# Payment Links: Getting started > Create your Shuttle account, connect your payment provider, create your first payment link and add your company details. You can take your first payment in four steps: create your account, connect your payment provider, create a payment link, and add your company details to the payment page. Already have an account? [Log in to the Merchant Portal](https://merchant.shuttleglobal.com/). ## 1. Create your account 1. Go to [merchant.shuttleglobal.com/signup/links](https://merchant.shuttleglobal.com/signup/links). 2. Enter your details: | Field | What to enter | | --- | --- | | Organisation Name | Your business name | | Website | Your business website | | Email | Your own email address | | Name | Your name | | Password | A password that's hard to guess. You don't need one if you sign up with Google. | ![The Create Account form, with fields for organisation name, website, email, name and password](/_astro/cdn/9812f0af0f/sign-up-form.png) 3. Tick **I agree to the Terms and Conditions**, then select **Create Account**. 4. If you're asked for a **Security Code**, enter the code we emailed you. :::note[Organisations and accounts] Your organisation is your business. It holds one or more accounts, and each account has its own payment provider, branding and payment activity. Most businesses need one organisation with one account. The Merchant Portal lists your accounts under **My Instances**. See [Organisations, accounts and users](/merchants/merchant-portal/intro/#organisations-accounts-and-users). ::: ### Sandbox and live accounts A sandbox account is for testing. It works exactly like a live account, but no money moves, and a banner on the payment page says it's in sandbox mode. If you see **I want a sandbox account for testing** when you sign up, tick it for a sandbox account, or leave it off for a live one. When you're ready to take real payments, add a live account next to your sandbox one: 1. Open the menu under your account name and select **My Instances**. 2. Select **New Instance**. 3. Leave **I want a sandbox account for testing** switched off, then select **Create Instance**. 4. Connect your live payment provider, as in step 2. ## 2. Connect your payment provider Once your account is created, the Merchant Portal opens **Payment Processing** and asks **Do you already have a payment processor?** To come back to this screen later, select **Configure** in the menu, then **Configure** under **Payment Processing**. ![The "Do you already have a payment processor?" screen, with No and Yes options](/_astro/cdn/36b9d26264/provider-choice.png) **If you already have one,** select **Next**, then choose your provider. The list depends on the country you choose. Each provider has its own setup guide under [Payment Providers](/payment-providers/). ![The provider list for the United Kingdom](/_astro/cdn/ef57752983/provider-list.png) **If you don't have one yet** and you process less than USD 50,000 (or the equivalent) a month, select **Connect Stripe** or **Connect PayPal** to open an account as part of the setup. If you process more than that, select the **broker service** link on the same screen, and we'll help you find a provider that suits your volumes, often for less than its list price. :::tip[Price isn't everything] A provider that gets more of your customers' payments approved is usually worth more than a cheaper one. A 1% better approval rate typically outweighs a 25% lower fee. ::: In a sandbox account, the question is **Do you want to test a specific payment processor?** Select **Connect Sandbox** to use Shuttle's sandbox gateway, which needs no provider account. ### Example: connecting Stripe 1. Select **Connect Stripe**. 2. Stripe's sign-up opens. Select **Continue** and follow Stripe's steps. 3. Back in Shuttle, the screen shows **Connected to Stripe**. Choose the payment options you want: | Option | What it does | | --- | --- | | Require address (AVS) | Asks for your customer's billing address, so Stripe can check it against the card issuer's records to help spot fraud | | Enable ACH | Payments from US bank accounts | | Enable BACS | Payments from UK bank accounts | | Enable Multibanco | Payments through Multibanco, a payment network in Portugal | | Enable Bank Transfer | Payments by transfer from your customer's bank account | | Enable SEPA | Euro bank payments across the Single Euro Payments Area | | Enable Apple Pay | Payments with Apple Pay on Apple devices | | Enable Google Pay | Payments with Google Pay | ![The Stripe screen showing Connected to Stripe and the payment options](/_astro/cdn/af3b91a787/stripe-connected-options.png) You can connect more than one payment provider, for example a card provider and PayPal, and set rules for when each payment method is offered. See [Payment processing](/merchants/merchant-portal/payment-configuration/). ## 3. Create a payment link Once you're connected, select **Configure Link** in the banner at the top of the page. It opens **Configure** > **Payment Links**, where you create a multi-use payment link: one link that any number of customers can pay through. See [Multi-use links](/merchants/payment-links/multi-use-links/). To create a separate link for each payment, automatically from your other systems, see [Personalised links](/merchants/payment-links/single-use-links/). ## 4. Add your company details Your payment pages and receipt emails end with a footer showing your company details, contact details, terms and conditions and privacy policy. Fill it in before you send your first link, so your customers know who they're paying. See [Page footer](/merchants/payment-links/branding/#page-footer). ## Next steps - [Share your payment link](/merchants/payment-links/multi-use-links/#share-your-link) by email, on your invoices or as a QR code. - [Take a payment for a customer](/merchants/payment-links/staff-payment/), for example while they're on the phone. - [See your payments](/merchants/merchant-portal/activity-view/) and [refund one](/merchants/merchant-portal/refunds/). - Choose who gets emailed about payments under **Configure** > **Account**.