Connecting your account

Add your payment account in the payment settings block.

When you first add a field that collects payment, or click “Payment: Add Account” at the bottom of the builder, a box appears introducing our payment partners: PayPal, Stripe, and Square. From here, you can connect any combination of accounts you have with these payment processors. You can then use each connected account with any of your organization’s forms.

When selecting a payment processor, you’ll be taken to a new window where you can register for a new account or connect your existing account. All of your information must be valid and correct, as our payment processors will verify your identity (and if you are representing an organization, the identity of the organization), to ensure you are collecting payment for legitimate reasons.

Connect to PayPal

Quick Tip

You must have either a Premier or Business PayPal account in order to accept payments through both PayPal and by credit card. If you have a Personal account, your customers only have the option to pay with PayPal.

To connect your PayPal account to your form:

  1. Select the Payment option from the green bar at the bottom of the form builder, and then select Add Payment Account from the Payment Settings menu.
  2. Select PayPal from the list of payment accounts.
  3. Next, enter your email address to either sign up or log in to your existing account.
    • If you’re signing up for a new account, you’ll be taken to a page where you can enter your login info and business contact information. Select “Agree and Continue” once you are done.
    • Next, enter some basic information about your business, as well as some personal information to help verify your identity.
    • Make sure to confirm your email by following the instructions PayPal sent to your email account. Click “Go back to Cognito LLC” to head back over to your Cognito Forms account.
  4. Once back in your Cognito Forms account, you will see a dialog box confirming that your form is connected to PayPal.

Connect to Stripe

Quick Tip

You must be an Administrator in Stripe to connect your Stripe account to Cognito Forms.

To connect your Stripe account to your form:

  1. Select the Payment option from the green bar at the bottom of the form builder, and then select Add Payment Account from the Payment Settings menu.
  2. Select Stripe from the list of payment accounts.
  3. You will be taken over to Stripe’s website. Here, you can either sign in with your existing Stripe account, or sign up for a new Stripe account. If you have a Stripe account, go ahead and sign in using the link in the top right corner.
    • If you do not have a Stripe account, you can go through the sign up process. You will notice that you have some information to fill out; some of this will already be filled in based on your Cognito Forms information. You will want to make sure that your County is correct. You will also have to tell Stripe a little about your business to verify that your business is real.
    • The last thing you will need to do is create the email address and password you will be logging into your Stripe account with. This is up to you and can be different than what you have for your Cognito Account. Once you’re finished, click Authorize access to this account to link your Cognito Forms account to your newly created Stripe account.
  4. You will be directed back to Cognito Forms, where your Stripe account will appear as connected.

Connect to Square

Quick Tip

You can connect your payment forms to multiple store locations in a single Square account.

To connect your Square account to your form:

  1. Select the Payment option from the green bar at the bottom of the form builder, and then select Add Payment Account from the Payment Settings menu.
  2. Select Square from the list of payment accounts.
  3. Next, you’ll be redirected to Square. Here, you can either sign in with your existing account, or sign up for a new account. If you have a Square account, go ahead and sign in. If you do not have a Square account, you can go through the sign up process.
  4. Once you’ve either signed into your account or created a new one, you’ll be taken back to Cognito Forms, where you can confirm the location of your Square account.
  5. Your account will now be listed in the Payment Accounts dialog. Save your changes, and you’re done!