How to transfer funds to my organization.
BetterWorld uses Stripe to handle payments across our platform. Stripe is an industry-leading payment service provider, used by businesses like Lyft, Kickstarter, and Shopify. They handle billions of transactions every year and are certified to the most stringent level of PCI compliance.
When you first sign up, your BetterWorld account is immediately ready to accept payments (bids, donations, event ticket purchases, and the like). We hold these funds temporarily in our escrow account until you are ready to payout. Your organization will create/link a Stripe account so we can directly transfer the funds raised to the bank account connected via Stripe.
How to connect a bank account or link an existing Stripe account
To connect your bank account using Stripe follow the steps below:
1. From your dashboard click on Payments & Payouts located in the dropdown menu in the top right corner of the screen.
2. Next, click the Bank Account tab located on the left side of your screen.
3. Once on the Bank Account page you will see three options:
New/ Express Stripe Account: First select the type of bank account you will be linking from the drop-down menu (Non-profit, business, or individual). Then click the Set up payouts button to create a Stripe account.
Existing / Standard Stripe Account: If you already have a Stripe account all you need to do is click the Connect your existing Stripe account button.
Contact support: If you have any questions or would like to request a payout by check, our support team is there to help.
Once you are done entering all the necessary information your account will be linked!
Please Note: Only the account administrators have access to the Payment & Payout section of your account.
How to resolve a Stripe issue / check if my organization is set up for payout.
If you'd like to see the status of your Stripe account, check the Your Stripe account page in the Payments & Payouts section of your dashboard. If the statuses are green, you're good to go!
If it's red, then payments are disabled, and -- for some reason -- they're not allowing transactions into your account. Log into your Stripe account directly by clicking Manage your Stripe account and provide the missing information to validate your account. Unfortunately, we have no control over this, but we'll do our best to help!
99% of the organizations that sign up with us through Stripe do so without an issue. If there is a problem though, the best solution is to work it out with Stripe directly. There's often additional information they need from you to proceed. Their support knowledge base and a way to contact their team can be found here.
Feel free to reach out to our support team ([email protected]). We want to help however we can.
How to withdraw / payout your funds
Funds are available for payout six days after being received. Head to the Withdraw Funds page to initiate your payout.
From your dashboard, click your organization's name in the top right corner of the screen, then select Payments & Payouts.
Click Withdraw funds on the left side of the screen. Here you'll see a breakdown of your funds, including the total raised, net processing fees, and the amount available to withdraw. At the bottom of the page, you can also view and download a list of all charges ready to be paid out.
Confirm the destination account, then click Withdraw funds now. Your payout request will be submitted.
Please note: Once a payout is submitted, you should see the funds in your bank account within five business days, though it's often faster. If you have a Standard Stripe account, note that the payout schedule you've set in Stripe determines when funds move from Stripe to your bank account, so the timing will follow your schedule.
To review your payout, click View payouts on the confirmation screen, or select Payouts from the left menu at any time. Click the three dots next to the payout, then select View details.
From here, you can view the payout summary, the Stripe payout status, and a report of all charges included in the payout. To download the report, click the download icon.
Below is a video that walks you through how to withdraw your funds.
Payout fees / free payout
BetterWorld is dedicated to helping you keep as much of your funds as possible! That's why we offer free fundraising tools and give your donors the option to cover Stripe's credit card transaction fees. There are minimal payout fees depending on the Stripe account you have connected.
Express account
An Express account is the recommended way to connect a bank account on our platform and what you're guided into when you click Set up payouts. This is easy, quick, and requires minimal information to get set up -- and it often takes under five minutes! With Express accounts, there is a once-per-year $10 fee to automatically create and file your organization's 1099, and a nominal fee when you withdraw funds ($2.25 + 0.25% of the payout). While we're always striving to find ways to reduce the costs involved in fundraising, this is one that we recommend to ensure both tax compliance and a simple, straightforward setup.
Standard account
Your organization can link an existing Stripe Standard account. This is set up directly with Stripe by going to their website, creating an account, waiting for approval, and then going back to BetterWorld and clicking Connect your existing account. The process for creating this account type is longer and requires more paperwork and documentation. Additionally, there is a review process where Stripe may choose to accept or reject your account. That said, if you already have an account with Stripe, there's no need to create an additional one through BetterWorld -- just link the one you have!
Please Note: As an alternative to direct deposit via Stripe, organizations can also opt for check payouts. You can learn more about the check payout process and how to request a check payout here.