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A Simple Guide for: PayNow

You can offer non-refundable rates with our fully automated payment method PayNow.

Manage your property payment options, track guest payments, view incoming payouts, and update your payment account details—all in one place under Finance in Inbox.

The Finance tab brings together your payment setup into two main pages:

  • Payment Methods: Manage online payment options (such as credit cards and digital wallets) available to guests on Hostelworld.
  • Pay Now: Monitor guest payments for non-refundable rates, track bank payouts, and keep your connected Stripe account details up to date.

🔔Important Note: Managing payment settings, enabling PayNow, and viewing payouts can only be done by Manager user accounts in Inbox. 

Where to Find It

Log in to Inbox and navigate to:

Property Setup > Finance

From here, select either Payment Methods or Pay Now.
  

Enabling PayNow

Any property can enable PayNow, including properties that do not yet have a Stripe account.

  1. Go to Property Setup > Finance > Pay Now.
  2. Click Enable PayNow.
  3. A Stripe onboarding window will open directly within Inbox. Follow the prompts to provide your business details, personal details, identity verification, and bank account.
  4. Once Stripe receives the required information, your account status will change to Active, and non-refundable rates will automatically begin selling as PayNow.

   

Note: If you leave the setup process partway through, you can return to Property Setup > Finance > Pay Now at any time to resume where you left off. If you previously disabled PayNow, use the same button to turn it back on.

The Notification Banner

The banner at the top of the PayNow page displays alerts whenever your account requires attention (such as outstanding verification requirements or a risk intervention). If your account is in good standing, the banner shows a green "ready" state.

  

How to Resolve Account Actions

  • Issue Details: The headline states whether the issue affects payments, payouts, or both, along with the deadline date.
  • Overdue Warnings: The due-date indicator turns red once a requirement becomes overdue.
  • Self-Service Resolution: Click Resolve Now to open a pop-up window where you can update your details in place without leaving Inbox.
     

Once updated, the banner refreshes automatically to show that no further action is required.

Disabling PayNow

Properties can disable PayNow at any time:

  1. Click the Disable PayNow link in the status banner.
  2. Confirm your choice when prompted.

  

What happens when PayNow is disabled:

  • Non-refundable prices are no longer shown as PayNow (pre-paid) on Hostelworld.
  • Your status changes to Inactive.
  • Payouts already in flight are not affected: Money owed to your property for completed bookings will still reach your bank account.
  • You can re-enable PayNow later at any time.

PayNow Status States

Status What You See What It Means
ACTIVE "Your Pay Now account is ready" with a Disable PayNow link. Your connected account is in good standing. Non-refundable rates are sold as PayNow (pre-paid).
ACTIVE — ACTION NEEDED Amber banner (e.g., "Your payouts will pause on [date] — action needed!") with a Resolve Now button. Additional information is required by Stripe. PayNow remains active, but payments, payouts, or both will be restricted if action is not taken by the stated date.
INACTIVE "Enable PayNow" button alongside benefits and feature info. PayNow is off. Non-refundable rates are no longer sold as pre-paid. You can re-enable at any time.

Guest Payments

The Guest Payments tab lists all guest payments collected for your property for non-refundable rates.

  • Columns: Date, Status, From, Amount.
  • Filters: Amount, Date, Status.

  

Payment Details

Clicking any row opens the payment detail panel:

  • Status: e.g., Succeeded, Refunded.
  • Date Received 
  • Amount & Exchange Rate: Where a guest paid in a currency other than your connected account's currency, both amounts and the conversion exchange rate are displayed.
  • Net: Final net amount.
  • Timeline - payment started, payment succeeded

  

Exporting Payments

  1. Click Export on the Guest Payments tab. 
  2. Choose a date range (Today, Current month, Last 7 days, Last month, All, or Custom). 
  3. Choose the column set (Default is 23 columns).
  4. Click Export to generate a CSV file.

Reconciliation Tip: The exported CSV includes the bookingId field (the Hostelworld booking identifier), which allows you to reconcile payments back to specific reservations.

Payouts

The Payouts tab shows funds that have been transferred to your bank account and what is upcoming.

  • Overview Header: Displays total balance and estimated upcoming payout date.
  • Payout List: Date, Status, Destination (masked bank account), and Amount.
  • Filters: Status, Amount, Method, Date, plus an Export option. 

Payout Details

Clicking a payout opens a detailed side panel:

  • Timeline: Shows status (Initiated automatically, In transit, Completed). Note: Banks can take up to 5 business days to process payouts. If a payout is delayed past the expected processing date, check with your bank.
  • Overview: Destination account, amount, type (Bank Account), method (Standard), and the Payout Trace ID (which you can provide to your bank to track a transfer).
  • Summary: Counts and totals for charges, refunds, adjustments, fees, and gross/net amounts.
  • Transactions: Lists every payment included in that specific payout. 

Account Settings

The Account Settings tab allows you to update your property details directly without needing to contact support:

  • Business Type & Location: Legal entity classification and registered location.
  • Professional Details: Business information, website, and industry.
  • Personal Details: Name, email, date of birth, address, ID document, nationality, and phone number.
  • Payout Details: Connected bank account(s), with the option to add additional bank accounts.
  • Payment Account Authentication Details: Email and phone used for secure account authentication.

Each section features an Edit button so you can update your details at your convenience. 

Frequently Asked Questions

  • What happens if I drop out partway through Stripe onboarding?Your progress is saved automatically. Simply return to Property Setup > Finance > Pay Now and click Enable PayNow to pick up where you left off.
  • My payout status says completed, but the funds are not in my bank account yet. What should I do?Banks can take up to 5 business days to clear and display transferred funds. If 5 business days have passed since the payout date, click on the payout in your Payouts tab, copy the Payout Trace ID, and provide it to your bank so they can track the incoming transfer.
  • How do I reconcile my payouts to specific Hostelworld bookings?To match payouts back to individual reservations, use the CSV export in the Guest Payments tab. This file includes the bookingId field, which corresponds to your Hostelworld booking reference number.