Taking Online Payments with Square or Stripe

Connect Square or Stripe once and your clients can pay invoices online, pay a deposit when they book, and buy gift vouchers. The money goes into your own Square or Stripe account, and Daobook adds no fee of its own on top of the gateway's. Card details never touch Daobook.

You need to be a clinic admin to change payment settings, and each practice location connects its own gateway.

Step 1: Open the Payments page

Click Settings in the sidebar, open the Billing & Payments tab and choose Payments. You'll see a card for Square and a card for Stripe, each marked Connected or Not connected.

The Payments settings page with a Square card and a Stripe card, each offering a Connect button

Step 2: Connect your gateway

Square: click Connect Square, sign in to Square and allow access. Square needs at least one active location in your Square account. Once connected, Manage Square opens the Square page where you can set the primary location, reconnect or disconnect.

Stripe: click Connect Stripe, sign in to Stripe and allow Daobook to take payments into your account. If you don't have a Stripe account yet, use the Create one free link first. Once connected, the Stripe card shows your account id and whether Stripe has finished verifying it — online card payments start as soon as it reads Ready to take card payments.

If your Stripe account was created through another platform, Stripe will ask you to create a separate account for Daobook. Payouts still go to your bank.

Step 3: If both are connected, pick one

When Square and Stripe are both connected, a Take online payments with box appears under the two cards. Choose Square or Stripe and click Save. Your clients pay through the one you pick; the other stays connected and you can switch back at any time.

Step 4: Switch on payment links for invoices

Still in Billing & Payments, open Invoice Configuration, scroll to Online Payments and tick Offer online card payment on invoices. Emailed and texted invoices now carry a Pay Now button that opens a secure checkout for your client.

The Online Payments card in Invoice Configuration with Offer online card payment on invoices ticked

Untick it to show only your bank transfer details on invoices — your gateway stays connected for gift vouchers and booking deposits.

Step 5: Deposits and gift vouchers (optional)

Booking deposits: in Settings → Practice Info → Online Bookings, under Booking Payment, tick Collect payment for online bookings and choose a fixed amount, a percentage or the full price. Clients pay through your gateway as they book. Prefer to keep a card on file and charge only if they cancel late or don't show? Choose Card hold — see Card Hold at Booking.
Gift vouchers: follow Gift Vouchers: Selling, Redeeming & Managing. Online voucher sales use the same gateway.

Tips:

Refunds and payouts are handled in your Square or Stripe dashboard, not in Daobook. The Stripe card has an Open Stripe dashboard button; the Square page has Open Square dashboard.
Disconnect Stripe or Disconnect Square stops online payments for that location only; nothing in your gateway account is deleted.