Payment links: getting paid without writing code
2 min readLast updated 16 September 2026 Read as plain text
A link you send on WhatsApp or email that takes the money and records who paid, with no website and no developer involved.
A payment link is a web address that collects a specific amount for a specific thing. You create it, you send it, the customer opens it and pays. Nothing is installed, nothing is integrated, and the person paying does not need an account.
It is the fastest way to start taking money on Ultraner, and for a lot of businesses it is the only thing they ever use.
What it is good at
- Selling when your business happens in a chat. Most trade in this region is agreed on WhatsApp, and a link belongs in the same conversation.
- Charging a fixed amount repeatedly: a class fee, a deposit, a subscription to a service you run by hand.
- Taking payment from somebody who is standing in front of you, by sending it to their phone rather than handling cash.
- Getting a business trading in an afternoon, while the proper integration is still being scoped.
What it records
Each payment against a link arrives with who paid, what they paid, the method they used, and when. That is the part a cash sale never gives you, and it is what turns the end of the month from an investigation into a report.
A link can be used once or many times. A one-off link suits an invoice for a specific client. A reusable link suits a fee everyone pays.
Making a link get paid
- Name the thing, not the transaction. "Term 2 fees, Form 3B" gets paid. "Payment request" does not.
- Send it to one person at a time where you can. A link forwarded to a group is a link nobody feels responsible for.
- Say what happens next. People hesitate when they cannot tell whether they will get a receipt.
- Follow up once, with the amount outstanding, not with a reminder that a payment exists.
When to use something else
If the amount is negotiated, or the customer needs a document for their own books, send an invoice instead: it carries line items and a due date. If you have a website and want the payment to happen inside it, use checkout.