Question
- How do I switch back to Stripe?
- Can I change from Thinkific Payments to Stripe?
- Can I use Stripe instead of Thinkific Payments?
Solution
Thinkific Payments is the default payment processor for all new Thinkific Creators on any plan level. However, if you are on an eligible plan, you can switch your payment processor to accept payments with Stripe.
Note that starting on July 3rd 2024, transactions made through Stripe incur a third-party payment gateway fee. Learn more about it here: Third-Party Payment Gateway Fee FAQ. Additionally, after migrating to Stripe, you will lose access to all TCommerce-exclusive features, including Order Bumps, additional payment methods, Gifting and more. Learn more about the TCommerce-exclusive features here: TCommerce: Powered by Thinkific Payments.
If you still would like to switch from Thinkific Payments to Stripe, our team can help you! Note that certain actions need to be completed on your end, as Thinkific does not have access to your Stripe account.
The exact process of moving from Thinkific Payments depends on whether you have already accepted recurring payments through Thinkific Payments or not. Please follow the steps below.
Switching to Stripe with No Recurring Subscriptions
If you have not processed any recurring transactions using Thinkific Payments, all you need to do is to connect your Stripe account and disconnect the Thinkific Payments account.
Step 1: Connect your Stripe account
Follow the instructions here on how to connect your Stripe account: Accept Payments with Stripe.
Once you've set up Stripe, please contact our Support team by following these instructions or by emailing us directly at payments-support@thinkific.com to have Thinkific Payments disabled on your site.
If you have connected to Stripe or had previously used Stripe and your account remains connected to your site, it will automatically become your default payment processor, ensuring that all future purchases are seamlessly processed through Stripe.
Switching to Stripe and Keeping Recurring Subscriptions in Thinkific Payments
If you already processed recurring transactions through Thinkific Payments, you can switch to Stripe, but keep the existing subscriptions in Thinkific Payments.
Step 1: Connect your Stripe account
Follow the instructions here on how to connect your Stripe account: Accept Payments with Stripe.
Step 2: Contact the Thinkific Support team to Disconnect Thinkific Payments
Once you've set up Stripe, please contact our Support team by following these instructions or by emailing us directly at payments-support@thinkific.com to have Thinkific Payments disabled on your site.
Existing student subscriptions on Thinkific Payments will not be automatically migrated to Stripe upon switching payment processors. All active student subscriptions will continue to be processed by Thinkific Payments until the student cancels their subscription. Students with active Thinkific Payment subscriptions will continue using Thinkific Payments for future purchases (both one-off and recurring) and will still be able to edit their credit card information. This ensures that the student's credit card is stored in one place and that their active subscriptions do not get interrupted by the change in payment processors. Once students no longer have active Thinkific Payment subscriptions, their future purchases will be processed through Stripe.
Switching to Stripe and Migrating Recurring Subscriptions
If you already processed any recurring transactions using Thinkific Payments and would like to migrate them from Thinkific Payments to Stripe, we will need to migrate customers and their subscriptions separately, and additional steps are required.
Step 1: Connect your Stripe account
Step 2: Initiate the Migration Process and Provide Your Stripe ID
To start the migration process, please contact our Support team by following these instructions or by emailing us directly at payments-support@thinkific.com.
In your email, please:
- specify that you are looking to migrate subscriptions from Thinkific Payments to Stripe
- provide your Stripe Standard ID
The Stripe standard account ID will have the following format: acct_XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX. To find your account ID, see the Stripe documentation here: Stripe - Create an Account.
Our team will disable your Thinkific Payments account and will begin the customer migration process.
If you have connected to Stripe or had previously used Stripe and your account remains connected to your site, it will automatically become your default payment processor, ensuring that all future purchases are seamlessly processed through Stripe.
Once the customer migration process has started, our team will contact you. You will need to log into your Stripe account and accept customer information transfer. This request will appear as a banner in the Customers tab of your Stripe account.
Our team will provide with the list of active subscriptions on Thinkific Payments account. Please contact Stripe support team to complete the recurring subscription transfer.
Important Considerations
If you are moving to Stripe, but keeping the recurring subscriptions in Thinkific Payments, during the transition period, you will still have access to Thinkific Payment-related functionality such as the Thinkific Payments section in your site settings, the payouts page, and the ability to refund transactions processed by Thinkific Payments. Your in-transit payouts and payouts for renewal payments for Thinkific Payments subscriptions will continue to be processed by Thinkific Payments until all subscriptions are cancelled. If you run into any issues with your Stripe checkout, re-save the prices on your products on your Thinkific site. This will ensure the product prices are sent out to Stripe.
Learn More About
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