How to accept ACH payments, step by step.

A quick note on terms: an “eCheck” is simply an ACH debit collected online. We use the two interchangeably in this post.

Accepting ACH payments means customers pay you straight from their bank accounts — no card networks, no 3% skim. Getting set up is simpler than most businesses expect: an application, a few documents, and a decision about how customers will pay you. Here is the whole process, in the order it actually happens.

First, know which kind of ACH you need

ACH payments move in two directions, and the distinction runs this whole guide:

Credits (push). The customer initiates the payment from their bank and pushes money to you. You hand over your account and routing numbers; they do the rest. Fine for the occasional payment — useless for billing, because you can't initiate anything, schedule anything, or fix anything when a payment doesn't arrive.

Debits (pull). With the customer's authorization, you pull the payment from their account — on an invoice, at checkout, or on a recurring schedule. This is what most businesses mean by “accepting ACH,” and it's what the steps below set up. Pulling requires a processor account, because businesses can't connect to the ACH network directly.

The 6 steps to accept ACH payments

1Choose your route: bank, software, or processor

Three ways in, with honest trade-offs:

If you already take cards, your current provider can probably enable ACH — but check the pricing before you say yes. ACH is often switched off by default and priced as an afterthought. A dedicated ACH provider usually wins on both price and tooling.

2Apply — and have these documents ready

The application itself takes minutes. What slows people down is underwriting: the processor has to verify your business is real and that you can cover a returned payment. Have these ready and approval typically lands in 2–5 business days:

• Business legal name and EIN (sole proprietors can use an SSN)
• Physical business address — a PO Box alone usually won't do
• Business checking account details (this is where funds settle)
• Owner's government ID and ownership details
• Estimated monthly volume and average ticket size
• A few months of bank or processing statements, if you have them

One tip that saves real pain later: if your tickets are large, say so now. Processors set per-transaction and monthly limits from your application, and a $20,000 invoice bouncing off a starter limit is an awkward phone call. Limits rise as you build history.

3Decide how customers will pay you

With the account approved, pick the collection method that matches how you bill:

Payment links. A “pay by bank” link on an invoice, in an email, or on your site. The customer clicks, enters bank details once, done. The fastest route for B2B invoicing.

Checkout. Bank payment offered alongside cards on your website — customers choose, and the ones with big carts usually choose the option that doesn't max out a card.

Recurring schedules. Set the amount and the cadence once; payments pull automatically. Bank accounts don't expire or get reissued like cards, which is why recurring billing fails far less often on ACH.

Most businesses start with links, add checkout later. Don't let a website project delay getting paid.

4Get authorization — Nacha requires it

Before you debit anyone's account, you need their authorization — it's a core rule of the Nacha rulebook that governs the ACH network. This isn't bureaucracy for its own sake: the authorization is your defense if a payment is ever disputed. It can be:

Online — the customer agrees to clear terms at the moment they enter bank details (the standard for payment links and checkout). Written — a signed form, common for recurring arrangements. Verbal — a recorded phone call, under stricter rules.

For recurring payments, the authorization has to state the amount (or how it's calculated), the timing or schedule, and how the customer can revoke it. Store authorizations securely and keep them retrievable — if a customer claims they never agreed, the authorization is the whole argument.

5Verify the bank account

A routing number with a typo becomes a returned payment three days later. Verification catches bad details up front, and there are three levels:

Instant verification. The customer logs into their bank through a secure screen; the account is confirmed on the spot. Lowest friction, fewest failures — the best option when it's offered.

Micro-deposits. Two tiny deposits land in the customer's account within a day or two; they confirm the amounts. Reliable, but adds a waiting step that loses some customers.

Manual entry. Customer types routing and account numbers. Works, but has the highest error and return rates. Pair it with basic account validation if you use it.

6Run your first payment — and know what normal looks like

Submit the payment and the clock starts. Standard ACH settles in 2–3 business days; Same-Day ACH settles the same business day if you submit before your provider's cutoff. (The full timeline, window by window, is in our guide to how long eChecks take to process.)

Two things to expect. First, a payment can come back — insufficient funds (return code R01) is the common one — typically within two business days of settlement for bank-side problems. It's not a crisis; it's a retry and a conversation. Second, reconciliation is easy: every payment carries the customer's name and amount into your bank feed or your processor's dashboard.

Before you go fully live, run one small real payment end to end. You'll learn where statuses show up, where returns land, and how the money appears in your account — in an afternoon instead of during your first billing run.

The whole setup, at a glance:

What it costs

Accepting ACH typically runs $0.20–$1.50 per transaction or 0.5%–1.5% of the ticket, plus $0–$30 a month, depending on the provider's pricing model — the model matters more than the number, especially as your tickets grow. We broke down every pricing model and five ways to pay less in our guide to ACH processing fees. eCheckOnly keeps it to one line: $0.75 per transaction, $25/month, no setup fee.

Frequently asked questions