Payments
Take the money the moment the auction ends.
Connect your charity's own Stripe account to BID and winning bids, tickets and tables are charged automatically, straight into your bank, with nothing at all to pay us.
BID fee when you use your own Stripe
Typical payout to your bank
From nothing to taking payments
Why charities connect Stripe
Money lands in your account
With your own Stripe account, winning bids and ticket payments settle directly to the charity, usually within two working days. No middleman holding your funds.
Our 3% fee disappears
Connect your own Stripe and BID charges you nothing at all on auction payments. You only pay Stripe's own processing rate.
Charged the second the hammer falls
Winners are billed automatically when the auction closes, so nobody queues at a table and nothing goes uncollected the next morning.
Card details never touch BID
Stripe is PCI-DSS Level 1 certified and handles the card data. We store a secure token, never a card number.
Charity rates available
Stripe offers discounted processing for registered non-profits. Apply once and it applies to every event you run.
Apple Pay, Google Pay and cards
Guests bid on their phones, so they pay on their phones. One tap, no card typing, far fewer failed payments.
Part one
Register with Stripe
About ten minutes, once, for your charity. You'll need your charity number, a bank account and ID for one trustee or senior staff member.
- 01
Create your Stripe account
Go to stripe.com and choose 'Start now'. Use a charity email address that more than one person can access, not a personal inbox.
- 02
Enter your charity details
Business type: non-profit / charity. You'll need your registered charity number, registered address and the nature of your fundraising.
- 03
Add a bank account
The charity's own bank account, in the charity's name. This is where your auction and ticket money is paid out.
- 04
Verify a responsible person
Stripe asks for ID for a trustee or senior staff member: passport or driving licence, plus date of birth and home address. Takes a couple of minutes.
- 05
Apply for non-profit pricing
Optional but worth it. Contact Stripe support from inside your dashboard and ask about discounted charity rates once your account is verified.
Part two
Connect it to BID
Two minutes inside your BID dashboard. Do it once per auction and the fee comes off immediately.
- 01
Sign in to BID
Open your admin dashboard and choose the auction you want to take payments for.
- 02
Open the Tickets & payments tab
Every auction has its own payment setting, so you can run different events through different accounts if you need to.
- 03
Tick 'use our own Stripe account'
That flips the event to your account and immediately removes BID's 3% transaction fee from bids and tickets.
- 04
Paste your Stripe keys
In Stripe, go to Developers → API keys and copy your secret key. Paste it into BID once, and it's stored encrypted and never shown again.
- 05
Run a £1 test
Place a test bid and check the payment appears in your Stripe dashboard. Do this the week before the event, not on the night.
Don't want the admin?
Use BID Payments instead, nothing to set up.
We handle the card processing for you and winners are still charged automatically. We take a flat 3% transaction fee on winning payments. No account, no keys, no set-up.
Questions we get asked
Do I have to use Stripe?
No. If you'd rather not set anything up, use BID Payments instead. We process the cards for you and charge a flat 3% transaction fee on winning payments. The platform itself is still free.
How long does Stripe approval take?
Most charities are verified within minutes. If Stripe asks for extra documents it can take one to two working days, so register at least a week before your event.
What does Stripe itself cost?
Stripe charges its own standard processing rate per successful card payment, published on stripe.com/gb/pricing. Registered charities can apply for discounted rates.
Can I switch back later?
Yes. The setting is per auction, so you can untick it at any time and go back to BID Payments for the next event.
Does Gift Aid still work?
Yes. Gift Aid declarations and the HMRC claim export are handled by BID regardless of who processes the card payment.
Set it up before the night, not on it.
We'll walk you through Stripe on a call if you'd rather not do it alone.