Settlement
Also called payout
Settlement is the transfer of money from a payment provider to the merchant’s bank account after card payments have been processed. Settlement timing determines how long a merchant waits between taking a payment and being able to spend it.
A card payment is authorised in seconds but the money moves later, in a batch, once the transaction has been captured and cleared through the card schemes.
Providers set their own settlement schedule on top of that. Next working day is common; same day is faster and usually attached to a paid plan.
The final step is the bank credit itself, which follows normal UK banking hours. A same-day payout initiated on a Saturday will not appear on a Saturday.
Why it matters to you
Settlement speed is a working capital question, not a payments question. A day earlier across a month of takings is a day less of overdraft.
Work out what you’re actually paying.
Whatever your statement calls it, the only figure that matters is total cost divided by total takings. Our calculator works that out from your own numbers.
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