Xola’s Split Payment feature makes group reservations more convenient than ever by allowing multiple participants to pay for their share of a reservation individually. Whether it’s a single experience, multiple activities bundled together, or a package purchase, Split Payment removes the burden of one person fronting the full cost and simplifies the financial coordination for group organizers.
This feature can be enabled both on your customer-facing checkout and within the Xola back office, ensuring it supports a wide range of reservation workflows—whether the reservation is made in person, over the phone, or online. The group’s organizer initiates the reservation and invites others to pay their portion. Each participant can then complete their payment independently using any accepted payment method—such as credit card, cash, check, or invoice—based on your business policies.
Split Payment also supports flexible payment timing, allowing group members to complete their transactions gradually up to your chosen cutoff window. And if any balances remain unpaid, you have the option to automatically charge the organizer.
With full visibility into who has paid and what amounts are still outstanding, you can manage group reservations more efficiently while providing a seamless, guest-friendly experience. Split Payment enhances customer satisfaction, reduces manual reconciliation, and helps ensure no reservation is left incomplete.
User Access: Administrator or Curator roles have access to set up Split Payment in Xola.
Administrator, Reservationist Lite or Reservationist roles can make and manage Split Payment reservations in Xola.
To grant access to users, click here.
What's covered in this article:
- How to enable
- How to set up
- Split Pay in check-out
- Split Pay for back office
- Split Pay functions after the purchase is made
How to enable
- Navigate to the Xola App Store by clicking the App Store tab on the left.
- Search Split Payment and select the App Store tile.
- Click the green Install button.
If you need help getting access to this feature, you can reach out to support@xola.com.
How to set up
- Navigate to Products > Global Settings > Checkout Preferences. Here, you can toggle on Split Payment.
- Set up payment terms:
- You can allow groups to split payments and add to their purchases until your desired cutoff time. If you’d like to allow split payments until your event’s start time, put “0” in as your value.
- You can also automatically charge the organizer’s credit card for any outstanding balance at the cutoff time.
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If you choose not to enable automatically charge the organizer’s credit card feature, the purchase will have a balance due for any amount that has not been paid. If there is a balance on the purchase, an email will be sent to the organizer 24 hours before the event, letting them know the remaining amount is due.
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Xola will only automatically charge purchases made through Checkout, not purchases made in the Back Office.
When you choose to have a payment deadline and charge the credit card on file, the customer gets the following reminder email:
Note: If your customer's card fails to charge for the final amount, you and your customer will be sent an email to notify you of this.
Split Pay in Checkout
Once enabled, an option will appear on the Payment Details screen of checkout that allows your customers to Split Payment.
Customers must enter their credit card details to proceed with a Split Payment. This information is saved to the purchase in Xola, just as if they had paid normally.
After confirming their card details, they will be given the option to choose how much of the purchase they are paying for. Customers can either enter an arbitrary amount or use the help calculate link.
Using the help calculate workflow, customers can calculate a suggested payment amount by quantity or even split. This window will save an amount for the customer to pay, but will not charge them yet.
By Quantity
Even Split
When using Split Pay, the organizer's card will show a pending charge for the full amount, and it will be removed as soon as another guest has made a payment of any amount.
Upon Checkout, they will see a warning that states:
"Your credit card statement may show a pending charge for the full purchase value of $xx.xx. This pending charge will be removed once the customer or one of the guests has made any payment. The time taken to remove this charge will vary by bank.”
Split Payment in Back Office
You can also create Split Payment purchases for in-person or over-the-phone customers through the Back Office.
- Follow the standard Make a Purchase workflow.
- On the Payment page, select Split Pay as the Payment Workflow.
- Select Proceed to Payment to create the purchase and enter payment terms.
- In the Split Payment modal, verify the customer information and choose the Split Payment Option:
- Pay for specific guests and add-ons: This will allow you to choose specific demographics and add-ons to pay for.
- Divide the total evenly by specific parts: This will allow you to specify how many parts the purchase would be divided equally into, and how many of those parts to pay for.
- Pay Remaining Balance.
- Custom Amount: This allows you to specify an arbitrary amount to pay for.
- Enter the Payment Method. You can choose from the following:
- Credit Card: If you select this option, a field will appear which allows you to enter the credit card details. You can also opt not to charge the card at that time.
- Cash
- Check
- Invoice
- Other
- After selecting the Payment Method, choose from the following next steps:
- Pay and Finish: This will complete the Split Payment setup, process any payments as specified and allow you to view the purchase within the Purchases tab.
- Pay and Add Another Guest: This will complete the first payment on the purchase and allow you to process payment for another guest.
- Skip: This will exit the Split Payment setup module and allow you to view the purchase within the Purchases tab.
Split pay functions after the purchase is made
In addition to a Confirmation email, the customer will receive a Purchase Invitation email. The Purchase Invitation Email contains a button that allows anyone to Split Payment and join the purchase. Customers are instructed to forward this email to anyone they would like to make a payment toward their purchase. This functions the same way with both per-person and per-event pricing.
When another customer joins the purchase, they will be prompted to complete questionnaires and sign waivers (if enabled). They will also receive confirmation, reminders, and review emails.
Split Payment will also create a new customer record for each customer that pays (you can find these in the Customers > Contacts tab). They will appear on the purchase within the Purchases tab, underneath the Payers section.
You can add guests to the group by going to the Purchases tab and selecting the Split Pay button. You can choose whether you'd like to take payment in person or by invoice. This allows you to take customer information and credit card details and help them pay for their part of the purchase.
In addition, by clicking on the three dots next to the guest's name, you can message the individual guest, rebook the particular guest, send that guest's invitation email, resend the confirmation email, and remove a guest from the purchase (you cannot remove the Organizer from a purchase, only the guests)
Removing a guest
If a guest calls you and needs to be removed from a split-pay purchase, you can remove them from the purchase and return the payment by clicking on the three dots next to the guest's name and clicking Remove from Purchase.
This will ask you to return the payment:
Once you click Remove, this person will still appear on the purchase details page.
After removing from a purchase, by clicking the three dots next to the guest's name, you can message the guest, rebook the guest, and send the confirmation or split pay emails.
