Recurring billing for studios: card, debit or e-Transfer?

Most small studios bill monthly memberships automatically by card: it is quick to set up, members expect it, and payment arrives the same day each month. Pre-authorized debit is cheaper per payment but slower, and manual e-Transfer has no processor fee but costs you time. The right mix depends on your membership price and how much chasing you can handle.

What are the ways a studio can bill monthly?

There are four common options in Canada and the US. Each one trades cost against effort:

Method	How it works	Processor cost (Stripe, Canada)	Effort for the studio
Card on file (subscription)	Member saves a card; charged the same day each month	2.9% + CA$0.30, plus 0.7% for Stripe Billing	Low: automatic, retries on failure
Pre-authorized debit (PAD)	Member authorizes debits from a bank account	1% + CA$0.40, capped at CA$5; CA$5 per failed payment	Low once set up; slower to clear
Interac e-Transfer	Member sends money each month	None from a processor (check your bank)	High: reminders, matching, late payers
Cash or card at the desk	Member pays in person	Card terminal fees if used	High, and easy to forget

Card and debit fees are from Stripe’s Canadian pricing and local payment methods page, checked October 2026. In the US, ACH direct debit works like PAD; check your processor’s current rate.

How much does each method cost on a real membership?

Take a CA$150 unlimited monthly membership and 60 members on it, CA$9,000 a month in total:

Method	Cost per payment	Cost per month for 60 members
Card on file with Stripe Billing	about CA$5.70	about CA$342
Pre-authorized debit with Stripe Billing	about CA$2.95	about CA$177
e-Transfer	CA$0 in fees	CA$0, plus staff time

The card figure is 2.9% of CA$150 (CA$4.35) plus CA$0.30 plus 0.7% for Billing (CA$1.05). The debit figure is 1% (CA$1.50) plus CA$0.40 plus the same CA$1.05. These are estimates for domestic payments; international cards cost more.

Now add the time. If chasing and matching e-Transfers takes 3 minutes per member each month, 60 members is 3 hours a month. At CA$25 an hour that is CA$75, before any late payments. That is why e-Transfer works for a studio with 10 regulars and starts to hurt at 60.

Card or pre-authorized debit: which is better for a studio?

Both work. The differences show up in day-to-day running:

• Cards are faster. The payment is confirmed in seconds, so a member’s membership renews and they can book straight away.
• Debits are cheaper, especially for higher-priced memberships, because the fee is capped.
• Debits clear slowly. A PAD can take several business days to settle, and a failure is often reported days later, after the member has already booked.
• Cards fail more often but visibly. Expired and replaced cards are the most common reason. A good system catches this on the renewal day and asks the member to update their card.
• Members expect cards. Most people already pay subscriptions this way; a bank debit form adds friction at sign-up.

For most small studios, cards are the simpler default. Debit becomes attractive when memberships are expensive or when members ask for it.

How should a studio handle failed payments?

Failed payments are normal. The goal is to recover them without awkward conversations. A good setup does four things:

1. Retries automatically over a few days, since many failures are temporary.
2. Tells the member right away, with a link to update the card.
3. Gives a short grace period, such as 3 days, during which booking still works.
4. Pauses new bookings after the grace period until the payment succeeds, without cancelling existing credits.

Write the rule into your membership terms so nobody is surprised. Our cancellation policy template has wording you can adapt.

Can you mix billing methods?

Yes, and many studios do. A common pattern is card on file as the default for monthly memberships, e-Transfer accepted for members who ask, and class packs sold as one-off card payments. The risk is that every exception becomes a manual task. Keep the exceptions few and write them down:

• Default: card on file for every new membership.
• Exception: e-Transfer only for members on a yearly plan, paid up front, so you match one payment a year instead of twelve.
• Desk payments: recorded in your system the same day, with a receipt, so your reports stay complete.

The fewer methods you chase each month, the more time you spend teaching.

What should your membership terms say?

Before you switch on recurring billing, decide and publish these:

• Billing day: the purchase date each month, or a fixed day for everyone.
• Commitment: none, or a minimum term, with the earliest end date shown before cancelling.
• Cancellation: how members cancel and how much notice you need.
• Pauses: allowed reasons, minimum and maximum length, and that billing stops during the pause.
• Failed payments: grace period and what happens after.
• Price changes: how much notice members get, and whether current members keep their price.
• Refunds: when, if ever, a monthly payment is refunded.

Clear terms prevent most disputes. If you are deciding whether memberships are right for you at all, see class packs vs memberships.

How does elastudio bill memberships?

elastudio bills monthly memberships by card through your studio’s own Stripe account. The member pays the first month at checkout and is charged on the same day each month. Failed payments start a grace period (3 days by default) during which booking still works; after that, new bookings wait until the member updates the card on Stripe’s secure page. You can set a commitment period, and members see the earliest end date before they cancel. Staff can pause a membership, which stops billing and moves the end date. If you change a price, you choose whether current members keep it or move at their next renewal, with 7 days’ notice.

What it does not do: elastudio does not offer pre-authorized debit or ACH today, and it takes no cut of your sales on any plan. The Free plan includes one recurring membership, and Starter (CA$29 a month) includes unlimited memberships. You pay Stripe’s fees directly.

See the plan limits on pricing and the full list on features. Sign-up is by request for now: write to support@elastudio.app. For the bigger picture on fees, read studio software with no transaction fees.