Some refunds happen on their own, because your cancellation policy already decided them. The rest are yours to make, and each one is a single tap with the customer told automatically. This guide covers both.
What refunds automatically
- A customer cancels inside your free window. Their deposit goes straight back, with nothing for you to do. The cancellation email tells them it's on its way.
- You cancel a booking. The deposit is always refunded, whatever the timing. Your customer shouldn't pay for a change that came from your side.
The one that deliberately doesn't: a customer who cancels after the free window has closed, or at any time if your policy is set to No free cancellation. The deposit stays with you, because that's the policy they agreed to when they booked. If the story deserves generosity, that's what the manual refund below is for.
Money from a sale that's already closed
A visit that's been checked out, or a walk-in sale, refunds from the sale itself: open it and choose Refund from this sale, by item or by amount. The sale stays as recorded. See Refunds and returns after checkout.
Refunding by hand
Two places, depending on where you're standing:
- From the booking. Open the booking's details and you'll find a refund button against the money it holds: the deposit or online payment, and separately any missed-visit fee you've charged. This is the natural place when the customer is in front of you or on the phone.
- From the Payments screen. Every payment you've taken lives here as its own row. Open one and tap Refund. This is the natural place for "that fee from last Tuesday", when you're starting from the money rather than the appointment.
Either way, you pick the amount - everything still on the payment, or any part of it - and where it goes: back the way it came, or as credit for next time (money you hold for that customer, off their next bill; see Customer credit). Confirm once. Money going back to a card is on its way; money paid in person is handed back and recorded; credit is theirs the moment you confirm. They get an email straight away saying what happened, naming the amount. The Payments screen keeps a record of every refund and who made it.
Refunding part of a payment
The refund dialog opens with the full amount and you can lower it: keep $10 of a $20 deposit as a late fee and send $10 back, or return half a charged fee as a goodwill gesture. A partly refunded payment shows as Partly refunded on the Payments page, with what's gone back so far, and you can refund the rest later, the same way, until nothing is left. A partly refunded deposit stays on the booking; the customer's booking page shows how much came back.
What it costs you
Refunding is free; there's no charge for sending money back. The card fee from the original payment (1.95% + 30c on an Australian card) isn't returned, so refunding a $50 deposit still costs you about $1.27.
How long it takes
Five to ten business days to appear on the customer's card. That's the banks' timing, not ours, and the customer's email says so, which saves you the "where's my refund?" call a week later.
FAQs
Can I refund part of a payment?
Yes: the refund dialog lets you set any amount up to what's still on the payment. And when a booking holds more than one payment, a deposit and a charged fee say, each is its own row and refunds on its own, so you can give back the fee and keep the deposit, or the other way round.
Does refunding a fee change the booking?
No. The booking stays exactly as recorded, a no-show stays a no-show, and your history stays honest. The only thing that changes is the money.
The customer says the refund hasn't arrived.
Refunds take five to ten business days, and some banks only show them once they arrive. Past ten business days, the customer's bank can trace it with the card they paid on; your Payments screen shows the refund and the date it was made.
Who on my team can refund?
Owners and managers. Front desk can open Payments and take payments, but can't refund, undo a sale or lower a paid one. The one exception is a deposit your cancellation policy gives back: whoever cancels the booking can return it, to the card, in person or as credit.