How to add GoCardless to your website
GoCardless is a direct debit platform for recurring payments, used by businesses with regular recurring clients — cleaners, gardeners, retainer-based services and subscriptions. Here's how to put it on your own website, which embed option to pick, and what goes wrong.
Quick answer
Get the code from your GoCardless dashboard, where you create a payment page or reusable direct debit link to share. For most people the right choice is the payment page link — a hosted page where customers set up a direct debit mandate. Paste it into a code or embed block on your site — not a plain text field — then place it beside your main call to action and test the whole flow on a phone before relying on it.
GoCardless: which option to use
| Option | What it does |
|---|---|
| Payment page link | A hosted page where customers set up a direct debit mandate. |
| Plan links | Links to a specific recurring plan, so the amount and frequency are fixed. |
| Embedded flow | For more technical setups, GoCardless can be integrated directly into your own pages. |
Step-by-step
- 1
Find the code or link in your account
GoCardless keeps this in your GoCardless dashboard, where you create a payment page or reusable direct debit link to share. Copy what you need before touching your website — most of the time people lose is spent hunting for the snippet, not installing it.
- 2
Pick the right option for the job
The table above is the decision. Payment page link: A hosted page where customers set up a direct debit mandate. Plan links: Links to a specific recurring plan, so the amount and frequency are fixed. Choosing before you paste saves rebuilding the section later.
- 3
Paste it into a code or embed block
This needs an HTML, code or embed block — not a plain text field, where the code will simply appear as text on your page. On Adviita, ask the AI editor to add an embed section and drop the code in. On WordPress use a Custom HTML block, on Squarespace a Code block (Business plan or above), and on Wix an Embed HTML element.
- 4
Put it where the decision happens
Getting paid should take the customer as few taps as possible — every extra step is money left on the table. A widget three scrolls down does a fraction of the work of the same widget beside your main call to action. Decide what the page is for, then place it at the point the visitor is deciding.
- 5
Check it on an actual phone
Most visitors to a small business website arrive on a phone, and embeds are where mobile layouts break. Open your live site on your own phone and confirm it loads, fits the screen without sideways scrolling, and does not push your contact button out of view. Third-party embeds are also the most common cause of a slow page, so if it noticeably delays loading, consider a plain link instead.
- 6
Test it end to end before you rely on it
Run through the whole flow yourself as a customer would — make a small real payment — and confirm what should happen actually happens. Broken embeds fail silently, and the first person to notice is usually a customer who has already given up.
Tips & best practices
- ▸Direct debit is not instant. First collections typically take several working days to clear, so do not use it where you need payment before delivering.
- ▸Mandates are a commitment on both sides — customers can cancel at their bank without telling you, so reconcile regularly rather than assuming.
- ▸Direct debit suits recurring billing specifically. For one-off payments the fees and delay make a card link the better choice.
- ▸Re-test the embed after any change to your site, your plan, or the connected account — third-party widgets break quietly and nothing tells you.
Common questions
Is direct debit better than card payments for recurring work?
+−
For regular recurring amounts, usually yes. Fees are typically lower than card fees, and there are no expiring cards to chase, which is the main cause of failed subscription payments. The trade-off is that setup takes a few days and collections are not instant.
How do I collect direct debits from my website?
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Create a payment page or plan link in your GoCardless dashboard and put it behind a 'Set up direct debit' button on your site. The customer completes the mandate on GoCardless's hosted page, and collections then run automatically on your schedule.
Do I need a developer to add GoCardless to my site?
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No. Every option here is copy and paste into a code or embed block, which every mainstream website builder provides. The only genuine blocker is a builder or plan that does not allow custom code at all — Squarespace, for instance, requires a Business plan or above for code blocks.
Will adding GoCardless slow down my website?
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Any third-party embed has some cost, because it loads code from another company's servers. One is usually unnoticeable; four or five on the same page is where small business sites become visibly slow. If page speed matters to you, prefer a plain link over a script wherever the option exists, and keep embeds to the pages that genuinely need them.