How to accept Interac e‑Transfer payments on WooCommerce

Many Canadians would rather pay by Interac e-Transfer® than type a card number into a website. For your store, there are no card fees, and the money goes straight into your own bank account. The catch is that WooCommerce has no e-Transfer option of its own, so you have to add it.

Before you start

Whichever way you choose, set up these three things first:

• A bank account that can receive e-Transfers. Every major Canadian bank and most credit unions support it.
• Autodeposit, turned on for the email customers send to. Without it, each customer has to make up a security question and send you the answer, and you accept every transfer by hand. With Autodeposit, the money simply arrives.
• An email used only for store payments. It keeps personal transfers out of your store’s records, and it’s easy to hand to someone else later.

Option 1: Rename WooCommerce’s bank transfer method

WooCommerce includes a “Direct bank transfer” payment method. In WooCommerce → Settings → Payments, change its title to “Interac e-Transfer” and put your payment email in the instructions.

Option 2: Use a free e‑Transfer plugin

A dedicated plugin adds Interac e-Transfer as its own payment method and gives each order its own instructions: the exact amount and a short code for the message, with Copy buttons. Orders wait “On hold” until you check your bank and mark them paid.

There are several on the WordPress.org plugin directory, including our free PingPaid plugin. Whichever you try, look for:

• Instructions on the thank-you page and in the order email
• A unique code per order, so payments are easy to match
• Support for the newer block checkout, if your store uses it
• No outside connections unless the plugin needs them for a feature you want

Option 3: Confirm payments automatically

Every time an e-Transfer is deposited, Interac emails you. Automatic tools read those emails and mark the matching order paid, usually within a minute. Before you choose one, ask:

How does it read your email?

Some tools sign in to your inbox with your email password or an app password. Others ask you to forward only Interac’s emails to them, so they never have access to the rest of your mail.

Does it check the email is really from Interac?

Interac signs its emails digitally (this is called DKIM). A tool that checks the signature can’t be fooled by a look-alike email someone sends to trick it.

What happens when something doesn’t match?

Customers send the wrong amount, forget the code, or two orders have the same total. The amount alone shouldn’t be enough to confirm an order. Unclear payments should wait for you to decide.

Automatic confirmation is what PingPaid Premium does, using Gmail forwarding and Interac’s signature check.

The three options side by side

Tips that help with any option

• Ask for the exact amount and the order code. Say clearly that the code goes in the message.
• Decide how long you’ll hold an unpaid order, say so in your instructions, and cancel orders that are never paid.
• Check the deposit in your bank before you ship, especially for larger orders.
• Know your bank’s fees. Receiving is free on many personal accounts, but some business accounts charge for each e-Transfer received.
• Large orders may need two transfers. Each customer’s bank sets how much they can send in a day.
• Refunds are sent back by e-Transfer. There’s no refund button, so send it from your bank and note it on the order.

Which should you choose?

If you get a few orders a week, a free plugin is usually enough: customers get clear instructions, and matching takes a minute. Once you’re checking your bank several times a day, or customers are waiting for confirmation before you ship, automatic confirmation starts to pay for itself.