Amanda Devos 
Cash flow is a constant worry at small businesses. Even if you’re maintaining a cash buffer and smartly using credit for purchases, there’s only so long that these strategies will work on their own. It’s common sense, but if you want your business to survive, you’ll need to collect payment from your customers. Of course, … Read more
If you’ve spent any amount of time curating the optimal finance stack for your business, you’ve probably come across both Melio and Relay. Relay is mostly known for its bank accounts and credit card, but it can also take care of a lot of the basics on the AP and AR sides. Melio isn’t a … Read more
In August 2024, Google Ads made a drastic policy change: certain high-growth accounts were suddenly no longer permitted to pay with a credit card. Unfortunately, this was the preferred payment method for many due to the ability to earn points and rewards. When you’re spending hundreds of thousands on ads each year, rewards add up … Read more
On April 1, 2026, Meta made a drastic change to its payments policy for select advertisers by no longer accepting credit cards. Those affected received very short notice (less than a month) and scrambled to reconfigure their AP processes. If your business was caught up in this change and you’re missing the rewards and flexibility … Read more
For the most part, only businesses with gross receipts beyond a certain threshold ($32 million for 2026) are required to use accrual accounting for tax purposes, so it’s not surprising that most SMBs maintain cash books instead. However, accrual accounting paints a more accurate picture of financial health compared to cash. It allows for detailed … Read more
The U.S. Bank—owned Elavon is one of the largest and most established payment processors out there. With over 30 years in the industry and more than 1.5 million merchant customers worldwide, it has a proven track record of reliability. Elavon supports a wide range of payment types, including credit, debit, mobile, and contactless, and its … Read more
Stax is a leading payment processor that’s unique from many others in that it uses subscription-based pricing. You pay a fixed monthly fee each month to keep transaction fees low, with the idea being that if your transaction volume is high enough, it will more than pay for the subscription fee and save you a … Read more
Braintree has earned its place as a strong payment processor that supports a wide range of payment methods, has a powerful and developer-friendly API, and comes with a global reach that makes it a natural fit for cross-border transactions. For businesses that fit squarely within its sweet spot, it’s a capable and well-documented platform. However, … Read more
Many small business owners are moving away from traditional bookkeeping solutions like QuickBooks and toward AI-native accounting software platforms, which have become particularly appealing to SMBs due to their ability to streamline manual work, save time, and improve accuracy. Several competitors have emerged to meet this demand, with a couple of the most prominent being … Read more
Recurring revenue is the backbone of any SaaS business, so having reliable MRR tracking is non-negotiable. Most analytics platforms simply won’t cut it in this area. They tend to be tailored toward your run-of-the-mill mom and pops that want to look more at gross margin and operating cash flow, not cutting-edge startups that need rich … Read more
On the surface, Nickel and Melio look pretty similar. Both payment platforms are geared toward SMBs, let you pay your vendors and collect payment from customers, and integrate with accounting and bookkeeping software. But while they have a lot of the same capabilities, there are also some notable distinctions between the two. Here’s a look … Read more
False declines (when legitimate customer transactions get blocked) can silently drain your revenue and hurt customer trust. You’re working hard to attract and retain customers, only for your payment processor or bank to flag a real purchase as suspicious. The most obvious impact is lost revenue, but the ripple effects go further. False declines can … Read more
If you need to track subscription analytics at your business, you should know that platforms offering this capability don’t all have the same feature set. Some of them are billing platforms, some are accounting platforms, and some of them are highly specialized, narrowing in on industries like mobile app subscriptions. Others yet are bare-bones free … Read more
It’s easy to think that it doesn’t really matter which payment processor you go with. But anyone who’s had to live with their bad choice knows otherwise. The truth is, payment processors vary drastically on multiple fronts, including fees, payment methods, integrations, customer support, and the ability to grow and scale along with your business. … Read more
These days, it’s nearly impossible to run a business without accepting credit card payments — even in person. Credit card payments are often the preferred method for both consumers and businesses. Credit cards help fill short-term gaps in cash flow, and you can take advantage of credit card points and rewards to help offset expenses. … Read more
One of the most prominent names in the world of AP automation software is Tipalti. Tipalti can be a great choice for AI-driven vendor payments, but it’s often too much for small businesses. Many of its features are overkill for SMBs and could end up overcomplicating, rather than simplifying, the payables workflow. There are several … Read more