Do we need a card reader?

No. Clients pay on their own phone from a QR code or a link, or you charge a card already on file with authorisation.

Can providers see card details?

No. Cards are held by Stripe against the client record; staff see only the brand and last four digits.

Does in-room payment cost extra?

No. It is part of the subscription; the same platform fee of 0.20%–0.75% applies to processed volume, with Stripe's rate billed separately.

Med spas and aesthetics

Med spa POS: taking payment in the treatment room, not at the front desk

Updated 10 September 2026 · 6 min read

A med spa point of sale does not need a counter. A provider can show a QR code or charge a saved card from the treatment room, the client pays on their own phone, and the receipt arrives before they stand up. That removes the queue at the desk, where most rebooks and retail add-ons are lost.

The desk is where the visit falls apart

A client finishes a treatment feeling good about it, walks to the front, and waits behind two other people while a receptionist takes a phone call. By the time they pay, the rebook conversation has evaporated and the skincare they were going to buy is still on the shelf.

Every minute between the end of the treatment and the payment costs you something measurable: the deposit for the next appointment, the retail item, and the review you would have asked for.

What in-room payment looks like

The provider opens the charge on a tablet or phone, the client scans a QR code and pays on their own device with a wallet, and the receipt is emailed instantly. If the client already has a card on file with written authorisation, the charge can be taken directly with no scanning at all.

Nothing about the card touches your hardware. The payment goes through your own Stripe account and settles to your bank exactly as a desk payment would.

Setting it up without buying terminals

Start with one provider and one treatment type. Add the treatments as products so the amount is never typed manually, then let the provider close the visit in the room for two weeks and compare rebook rates against the desk.

Keep the desk for anything unusual — split payments, insurance-style queries, package disputes — so nobody feels the process has been taken away from them.

What to watch

Tips and commission need to be settled before you roll this out widely, otherwise providers will quietly go back to the desk. Decide whether tips are prompted at checkout and how they are reported.

Also watch statement descriptors. A client paying in the room and seeing an unfamiliar name on their card statement two days later is the single most common avoidable dispute in aesthetics.

Frequently asked

Do we need a card reader?: No. Clients pay on their own phone from a QR code or a link, or you charge a card already on file with authorisation.
Can providers see card details?: No. Cards are held by Stripe against the client record; staff see only the brand and last four digits.
Does in-room payment cost extra?: No. It is part of the subscription; the same platform fee of 0.20%–0.75% applies to processed volume, with Stripe's rate billed separately.

Start taking payments for your med spas and aesthetics

Create a free account, connect payments through Stripe, and take your first payment the same day. Enterprise Pay Gateway is software, not a bank or lender — Stripe processes payments under your own Stripe agreement and pays out to your bank.

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