What are the best practices for switching between payment providers?

Best practices for switching payment providers in Checkfront to keep bookings and payments running smoothly.

Learn more about the best practices and high-level steps for switching Payment Providers. 

Accessing the features mentioned in this article

Where can I find this feature using the top menu?

• Manage > Ecommerce Setup > Payment
   

What more do I need to use this feature?

• Admin permissions to manage Payment Providers.
   

Which Checkfront version supports this feature - classic items, classic products, or both?

• This feature is available in both our classic version using classic items (Inventory > Items) and our classic version using classic products (Inventory > Products).  → Learn more about products

What is a payment provider? A payment provider lets you accept electronic payments from Customers.

Do you want to switch from your currently enabled Payment Provider and wonder how best to do so? If yes, then consider the following tips and best practices.

• Make the switch either late at night or early in the morning, when Customers are unlikely to make bookings.
• Temporarily Disable the Customer-facing reserve page during the switch. Re-enable the reserve page when the switch is complete.
• Reconfigure the Ecommerce settings and taxes as necessary after switching.

The following are high-level steps for switching between Payment Providers. The process may vary slightly depending on the Payment Providers involved. 

1. Disable your existing payment provider (e.g., Authorize.net) from Ecommerce settings.
2. Activate the new payment provider (e.g., Stripe) from the Ecommerce settings.
3. Process a live test payment to confirm everything works as expected ( ~$1 minimum).

You can now start accepting payments through your new provider!

Learn more about Payment Providers For a detailed look at activating and disabling Payment Providers, check out the following article: List of supported payment providers

Refunds for transactions made through a Payment Provider Refunds for transactions made through a previously activated Payment Provider are impossible, as the integration is no longer active. Any refunds must be applied outside of Checkfront and from the Payment Provider dashboard if supported. A refund processed outside of Checkfront can be added as a POS payment to the booking.