A payment link is a web address tied to one invoice that opens a page where your customer can pay it, with the amount and reference already filled in. They choose card, Apple Pay, Google Pay or pay by bank and approve the payment, which takes far less effort than setting up a bank transfer. In Adfin's payment data, the quick methods a link offers were paid on time more often than bank transfers.
In this article
The short version
- A payment link opens a page to pay one invoice, with the amount and reference filled in.
- Customers pay by card, Apple Pay, Google Pay or pay by bank without typing bank details.
- In Adfin's data, 72.9% of Apple Pay payments arrived on time, against 57.9% of bank transfers, though much of that gap comes from who uses each method.
- A statement link lets a customer pay several invoices in one payment.
- For regular billing, direct debit removes the need to decide to pay at all.
How a payment link works
You send the link in the invoice email, a text or a WhatsApp message. Your customer taps it on whatever device they're holding and lands on a payment page for that invoice. There's no login, no account to create and nothing to type. They pick a method, confirm with a fingerprint, their face or their banking app, and the payment arrives carrying the invoice reference.
Because the reference travels with the payment, it can be matched to the right invoice automatically. A bank transfer typed in by hand can arrive with the reference misspelt, cut short or missing, and then someone in your team has to work out what it's for.
Adfin's payment links open a branded page where your customer can pay by card, Apple Pay, Google Pay, pay by bank or bank transfer. You can send them by email, SMS or WhatsApp, and each payment is matched to its invoice and synced to Xero or QuickBooks.
Why links get paid on time more often
Paying by bank transfer asks your customer to open their banking app, add you as a payee, type a sort code, an account number and a reference, then check it all. A link asks them to approve a payment that's already set up. Fewer steps leave less room for "I'll do it later".
In Adfin's payment data, payments made by the customer (not collected by direct debit) arrived on or before the due date most often with Apple Pay (72.9%) and Google Pay (70.0%), and least often by bank transfer (57.9%). Much of that spread comes from which businesses and customers use each method, though. Compared inside one business's own invoices, the gaps fall below 1.5%, so a link is better seen as removing effort for your customer than as a guaranteed change in when you're paid.
How to use payment links well
- Put the link in the body of the message as well as on the PDF. A PDF has to be opened first and is awkward to pay from on a phone.
- Offer more than one way to pay. Customers have their own preferences, and a business customer may need to use a company card.
- Use one link per invoice, so each payment matches cleanly.
- Include the link again in every reminder, so a follow-up never sends your customer looking for the original email.
Where a customer has several invoices outstanding, a statement link does the same job for the whole balance. It opens a page showing what's been paid and what's still owed, and your customer can tick the invoices they want to settle and pay them in one payment. You can send statements weekly or monthly, one-off, or only when rules you set are met, such as an invoice being a set number of days overdue. A statement is less useful when one invoice is disputed, because it bundles the queried item in with the rest, so sort the query out first.
You can also pass the card fee on when a business customer pays with a business card, either for every customer or one by one. That way, offering cards doesn't eat into your margin.
When a link isn't the right tool
A link still needs your customer to decide to pay. For work you bill every month, a direct debit mandate removes that decision, and the money is collected on the due date. Links suit one-off and irregular invoices, and the first payment from a new customer before their mandate is in place.
A link also can't speed up an approval inside your customer's business. Larger invoices often need a second signature, so check a few days before the due date that yours has been approved.
And a payment page that doesn't look like you can prompt a call to check it's genuine. Send links from your own email domain with your branding on the page, so customers recognise them. If a link goes unpaid, Adfin's Customer Agents can resend it by email, SMS or WhatsApp on the schedule you set, within rules you approve.
Common questions
What is a payment link? A web address tied to one invoice that opens a page where your customer can pay it, with the amount and reference already filled in.
Do payment links get invoices paid faster? They make paying quicker, because there's nothing to type. In Adfin's data, wallet payments arrive on time more often than bank transfers overall, though inside a single business the gap is small.
Are payment links secure? Your customer pays through a regulated payment provider and never sends you their card or bank details. Adfin's payment services are provided by FCA-regulated partners.
Can a customer pay several invoices with one link? Yes, with a statement link, which shows everything outstanding and lets them choose which invoices to pay in a single payment.
Is a payment link better than direct debit? For one-off invoices, a link is simpler because there's nothing to set up. For regular billing, direct debit collects on the due date without your customer doing anything.
Can I pass the card fee on to the customer? On business cards, yes, up to what the card costs you to accept. You can't add a fee to payments made on personal cards.
Sources
- Adfin Help Centre - Use statements to nudge customers to settle unpaid invoices (accurate as of October 2026) https://support.adfin.com/en/articles/13431497-use-statements-to-nudge-customers-to-settle-unpaid-invoices
- Adfin - Accept payments (accurate as of October 2026) https://www.adfin.com/accept-payments
- Adfin - Pricing (accurate as of October 2026) https://www.adfin.com/pricing
- legislation.gov.uk - The Consumer Rights (Payment Surcharges) Regulations 2012 (accurate as of October 2026) https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2012/3110
