How to Accept ACH Payments Online the Easy Way in 2026

To accept ACH payments online, you need a payment provider that supports ACH. Your customer authorises the payment, and the funds move electronically from their bank account to yours, with lower fees than card payments.

With so many online payment methods available, choosing the right ones for your business can be tough. You want to give customers the best buying experience without creating a headache for yourself. ACH payments can be a good solution, but are they worth accepting?

Below, we explain what ACH payments are, how they work and their main benefits. We also show how to accept online payments with minimal hassle, through ACH and many other methods.

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What is an ACH payment?

ACH stands for Automated Clearing House, a system used to transfer funds electronically between bank accounts.

An ACH transaction moves money from one account to another without a card or check. That makes it more secure and simpler than credit card payments. It also comes with lower merchant fees, which makes it an affordable way to accept payments online.

ACH payments are most common in the US, where the ACH network is based. The network is overseen by Nacha (the National Automated Clearing House Association). Many other countries also have systems for international ACH transactions.

How do online ACH payments work?

Every ACH transaction has an originator, who starts it, and a receiver, who accepts it. Depending on the transaction type, the originator may be the one sending the funds or the one receiving them. "Receiver" refers to receiving the transaction itself, not necessarily the money.

To start transactions, a financial institution must be certified by Nacha as an Originating Depository Financial Institution (ODFI). To accept them, it must be certified as a Receiving Depository Financial Institution (RDFI). Most US banks hold both certifications.

You don't need to understand the technical details, though. When a customer pays you by ACH transfer, they authorise the payment and the funds move from their account to yours. As a merchant, that's usually all you need to know.

Types of ACH payments

There are two kinds of ACH transfers: debit ("pull") and credit ("push"). The customer authorises the payment in both cases, but they work differently.

ACH debit (pull transactions)

With an ACH debit, the seller pulls funds from the customer's account into their own. The customer authorises the seller to take a set amount, either once or as a recurring payment.

Pull transactions are common for recurring charges like subscription fees. For example, a monthly magazine subscriber authorises the publisher to pull the fee from their account every month.

ACH credit (push transactions)

With an ACH credit, the customer pushes funds from their account to the seller's account.

This often applies to one-time purchases. For example, someone buying shoes online pushes the amount to the merchant's bank account. Push transactions can also be recurring, like a company paying salaries every month.

An eCheck is one type of ACH push transaction. It works like a paper check, except issuing, exchanging and cashing it all happen online.

How ACH payments can benefit your business

ACH may not be the most common online payment method, but it's very useful in certain situations. Your business can use ACH to make and accept payments in several ways:

• Receiving customer payments: offering ACH is convenient for everyone, especially for recurring payments like subscriptions.
• Paying suppliers: paying electronically makes record-keeping easier, with no paper invoices or checks.
• Paying taxes: you can let the IRS withdraw funds directly from your business account when appropriate.
• Paying employees: set up recurring salary payments so employees are paid every month with no extra steps.

Why should your business accept ACH payments?

The main benefits for merchants are:

• Wider reach: not every customer wants to pay by card. Accepting ACH helps you serve a broader audience and gives each customer more ways to complete a purchase.
• Greater control: with ACH debits, you set the date and frequency of payments. That keeps your finances stable, and you won't have to chase late payments.
• Low failure rate: cards and checks expire or get lost, but bank accounts don't. Because ACH transfers go directly between banks, payments are less likely to fail.
• Fewer cancellations: reversing a card payment is relatively easy, but cancelling an ACH transfer takes more effort. That lowers fraud risk and helps the money reach you and stay with you.
• Electronic records: every ACH payment is recorded automatically and can sync with your other systems, so there's no manual logging.

The benefits of working with Pay.com as your payment service provider

Whatever the size of your business, it's a good idea to give customers as many payment options as possible, including ACH transfers. Accepting many methods sounds like a hassle, but a payment service provider makes it simple.

Pay.com lets you offer a wide range of payment methods, from credit cards and digital wallets to alternatives like ACH. You can add or remove options from your checkout page whenever you want.

Getting started with Pay.com is fast, so you can accept ACH payments in no time. Once you're set up, the Pay Dashboard lets you monitor fees, analyse trends and deal with issues as soon as they come up.

Start accepting ACH payments with Pay.com now!

The bottom line: the best way to accept online payments

Whether you want to accept ACH, credit cards or any other method, the simplest solution is a payment service provider. Pay.com is a user-friendly provider that makes it easy to offer a wide variety of payment options.

With Pay.com, you can receive payments by ACH, credit and debit card, digital wallets and more, so every customer can pay their preferred way. It's also highly secure, keeping your and your customers' payment details private.

Get started with Pay.com now!