Most families expect to be able to pay by card, and cards settle quickly, which helps cash flow. The cost is the processing fee, a percentage of each payment that grows with the amount. For a funeral home, where balances can be large, it is worth understanding those fees and offering a lower-cost option alongside cards.
Understanding the fees
- Card fees are a percentage of each payment, so they scale with the balance.
- Fees are charged by the payment provider, not your software vendor.
- On large balances, ACH is usually cheaper than a card.
- Be transparent and accurate about amounts; itemized statements matter under the FTC Funeral Rule.
A clean card workflow
- Send a payment link with the statement so the family can pay from home.
- The card payment posts to the case against the matching invoice.
- The balance updates and the payment syncs to your books.
- The family gets a clear receipt for the exact amount.
What to record
For each card payment, keep the amount, date, method, and the invoice it applied to on the case, and sync it to your accounting system. Accurate, itemized records are not just good practice; the FTC Funeral Rule requires accurate, itemized price information and statements, so clean payment records support compliance as well as bookkeeping.
What to ask software vendors
- What are the card processing fees, and who charges them?
- Do card payments post to the case and sync to QuickBooks?
- Can families pay by link from home?
- Can I also offer ACH for large balances?
How FuneralHQ handles this
FuneralHQ takes card payments against the case with a clear receipt, posts them to the balance, and syncs them to QuickBooks. Processing fees are standard from the provider and separate from your subscription, with no platform markup, and ACH is available for larger balances.
Related resources
Read ACH payments for funeral homes and itemized funeral statements: what your software should track.