Flux lets design agencies take cards for convenience, ACH for larger invoices where the economics are friendlier, and pass the processing fee to the client at checkout where local rules allow.
Why design agencies choose Flux
ACH for large invoices
Route retainers and big invoices over ACH where the per-transaction economics beat cards.
Pass the fee where allowed
On consumer pass-through, the processing fee is added to the client's total at checkout, where local surcharging rules allow.
Books that reconcile
A QuickBooks sync keeps design agencies from retyping every payment into the accounting system at month end.
How design agencies get paid
For design agencies, ACH usually fits large invoices and retainers, cards suit smaller or on-the-spot payments, and Flux handles both through one integration with a clean record for your books.
A typical Flux setup for design agencies
Design work is project-based, so the setup is built around deposits and milestones rather than subscriptions. A typical engagement collects a deposit at signing by card through a hosted payment link, a midpoint payment when concepts are approved, and the balance before final files are released. Cards settle in 1-2 business days; larger corporate clients often pay the bigger milestones by ACH, which settles in 1-3 and suits their AP process better anyway.
Studios with ongoing arrangements, such as a monthly design subscription or a retained brand-support agreement, put those on recurring card billing. Because approval is inherently subjective, the payment schedule doubles as the approval record: each milestone payment marks a sign-off the client actively made. QuickBooks sync ties each payment to its project, and the REST API can generate payment links straight from your proposal tool the moment a client accepts the scope.
What design agencies should watch
The dangerous dispute in design is taste. A client who decides late that they dislike the direction may contest the final card charge, and a claim that the work was not as described is hard to fight without structure. Milestone billing is the defense: a client who paid at concept approval has already accepted the direction on record. Keep dated approvals, versioned files, and the contract's revision limits attached to each project as it runs.
Hold final deliverables until the balance clears: for cards that means settlement in 1-2 business days, so build the handover into your timeline rather than releasing source files against a promise. Refund the deposit only on the terms your contract states, and state those terms plainly before the first payment goes through; a non-refundable deposit that was never labeled non-refundable in writing is a dispute your studio will almost certainly lose.
Simple, transparent pricing
Flux charges a flat 2.9% plus 30 cents per transaction, with volume discounts for higher-volume design agencies and the option to pass the fee to the customer at checkout where local surcharging rules allow. No setup fees and no contracts. Accounts processing under $100,000 a year in card volume may be subject to a $20 monthly account fee.
Frequently asked questions
How do design agencies accept payments with Flux?
Design Agencies accept credit and debit cards, ACH bank transfers, and stablecoins through one Flux integration, with drop-in hosted fields that keep card data off your own systems.
What does Flux charge design agencies?
A flat 2.9% plus 30 cents per transaction, with volume discounts for higher-volume merchants and no setup fees or contracts. Accounts processing under $100,000 a year in card volume may be subject to a $20 monthly account fee. You can also pass the processing fee to the customer at checkout where local surcharging rules allow.
How fast do design agencies get their money?
Card payments settle in one to two business days and ACH in one to three business days. Stablecoin payments go to your wallet instantly.
When should we release final files relative to the last payment?
After it settles. Card payments settle in 1-2 business days and ACH in 1-3, so schedule handover a couple of days after the balance is paid, and put that sequence in the contract so it never surprises a client at the finish line.
How do we handle a client who wants endless revisions before paying the balance?
Tie the balance to a milestone the contract defines, such as approval of the final round included in scope, rather than to the client feeling finished. Additional rounds become new paid line items with their own payment links.
Can we run a monthly design subscription through Flux?
Yes. Set a recurring card charge for the subscription amount on a fixed billing date. Written terms on request volume and turnaround protect you if a subscriber disputes a month they underused.
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