Before you can charge for courses, your academy needs a way to collect money and send it to your bank. Klimb uses Stripe Connect, which means each creator connects their own Stripe account and gets paid directly. Klimb never holds your funds — money flows from your learners to your Stripe balance and then to your bank.
Why Stripe Connect
Stripe Connect lets Klimb process payments on your behalf while keeping you in full control of your money. Your learners check out securely, the charge lands in your connected Stripe account, and Stripe handles the payout to your bank on its normal schedule. Because the account is yours, you also own your customer data, tax documents, and dispute handling.
Connecting your account
- Open your academy dashboard and go to Settings → Billing.
- Click Connect with Stripe. You’ll be redirected to Stripe’s secure onboarding flow.
- Sign in to an existing Stripe account, or create a new one in a few minutes.
- Complete Stripe’s verification steps — business details, your identity, and a bank account for payouts.
- When Stripe finishes, you’ll be returned to Klimb and your billing status will read Connected.
Until your status shows Connected, paid courses can’t be published for checkout. Free courses still work without Stripe.
What you’ll need
Have these ready to speed up onboarding:
- A government-issued ID for identity verification
- Your business name and address (or your legal name if you operate as an individual)
- A bank account or debit card for payouts
- Your tax information (Stripe collects this for compliance)
Verifying everything works
After connecting, run a quick check:
- Confirm the Connected badge appears in Settings → Billing.
- Publish a low-priced test course, or use Stripe’s test mode if you’re still building.
- Place a test purchase and confirm the charge appears in your Stripe Dashboard.
Once a real sale comes through, the funds appear in your Stripe balance and pay out automatically. See Understanding payouts and fees for timing and platform-fee details.
Troubleshooting
- Stuck on “Pending”? Stripe still needs information from you. Open your Stripe Dashboard and look for outstanding verification tasks.
- Connected the wrong account? In Settings → Billing, disconnect and reconnect with the correct Stripe login.
- Custom domain learners can’t check out? Make sure your domain is verified — see Creating your academy.
Keeping your account healthy
Respond promptly to any verification requests Stripe emails you. If verification lapses, Stripe can pause payouts even while sales continue, so your earnings will queue until you resolve it. Keep your bank details current whenever you switch banks.
With Stripe connected, you’re ready to set prices and start enrolling learners. Next, head to Pricing your courses.