Get paid the day the repair is done
Build the invoice from the ticket, take the payment however the customer wants to pay, card on the reader at the counter, link by text, cash in the drawer, financing for the big jobs, and let the receipt send itself.
Recorded from the real app: the invoices hub with outstanding and collected at a glance, then a paid invoice opened to its timeline, line items, and one-click receipt.
1/5 · Line items to paid in seconds at the counter
Every way a customer wants to pay
Card payments run through Square or Stripe, whichever you already use, and you pick one as the shop’s provider. Big-ticket work, data recovery, board-level repair, vintage restorations, can offer Affirm financing so the price stops being the objection. Cash and external payments are logged on the same ticket so the books stay whole.
The card reader at your counter, on either processor
Tap and dip on a real countertop reader, on Square or on Stripe. The amount goes to the reader from the invoice or the ticket, the customer pays on the device, and the payment lands on that ticket and in the ledger without anybody re-keying a total. Multi-store shops assign readers per counter, so the sale belongs to the store that made it.
Reader setup, stated plainly
You claim a new reader in your own Square or Stripe dashboard first, the way the processor requires, and it then shows up in BenchKey to assign. On Stripe you map a reader to each location yourself in Settings; on Square, we set the device up with you. Stripe shops need a countertop smart reader (WisePOS E, S700, S710, or a supported Verifone) — mobile Bluetooth readers and phone tap-to-pay aren’t supported. Refunds are issued from BenchKey or your processor, not on the device.
Deposits that don’t tax the customer twice
Take a deposit before the parts order, and mark it "Deposit — no tax" right on the invoice builder. The deposit collects clean, then the tax lands once, on the finished job, where it belongs. Apply the deposit at checkout and the remaining balance is what’s left, not a second tax bill.
No processor connected? Still invoice, still get paid
A cash-first shop is a first-class shop here. You can build and send invoices and record payment without ever connecting a card processor, and nothing about the invoice, the receipt, or the ledger is degraded for it. Connect a processor later and the same invoices start taking cards.
Receipts send themselves
The moment an invoice is paid, counter, link, or portal, the customer gets a receipt email with the invoice PDF attached and a text with the link. Nobody has to remember to send it, and nobody calls asking for a copy.
Money that matches the ticket, and the processor
Payments live on the ticket they belong to, the register feed shows the day at a glance, and reconciliation checks every Square payment against its ticket and flags anything that does not match.
A ledger, not an editable list
Underneath every payment is an append-only ledger, written in exact cents, that nothing in the app can edit or delete. Refunds, chargebacks, and corrections are recorded as new reversing entries against the original, the way an accountant fixes a ledger line, so the money story is always complete. A paid invoice can’t be voided until the refund is on the record, and balances and reports are derived from the ledger, never typed over it. If a dollar entered the shop, the record of it stays.
FAQ
Invoices & payments questions
Does BenchKey take a cut of my payments?
No. You pay your payment processor’s normal fees, BenchKey doesn’t add a markup on top.
Can I use a card reader at the counter?
Yes, on Square or on Stripe. You claim the reader in your processor’s own dashboard first, then assign it in BenchKey — per location, so a multi-store shop points each counter at its own device. Stripe shops need a countertop smart reader (WisePOS E, S700, S710, or a supported Verifone); mobile Bluetooth readers and phone tap-to-pay aren’t supported. Refunds are issued from BenchKey or your processor rather than on the device.
Can I use BenchKey without connecting a card processor?
Yes. Invoice, collect cash or an external payment, and send the receipt, with nothing connected. The ledger and the reporting work the same. Connect Square or Stripe whenever you want to start taking cards.
Do deposits get taxed twice?
No. Mark the deposit "Deposit — no tax" on the invoice builder and it collects without tax. Tax is calculated once on the finished job, and applying the deposit just reduces what’s left to pay.
Can customers finance expensive repairs?
Yes. With the Affirm integration, customers can split large invoices into payments, useful for data recovery and board-level work where price is the sticking point.
Do receipts really send automatically?
Yes, from every payment path. The customer gets an email with the invoice PDF and an SMS link the moment payment lands. You can toggle this per shop.
Can a payment be edited or deleted after it’s recorded?
No. Money is recorded on an append-only ledger: refunds and corrections are new reversing entries that point at the original, so history is never rewritten. A paid invoice can’t be voided until it’s refunded, and nobody, owner included, can make a recorded payment quietly disappear.
Works with
Estimates & approvals
Send estimates customers approve from their phone, with a timestamped record of who approved what.
Live customer portal
Customers track their repair like a package, live timeline, estimates, and invoices on one private link.
Integrations
QuickBooks, Xero, Stripe, Square, PayPal, Quo, RingCentral, Affirm, Twilio, PrintNode, Dymo, Shippo, MobileSentrix, connected in clicks. More parts suppliers on the way.
Put your shop on BenchKey
Set up in an afternoon. Import your customers and tickets, build your check-in flow, and send your first live status link the same day.
Beta launches in ~3 weeks · Beta invites go out in small groups
Founders pricing: the first 50 shops lock Pro at $59/mo for life · see pricing