How Gravity Payments Handles Remote Customer Payments

By [Author Name], merchant-services support editor with [verified years] covering card and ACH operations
Last reviewed: July 10, 2026

Gravity Payments lets US businesses collect remote payments through online invoices, customer portals, payment links, ACH transfers, and a browser-based virtual terminal. The correct tool depends on whether the business needs a formal invoice, a reusable checkout link, a bank-account transfer, or a manually entered card transaction. This independent article is not operated by or affiliated with Gravity Payments.

Remote payments do not automatically qualify for Gravity’s advertised in-person flat rate. The payment channel and merchant agreement need to be checked before estimating the cost.

What Gravity Portals is used for

Gravity Portals is the company’s online billing-management product. It allows a business to present invoices and collect customer payments through a self-service portal rather than requiring every transaction to be completed at a physical terminal.

The broader Portals product can be configured around a business’s billing workflow. Gravity lists customer enrollment, invoices supplied from a system of record, flexible payment options, branding, notifications, document management, multi-location features, and an internal support console among its capabilities. The product page also states that the portal is PCI compliant and SOC 2 Type 2 certified.

This is more than a card-payment button.

A property-services company could present several outstanding invoices through a customer account. A clinic could give patients access to bills and payment options. A multi-location business could let its service team review billing accounts through the internal console.

The exact setup can differ because Gravity describes Portals as customizable. A feature shown on the general product page should not be assumed to appear in every merchant account without the corresponding configuration.

Portals, payment links, and the virtual terminal

These tools can all collect remote payments, but they start from different places.

Gravity Portals begins with an ongoing customer billing relationship. It can display invoices and let enrolled customers manage payment details through a branded portal.

Payment Links begins with a link created inside Gravity Dashboard. The merchant can send it by email, text message, or another channel supported by copying the URL.

Virtual Terminal begins with the merchant entering a transaction through a browser. Gravity Dashboard supports Sale, Authorization, Capture/Force, and Void/Refund transaction types.

The common mistake is opening the virtual terminal when the customer should enter their own payment information through a hosted link. A payment link shifts that entry step to the customer, while the virtual terminal places it with the merchant.

Use the hosted customer route first when it fits the transaction. Skip manual card entry merely because it appears faster to the person sending the bill.

How Gravity payment links work

The payment-link feature is located under Payment Links in Gravity Dashboard. The merchant selects Create Link and chooses either a single-use or multi-use link.

A single-use link requires:

• the customer’s name;
• the amount due;
• a description of the payment;
• the number of days the link should remain active.

After creation, it can be sent by email, sent by text, or copied as a URL.

A multi-use link supports either a fixed amount or a customer-entered amount. For a custom amount, the merchant sets a minimum and maximum payment range. The setup also includes a link title, the description shown to the customer, an expiration period, and optional toggles requiring an invoice number or shipping address.

That distinction matters. A single-use link can correspond to one customer obligation. A multi-use link can be shared with several customers or reused for a category of payments, depending on how its amount and required fields are configured.

A reusable donation link and a one-time repair invoice are different records. Treating them as the same checkout flow can make reconciliation harder later.

Can customers pay by ACH?

Gravity supports ACH payments as one of its available payment methods. Its developer materials describe ACH as a bank-transfer option that does not require a paper check, card, wire, or cash, and Gravity also offers recurring bank-account payments through supported web environments.

The ACH Network transfers funds between US bank and credit-union accounts. Nacha administers the network rules, while financial institutions originate, receive, settle, or return entries as the payment moves through the system.

ACH is not a card transaction with different branding.

Card payments generally receive an authorization response during the transaction. Gravity notes that ACH debits are not authorized in real time in the same way and can later be rejected by the receiving bank.

This makes ACH attractive for invoices, recurring obligations, and larger payments, but it also means that an accepted submission should not always be treated as irreversible collected cash.

Why an ACH payment can be rejected

Gravity says an ACH rejection occurs when the processor attempts to debit the customer’s bank account and the bank returns the transaction. The published support article places typical ACH rejection fees between $2 and $5 per returned transaction, generally billed in the month after processing. Actual account terms should be checked on the merchant statement or agreement.

One named return reason is R01 Insufficient Funds. Gravity identifies it as the most common ACH rejection code in its explainer, and Nacha defines R01 as a return caused by an insufficient available or cash-reserve balance.

Other failures can involve account information, authorization, closed accounts, stop-payment instructions, or processing fields. A return code identifies the category; it does not always tell the merchant what the customer intended.

Check the code first. Skip sending the same debit again without establishing whether correction or renewed authorization is required.

Nacha rules restrict when returned ACH entries may be reinitiated. For example, an entry returned for insufficient or uncollected funds may be reinitiated no more than twice under the conditions described by Nacha.

Are ACH payments cheaper or faster?

Gravity does not publish one universal ACH price for every merchant on its main pricing page. Its ACH explainer says processors may charge a flat amount, a percentage, or a combination, so the applicable figure must come from the merchant’s proposal and agreement.

Gravity’s public 2.5% plus $0.10 rate applies to qualifying in-person transactions. Its pricing page warns that payments made through integrated software or without the customer physically present may not qualify. That caveat can apply to remote invoice and payment-link transactions.

Network speed and merchant funding are also different measurements. Nacha says ACH payments may settle on the same banking day or on a later banking day, depending on how the entry is submitted. Settlement does not guarantee that every processor will make merchant funds available on the same schedule.

Short answer: check the contract.

Void or refund?

Gravity Dashboard’s virtual terminal supports both voids and refunds, but they are not interchangeable.

Gravity states that a virtual-terminal void can be performed during the first 20 minutes after a transaction. If a void is attempted after that window through the documented workflow, the system processes it as a refund instead.

A separate Gravity tutorial explains the boundary through batching. The merchant opens Virtual Terminal, selects the correct location when multi-location access is enabled, and chooses Void/Refund. A transaction can be found using the last four card digits or the authorization ID. Once the payment has batched, the Void button is no longer available and a refund is required.

Void first when an eligible transaction has not batched. Skip assuming that deleting an invoice or payment request reverses an already processed card charge.

A void stops an eligible transaction before settlement completes. A refund creates a later transaction returning funds after the original payment has moved further through processing.

Where payment activity appears

Gravity Dashboard is the centralized product for reviewing transaction activity, batch history, sales performance, reports, and virtual-terminal payments.

This creates a practical division:

• Portals presents bills and payment options to customers.
• Payment Links creates hosted payment requests.
• Virtual Terminal lets an authorized merchant user enter or manage transactions.
• Dashboard reporting shows payment and batch activity.

An invoice marked as sent is not the same as a completed payment. A submitted ACH entry is not the same as cleared funds. A completed customer checkout may also belong to a batch that has not yet produced the expected bank deposit.

Each stage leaves a different record.

When to contact support

Gravity publishes 866-701-4700 for 24/7 telephone support in English, Spanish, Korean, and Japanese. Its online support form carries a stated response time of within one business day and is intended for less urgent issues.

Use telephone support for a live payment interruption, unexplained refund behavior, a missing transaction, or an ACH return that cannot be interpreted from the displayed code. Gravity asks for the Merchant ID on its ticket form only when known, so merchants who cannot immediately locate it can still begin the support request.

Gravity Payments FAQ

Can Gravity Payments send invoices?

Yes. Gravity Portals is designed to present invoices and collect customer payments online.

Can I create a payment link without a full portal?

Gravity Dashboard includes a separate Payment Links section. Merchants can create single-use or multi-use links and send them by email, text, or copied URL.

Can a payment link require an invoice number?

A multi-use payment link can be configured with a toggle requiring the customer to enter an invoice number. A shipping-address requirement can also be enabled.

Does Gravity accept ACH payments?

Yes. Gravity lists ACH among its supported payment methods and describes it as a bank-transfer alternative to checks, cards, wires, and cash. Availability and pricing depend on the merchant’s setup.

What does R01 mean?

Insufficient funds.

How much is an ACH rejection fee?

Gravity says ACH rejection fees are typically between $2 and $5 per rejected transaction and are usually billed in the following month. The merchant’s own agreement and statement remain controlling.

Can I void a payment after it batches?

No. Gravity’s tutorial says the Void button is unavailable after batching, so the transaction must be handled as a refund. Its broader virtual-terminal documentation also identifies a 20-minute void window.

Is the published 2.5% rate used for invoice payments?

Not automatically. Gravity limits that advertised rate to qualifying in-person transactions and warns that integrated or card-not-present payments may not qualify.