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How to Start Paying Your Vendors with ACH Instead of Checks

  • Ian Berryman
  • 23 hours ago
  • 3 min read
Convert checks to ACH

Still paying vendors with paper checks? You're not alone — but there's a faster, cheaper, and more secure way to pay: ACH (Automated Clearing House) transfers.


In this post, we’ll walk you through how to transition from checks to ACH, explain what you need to get started, and help you avoid common pitfalls — even if your current process is entirely paper-based.


Why Switch to ACH?

Paying vendors via ACH has major benefits:

  • Save money: ACH costs a fraction of printing and mailing checks

  • Save time: No envelopes, stamps, or waiting on the mail

  • Fewer errors: No lost, delayed, or duplicate checks

  • Reduced fraud: Your account information is no longer printed on pieces of paper and distributed abroad

  • Better relationships: Vendors get paid faster and more reliably and you can include remittance information to help with cash application

  • Quicker posting: Payments leave your account when you expect. No more waiting for check to post days or weeks later.


If your business writes dozens of checks a month, you’re likely wasting hundreds of dollars in overhead that switching to ACH could eliminate.


What You Need to Start

Getting started with ACH payments is easier than you think. Here's what you’ll need:


  1. Vendor banking info

    • Routing number

    • Account number

    • Account type (checking or savings)

  2. Authorization from the vendor

    • If you're paying businesses, authorization will typically be included in your trade agreements or on the invoices they provide to you. If you're paying individuals, you will need at least a verbal authorization to send funds to their accounts, written authorizations are a good idea though.

  3. An ACH-capable software tool

    • ACH Pro helps you create NACHA files for upload to your bank

    • It allows you to securely store and manage your recipients

    • And can help you create and share authorizations with your recipients

  4. Access to your bank’s ACH upload portal

    • Most banks support this, but it’s not always enabled by default

    • Contact your bank to request NACHA upload access


Step-by-Step: Switching from Checks to ACH


Step 1: Contact Your Bank

Reach out to your bank and ask them to enable NACHA file upload access on your business account. Some banks require an application or approval process, so it’s good to handle this step early.


Step 2: Ask Your Vendors for Bank Info and Authorization

Start by reaching out to your most frequent vendors and asking if they’ll accept ACH payments instead of checks.


You should request:

  • Account number

  • Routing number

  • Account type (checking or savings)

  • Nice to have: If using ACH Pro, one or more notification email addresses that will receive remittance info for each payment


Before sending payments, make sure you have authorization to credit the vendor’s account via ACH.


Pro tip: If you use ACH Pro, you can collect their account information and authorization in one step.


Step 3: Submit the File to Your Bank

Once your file is created, upload it to your bank’s online ACH portal. Most banks provide next-day availability for ACH payments, so if you upload your file today, it would post tomorrow to both your account and your vendors' accounts. Some banks also provide same-day ACH if you need to send funds even faster.


Step 4: Notify Your Vendor

Send an email letting them know the payment is on the way — or let ACH Pro do it automatically.


Tips for a Smooth Transition

  • Start with a small group of vendors to develop and test the process

  • Use prenotes (zero-dollar test entries) if you want to verify bank info first

  • Keep vendor account info secure and encrypted

  • Maintain a record of authorizations


Once You Switch, You Won’t Go Back

After your first few ACH payments, you’ll realize how much easier and more professional the process is. No lost checks. No delays. No wondering if the envelope got delivered.

Even better — vendors prefer ACH because they don’t have to visit a bank, wait for mail, or worry about fraud.


Make the Transition Easy with ACH Pro

ACH Pro is designed to help businesses transition from checks to ACH without technical complexity or costly onboarding.

  • No per-transaction fees

  • Generate NACHA files from QuickBooks or spreadsheets

  • Works with any U.S. bank that accepts NACHA files


Try ACH Pro for free and start paying your vendors the modern way.



 
 
 
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