How getting paid works
Every invoice can be paid more than one way. Send a card / Apple Pay link the customer taps, and the money settles into your own connected account — you never wait on us to pass it along, because it never comes to us. Or send a payment request against the handles you already use, and the customer pays you directly.
Customers can add a tip on the payment page, and when you need the cash today, "get paid now" pushes a card balance to your debit card in about half an hour (a 1% fee, shown up front). If an invoice goes unpaid, SideWRK sends friendly email reminders — it never texts your customer for you.
One thing most apps won’t tell you: Venmo, Cash App, Zelle and Apple Cash all have rules about taking money for work on an ordinary personal account, and they can freeze or close one over it. We tell you each app’s rule at the moment you add that handle, so you can set it up the way that keeps your money safe. We don’t block anything — it’s your call. See payment requests.
What you can use it for
Get paid however they pay
Some customers want to tap a card, some only ever use an app. Offer both and you don’t lose the sale over how somebody likes to pay.
Nothing to apply for
Connect a payout account and take card and Apple Pay right away. No underwriting, no monthly gateway bill, no becoming a payments company.
Know each app’s rules before you use it
Add a Venmo, Cash App or Zelle handle and SideWRK tells you that app’s rule for taking money for work — the thing that gets accounts frozen when nobody mentions it.
Get the cash today
Waiting days for a card payout is rough when payroll is you. Instant payout moves the money to your debit card in about 30 minutes for a small, disclosed fee.
How to collect a payment
- 1
Send the invoice
From a finished job, send the branded invoice with a card / Apple Pay link the customer can tap.
- 2
They pay by card — or you request it to an app
The customer pays by card or Apple Pay, or you send a payment request they settle against a handle you’ve saved.
- 3
The job flips to paid
When the balance is covered, the job marks itself paid. Card money lands in your own connected account.
- 4
Cash out fast if you need to
Use instant payout to move a card balance to your debit card in about 30 minutes for a 1% fee — otherwise it settles on the normal schedule.
- 5
Let reminders do the nagging
If an invoice sits unpaid, SideWRK emails polite reminders with a pay link so you’re not the one chasing it — and it never texts your customer.
Why the money never stops here
Plenty of apps sit between you and your money — the customer pays them, they hold it, and eventually they pass it on, minus something. SideWRK doesn’t. Card payments settle into your own connected account, and a payment request goes customer-to-you directly. We take no cut of a payment on any rail, which is why the $24 is the whole bill. For more on that, see your money.
That also means we don’t have a reason to steer you onto whichever rail pays us most, because none of them do. So we can just tell you the truth about them: the cash apps each set their own rules for taking money for work, some of those rules are strict, and the version that keeps your account safe usually costs a small seller fee. Nobody selling you a payment product volunteers that. We put it on the screen where you type the handle.
And after all of it — the card links, the instant payout, even financing on the big jobs — plain cash still works. Take the bills, record the payment on the job in a tap, and it flips to Paid with your profit math intact. None of this replaces cash money; it’s just there for the customers who don’t carry it.
Payment requests
Plenty of operators just text people for money, and there is nothing wrong with that — it just looks like nothing. This makes it look like something: a shareable pay card with the amount, what it was for, and a photo of the work, that lands on the job record when they pay.
Set your pay handles once in Shop. Then on any job, tap Request payment and SideWRK gives you a shareable link (sidewrk.app/pay/…) plus a ready-to-send text. The public card shows the amount, what it’s for, and a job photo.
Cash App and PayPal appear as tap-to-pay buttons. Venmo and Zelle show as copy-to-pay handles on purpose — both prohibit taking payment for work on an ordinary personal account, and a button we built would be the thing that turned a job payment into a violation. The handle still shows; how you use it is yours to decide.
When they pay, you tap Mark as paid and it logs on the job. The money moves straight from your customer to you — SideWRK never holds it and never takes a cut.
Send a real pay card, not just a handle
A clean card with the amount, the job, and a photo looks legit and cuts the back-and-forth. Half of getting paid on time is looking like somebody who sends invoices.
Skip the card setup entirely
You don’t need to connect a card processor to use this. Save your handles and you can request payment on your first day.
Know the rules before they cost you
Every one of these apps restricts taking money for work on a personal account. SideWRK tells you which rule applies as you add each handle — quietly, once, where it matters.
Keep the payment on the record
Mark it paid and it logs on the job, so money you collected by text still shows up in your profit and your year-end totals.
Customer financing
A $4,000 job is an easier yes when the customer can spread the payments. On bigger card checkouts, they can choose to pay over time with Affirm or Klarna — and you’re paid in full, right away. They carry the payments, not you.
On a card checkout roughly between $50 and $30,000, your customer sees the option to pay over time with Affirm or Klarna alongside paying the whole thing now. If they choose it, the financing company pays you — in full, immediately — and the customer makes their payments to Affirm or Klarna.
You carry no risk and front no money. There’s nothing for you to apply for or turn on; it just shows up as a payment choice at checkout on the qualifying jobs. The terms are between the customer and the financing company.
Close the bigger jobs
The full repipe, the roof, the whole-house floor — the ones people put off over cost. Pay-over-time turns a "not right now" into a booked job.
Take the price off the table
When the sticker isn’t the whole conversation, you compete on your work instead of losing to whoever quoted lowest.
Get paid in full anyway
You’re not the bank and you’re not waiting. The financing company pays you the full amount right away; the customer’s payment plan is their business.
Offer it with zero setup
There’s nothing to enable, no account to open. It appears at checkout on qualifying card jobs automatically.
Getting paid — common questions
How fast do I actually get my money?
A card or Apple Pay payment settles to your own connected account on the normal schedule, usually a couple of business days. If you need it the same day, instant payout moves it to your debit card in about 30 minutes for a 1% fee, shown before you tap it.
Do I need a merchant account?
No. There’s nothing to apply for and no monthly gateway bill. You connect a payout account and can take card and Apple Pay right away.
What are the fees?
Card and Apple Pay carry the standard card processing fee. Instant payout is an optional 1%, shown before you use it. SideWRK itself takes no cut of a payment — the subscription is the whole bill.
Can I get paid through Venmo, Cash App or Zelle?
You can send a payment request against handles you’ve saved, and the customer pays you directly. Worth knowing before you do: each of those apps restricts taking payment for work on an ordinary personal account, and they can freeze or close one over it — Venmo and Cash App both have a business setup that fixes it, Zelle depends on whether your own bank offers a small-business version. SideWRK tells you each app’s rule the moment you add that handle. We don’t block anything; it’s your call.
Where does the money go?
Into your own accounts. Card payments settle to your connected account; a payment request goes directly from the customer to you. Nothing is ever held in a SideWRK wallet.
Can customers leave a tip?
Yes. There’s a tip option on the payment page, so a happy customer can add to what they owe.
Can I just take cash?
Always. Take the cash, record the payment on the job, and it flips to Paid like any other payment — the Money tab and your year-end totals stay right. You don’t have to connect anything to run on cash; the card and app options are there when you want them.
Do I need a card processor for this?
No. Payment requests use handles you already have. There’s nothing to connect and nothing routes through SideWRK — it works from your first day.
Which apps does the pay card support?
Cash App and PayPal show as tap-to-pay buttons. Venmo and Zelle show as copy-to-pay handles — partly because Zelle can’t be deep-linked from the web, and mainly because both prohibit taking payment for work on a personal account, so we won’t be the thing that builds that link for you. Apple Pay shows as a copy-to-pay handle too.
Is it against the rules to get paid through these apps?
Taking money for work on an ordinary personal account is, on all of them — the apps can freeze funds or close the account over it. Venmo and Cash App each have a business setup that makes it fine, and Zelle depends on whether your own bank offers a small-business version. Apple Cash is the one with no business version at all. We tell you which rule applies as you add each handle, and we never block anything.
How does the customer pay?
They open the link, see a card with the amount and the job, and tap the app they use — or copy your handle. The money goes straight to you.
Does it track the payment?
Yes. When you tap Mark as paid, the payment logs on the job, so it shows up in your money and your records like any other payment.
Do I front the money or carry any risk?
No. The financing company pays you in full right away and the customer repays them. You take on no financing risk and never wait on installments.
What does it cost me?
The job is paid to you as a normal card payment. The financing arrangement is between the customer and Affirm or Klarna — their terms, not yours.
What size jobs qualify?
Pay-over-time shows up on card checkouts roughly between $50 and $30,000. It’s built for the bigger jobs where spreading the cost matters.
Do I have to set anything up?
No. There’s nothing to enable. On qualifying card jobs, the Affirm and Klarna option simply appears at checkout.