3.4% of payment total + $0.09 |
Cash or check (outside HoneyBook) | No fee |
Higher transaction fees for American Express and Discover
HoneyBook’s transaction fees for any Amex or Discover card payments (cardholder entered) are 3.4% of the payment total plus $0.09. There are no additional fees for card-on-file payments—your recurring or autopay transactions will continue to process at the same rate.
Amex and Discover transactions are more costly to process because they run through American Express’s proprietary financial network rather than standard card processors like Visa or Mastercard. These transactions also carry higher operational costs related to fraud prevention and dispute management, which contribute to the increased fee.
How to manage Amex and Discover card acceptance
If you’d prefer not to accept Amex or Discover card payments:
From the navigation menu, select your company logo > Company settings
Select Client payment methods
Under “American Express and Discover cards,” turn off Accept American Express and Discover cards
Both card types must be managed together—you can’t enable or disable just one
By default, accepting Amex and Discover cards is enabled
How transaction fees appear in reports and Payments
Your downloadable “Payments completed” report includes:
A transaction fee column reflecting the total deducted
A fee rate column showing which rate was applied, either Visa/Mastercard or Amex/Discover
When you select Finance > Payments from your navigation menu, “Paid” payments made using Amex or Discover will include a “Payment method” field so you can identify them quickly
📚 Tip
Refunds still include full fee reimbursement—HoneyBook automatically adds the processing fee back to the refund amount.
Still have questions? Feel free to send us a message by clicking the Question Mark icon on any HoneyBook page. Our team is always happy to help!