Payment methods

At checkout you choose how the client is paying. Each option behaves a little differently.

Card

Enter the client's card at checkout and it's charged through Stripe. Requires payments to be connected. The money lands in your Stripe account and pays out to your bank on Stripe's schedule.

Card on file

If the client has a saved card, it appears as a one-tap option: charge it without entering anything. Same Stripe processing as above.

Buy Now Pay Later (online only)

You can let clients pay over time with Afterpay, Klarna, or Affirm when they pay online: booking deposits on your booking page, deposit requests and invoices you send, and courses, live classes, and one-on-one sessions. Turn it on in Settings → Payment Methods with the Buy Now Pay Later switch. It's off until you turn it on.

Good to know before you switch it on:

• It costs more than a card. Stripe charges a higher fee for these options than for a card payment, and the extra fee comes out of your payout, like any other Stripe fee.
• You're paid up front. The client pays the provider over time; you get the full amount (less fees) on your normal payout schedule.
• Clients only see an option when the amount qualifies. Each provider has its own range. For example, Affirm starts at $35, so a smaller deposit only shows the options it qualifies for. Card is always offered.
• Only options that are on for your payment account appear. Settings lists which ones are on for you. If one you want isn't there, contact us.
• Checkout at your chair stays card only. Buy Now Pay Later is for online payments, where the client finishes paying on their own phone or computer.

Cash, Zelle, PayPal, Venmo

These record a payment that happened outside Mila: the client handed you cash or sent you money on another app. Mila doesn't move any money for these; it records the payment so:

• the appointment is completed properly,
• the client's history shows what they paid,
• your revenue reports include it, and
• the client still gets a receipt.

Confirm you actually received the money before recording it: recording is bookkeeping, not collection.

Gift cards

Gift card balances are redeemed during dashboard checkout: enter the card's code and the balance comes off the total. See Gift cards.

Which should you prefer?

Whatever suits your business, but saved cards are the smoothest repeat-client experience, and card payments give you the cleanest paper trail since Stripe records the whole transaction.