Create a checkout link
A one-shot, pre-filled donation URL for a specific donor or specific amount. Useful for major gifts, follow-ups, and one-off appeals.
A checkout link is a tokenised URL that points at a Stripe Checkout session with the amount, donor details, and payment methods already chosen. Unlike a donation form, it's single-purpose: one donor, one (optional) amount, one expiry.
Before you start
You need:
- ADMIN or EDITOR role on your org.
- Stripe connected with Connected status.
- A clear ask in mind: how much, by when, for whom.
Steps
-
Go to Engage -> Checkout links and click New Link.
The checkout links list. -
Fill in the link's settings:
Field Required What it does Donor email yes Pre-fills the donor's email on Stripe Checkout. Arriving from a donor's detail page pre-fills name and address too; otherwise type the email here. Amount yes The exact donation amount in AUD. Checkout links don't support donor-chosen amounts; for that, use a donation form. Description no Shown above the line item on Stripe Checkout. Click Suggest under the field to drop in a default like $250 donation from Jane Smith; edit it, or leave the field empty to omit a description.Payment methods yes Card, BECS, PayTo. Defaults to whatever your selected Stripe Connect account has enabled. -
Click Create Link. Together returns a short URL of the form
{your-slug}.alltogether.giving/c/<code>. -
Share the URL. The recipient lands on Stripe Checkout pre-populated with the values you set; they confirm and pay.
Single-use semantics
Each link's <code> is unique and globally unguessable. A link's status moves through a fixed lifecycle:
| Status | Meaning |
|---|---|
| ACTIVE | The link is shareable and Stripe Checkout will accept payment. Default on creation. |
| COMPLETED | The donor paid. The donation row exists in Donations and the link can no longer be paid. |
| EXPIRED | The Expires date has passed. Stripe Checkout refuses the session. |
| CANCELED | An admin manually cancelled the link before payment. Stripe Checkout refuses the session. |
If a donor opens the link, fills in details, then bails before confirming, the same code re-opens the same Stripe session next visit; they pick up where they left off.
When to use a checkout link vs. a donation form
- Donation form (
/donate/<slug>) when the audience is broad and you don't know the donor in advance. Public, repeatable, supports recurring. - Checkout link (
/c/<code>) when you know the donor and you want a single specific gift. Private, single-use, one-off only.
Use both. A campaign typically has one donation form and dozens of checkout links for major-gift conversations.
If it goes wrong
- Donor reports "Page expired". The link's expiry passed or the donation already succeeded. Check status in Engage -> Checkout links.
- Donor reports "Payment method is invalid". Stripe's available payment methods on your account changed since you created the link. Open the link, pick the method that's still available, save.
- Donor's email doesn't match the pre-fill. They're signed in to a different email on their phone. The donation still attributes to the correct donor; Together resolves the matching server-side.
What to do next
- Watch the donation land at Donations once the donor pays.
- Read the donations list for the unified ledger view: Read the donations list.