HoneyBook fees in 2026: what it takes from each payment

Why there are two card rates

On the day we checked, HoneyBook’s pricing page gave two different starting rates for cards. The plan comparison table says fees start at 2.9% + 25¢. The FAQ and the processing-fees section further down say card fees start at 2.7% + 10¢, covering Visa, Mastercard, Discover, Apple Pay and Google Pay. The page doesn’t explain the gap.

We don’t know which one applies to your account, and we won’t guess. If you’re budgeting, use the higher figure, and then look at the fee line on your first few real payouts. That is the only number that tells you what you are actually paying. Both are “starting at” rates, so some card payments may cost more than either.

The page also says there are no hidden fees, international fees or premium card brand fees. And there is one plan difference: Premium accounts processing over $500,000 a year “may” be eligible for discounted card fees. Below that volume, every plan shows the same rates.

What HoneyBook takes from real invoice sizes

A card fee has two parts: a percentage and a fixed amount per payment. The percentage is what matters on big invoices. The fixed amount matters when you take lots of small payments, like weekly instalments or a retainer split into parts. Here are four payment sizes at the US pricing-table rate, next to ACH and the instant-deposit charge.

Over a year it adds up. Say you take four $2,000 card payments a month: that is $58.25 each, $233 a month, about $2,796 a year. Add Essentials at $59 a month and your client admin costs about $3,500 a year. Move those same payments to ACH and the fees drop to $120 a month. So the choice between card and bank transfer often matters more than the choice between HoneyBook plans.

Is that expensive?

Not really. We should be fair here: 2.9% plus a small fixed amount is a normal card rate. You pay something like it wherever cards are accepted, including through your own processor. HoneyBook doesn’t charge a lot for processing. It charges the usual amount, and that amount gets bigger as your revenue does.

The more useful question is who controls the payment rail. With HoneyBook, client payments go through HoneyBook. That’s convenient: payment schedules, reminders and deposits all live next to the contract. The cost is that you take its rates and its payout timing. If you’d rather send clients to a processor you already use, a bank transfer page or a regional payment method, you need a tool that links out instead of processing payments itself.

For US businesses whose clients happily pay by ACH, HoneyBook’s 1.5% bank-transfer rate is competitive and the integrated flow saves real time. For our full take on when the subscription is still worth it, see HoneyBook pricing 2026: is it worth it?

Five ways to pay HoneyBook less in fees

1. Default large invoices to bank transfer. On a $5,000 payment, card costs $145.25 and ACH costs $75. Put the bank-transfer option first in your payment instructions and say why: it keeps your prices lower.

2. Take fewer, larger payments. The 25¢ is charged per payment. Ten $500 instalments cost $147.50 in card fees; one $5,000 payment costs $145.25. The gap is small, but it grows with frequent small charges.

3. Use instant deposit only when you need it. Instant deposit adds 1%. On a $10,000 payout that’s $100 to get your money sooner. That’s worth it when payroll is due tomorrow, and wasteful as a habit.

4. Check your real payouts, not the headline. Since the page lists two starting card rates, compare the fee lines on a month of real payouts against both. Then budget on what you see.

5. Put fees in your pricing. Card fees are a cost of doing business, like software. Set your rates with them in mind instead of being surprised by them at payout.

If you’d rather not have your tool process payments

We make ApeiroCraft, so read this part as interested, not neutral. ApeiroCraft never processes client payments. An invoice links to the payment page you already use, like your processor’s checkout, a bank-transfer page or a regional method. ApeiroCraft takes nothing from the payment. You still pay whatever your own processor charges. Card fees don’t disappear; they just aren’t added to by the tool you send proposals from.

There are honest trade-offs. HoneyBook has payment schedules, a scheduler, questionnaires and financial products that we don’t have. We also don’t do time tracking, scheduling or client portals. What we do have: proposals sent as links with read tracking and an e-signature, one-click conversion of an accepted proposal into an invoice, a CRM, tasks and team notes. All of it is flat per account, from a free plan up to $19 a month for three people. HoneyBook also only serves the US, Canada, the UK and Australia. If you’re outside those four, see our HoneyBook alternatives page. For a side-by-side, there’s ApeiroCraft vs HoneyBook, and proposal software pricing compared lists how twelve tools bill.