Payments
Somiti uses Stripe to handle payments. You’ll connect your Stripe account once, and members can pay by card after that.
If you collect cash, checks, or bank transfers, see Offline Payments for how to record those separately.
Connect your Stripe account
Before members can pay online, you need to link your Stripe account. If you don’t have one, Stripe will walk you through creating one during setup.
- Go to Settings and click Payments.
- Click Connect with Stripe.
- Sign in to your Stripe account (or create one).
- Authorize Somiti to process payments on your behalf.
- Complete any identity or business verification Stripe asks for.
- Once done, Stripe redirects you back to Somiti.
You’ll see a confirmation when your account is connected and charges are enabled.
Note: Stripe may ask for a government-issued ID, business address, and bank account details before activating payouts. Complete these in your Stripe Dashboard to avoid delays.
If Stripe redirects you back with an incomplete message, click Connect with Stripe again and finish the remaining steps.
View payment history
Go to Payments in the sidebar to see your transactions.
The dashboard shows:
| Metric | What it means |
|---|---|
| Total Revenue | All payments in the selected date range |
| Online Payments | Card payments processed through Stripe |
| Offline Payments | Cash, checks, and transfers recorded manually |
| Net Revenue | Total minus Stripe and Somiti fees |
Below the summary cards, you’ll see a breakdown by payment type (membership, event, donation) and by payment method. The 10 most recent transactions appear at the bottom.
Use the date filter at the top to narrow by today, this week, this month, last month, or a custom range.
Check analytics
Click View Analytics to see trends over the last 12 months, including:
- Monthly revenue chart
- Revenue by type (membership vs. event vs. donation) with percentages
- Average transaction values for each payment type
- Event revenue split between members and non-members
Reconcile payments
Click Reconciliation to get a full line-by-line list of all transactions for a period. This view includes each transaction’s gross amount, fees, net amount, and verification status for offline payments.
You can filter by date range and export the full list as a CSV. The export includes date, invoice number, member name, payment type, processor, and net amounts.
Issue a refund
Refunds on card payments go back to the member’s original card. They typically take 5-10 business days to appear, depending on their bank.
- Go to Payments and find the transaction.
- Click the transaction to open it.
- Click Refund.
- Choose a full refund or enter a partial amount.
- Add a reason (optional).
- Confirm.
The original transaction stays in your history and is marked as refunded.
Warning: Stripe fees on the original charge aren’t returned when you issue a refund. Refunds must be processed within 180 days of the original payment.
For cash or check refunds, see Offline Payments.
Export payment data
Use the reconciliation export to pull records for your treasurer or accountant.
- Go to Payments and click Reconciliation.
- Set the date range you want.
- Click Export CSV.
The CSV includes: date, invoice number, member name, payment type, processor, gross amount, fees, net amount, and verification status.
Set up membership payments
Members pay for their memberships through the tiers you’ve created. See Tiers for how to set pricing and Subscriptions for how recurring billing works.
Troubleshooting
Stripe isn’t connected
If you see a “not connected” message on the Payments page:
- Go to Settings and click Payments.
- Click Connect with Stripe and complete the authorization again.
- If the problem continues, check your Stripe Dashboard for any account issues.
A member’s payment failed
Common causes: expired card, insufficient funds, or the card was declined by their bank. Ask the member to update their payment method and try again. You can also record a manual payment if they’d prefer to pay offline. See Offline Payments.
Offline payments need verification
If you see a yellow alert on the Payments dashboard about pending verifications, click Review now to go straight to the reconciliation view. Find the unverified payments and mark them as verified once you’ve confirmed the funds.
Related docs
- Offline Payments - Record cash, checks, and bank transfers
- Subscriptions - How recurring billing works
- Tiers - Set membership pricing
- Getting Started - First steps in Somiti