Turn your phone into a card reader!
Tap-to-Pay allows buyers to pay by tapping their credit card on your phone. This tool is best for custom sales, like bundling multiple works into one checkout or negotiated pricing.
This is the easiest and most flexible way to sell at in-person events, especially if your inventory isn’t uploaded yet.
Tap-to-Pay is available through the Cohart Business App, allowing you to process in-person sales anywhere you're selling, including fairs, galleries, studios, and pop-up events.
💡 Don't have your inventory uploaded yet? No problem. You can always create a Custom Item during checkout by entering the artwork title and price on the spot.
Before You Start
Before processing your first sale, make sure you've completed:
- ✅ Cohart Connect (required for payouts)
- ✅ Download the Cohart Business App - iPhone | Android
Starting a Sale
🎥 Video walkthrough: Cohart Tap-to-Pay on Your Phone
- Open the Cohart Business App
- Log in using your Cohart account
- Select Tap to Pay to start the checkout flow
Choose one of two options:
Add from Inventory
Select an existing artwork from your inventory. You can adjust pricing or apply discounts now if needed.
Because the sale is connected to your artwork listing, your buyer will automatically receive a digital Certificate of Authenticity after purchase.
Add Custom Item
If your artwork hasn't been uploaded yet, simply enter:
- artwork title
- price
This lets you start selling immediately without preparing inventory beforehand.
Buyer Information
Add the buyer's name and email: This ensures they receive a receipt and saves their details to your own dashboard for future outreach.
When email is provided, Cohart will automatically:
- email the receipt to your buyer
- save the collector to Contact Management
- record the sale in your Sales Record
Ship/Pickup Options
For in-person events, select Pick up / Ship by Seller, since typically your buyer will take the artwork with them.
If you choose to select shipping, you can read more about Cohart options in How Shipping Works on Cohart.
Sales Tax (U.S. Only)
Sales tax is required for U.S. sales. In-person sales tax is based on the location where the sale takes place. For U.S. sales, Cohart can calculate, collect, and remit sales tax on your behalf.
Make sure the local zip code aligns to the location where the sale is taking place (ex. the fair or event venue). You can pre-save this information before your event so that the sales tax appears automatically during checkouts.
Simply:
- Save the event ZIP code in the Business App
- Business app: Homepage -> 3-lines icon in top right -> save sales tax
- Desktop: Your profile -> Edit Profile button → Sales Tax
- The correct local tax will automatically apply during checkout
- Or enter it manually each time during checkout
Prefer to handle your own sales tax? Tick the box stating "I don't want Cohart to manage my sales tax."
Non-U.S. sales: For sales taking place outside of the U.S., you can tick the box to toggle off sales tax or enter 00000 as the ZIP code.
📖 Learn more: U.S. Sales Tax on Cohart
Accept Payment
When everything looks correct: Tap Tap-to-Pay and your phone becomes the payment terminal. Your buyer simply has to hold their credit card over the scan icon on your phone to purchase.
The "Tap" feature is only available with certain currencies and Cohart membership plans. If Tap-to-Pay isn't available on your device or in your country, you can still manually enter the buyer's card details within the Business App by selecting the Payment button.
Multi-Currency Support
If you are planning to use Tap-to-Pay in a non-U.S. currency, please review the app's support currency list.
Supported currencies:
- (Android): Australia, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Malaysia, Netherlands, New Zealand, Poland, Singapore, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom, United States
- (iPhone): Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, New Zealand, Poland, Singapore, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom, United States
If you are not on the list of supported currencies, you can still use the app, but you need to input card details manually during checkout instead (Tap feature is not available).
Your payout currency is determined by your connected bank account(s).
For example: If your gallery has a EUR bank account connected, you'll receive EUR—even if your buyer pays in AUD or USD.
Stripe automatically handles the currency conversion before sending your payout.
Learn more at Multi-Currency Payouts and Tools.
Additional Payment Verification
For higher-value purchases, a buyer's bank may request additional verification before approving the transaction.
This temporary bank hold is designed to protect the cardholder based on their own fraud protection settings, where banks may temporarily flag the pending purchase for additional security confirmation before approving the charge.
The buyer may be asked to:
- enter a PIN
- approve the purchase via a text or email verification code
- call their bank for verbal approval
Once verified, simply retry the payment.
Troubleshooting
If Tap-to-Pay isn't working:
Check your device settings
Make sure:
- You have the latest version of the Cohart Business app
- Bluetooth is enabled
- Location Services are enabled
- the Cohart Business App has permission to access your location
- NFC is enabled (on Android). On iPhone, NFC is enabled automatically,
-
Check Screen Time restrictions (rare): Make sure Wallet/NFC-related permissions are not restricted. Go to: Settings → Screen Time → Content & Privacy Restrictions
Restart the app
Many temporary issues can be resolved by:
- closing the Business App completely
- reopening it
- starting the checkout again
Still having trouble?
You can always:
- manually enter the buyer's card details
- Send a payment link or custom invoice
- Email hello@cohart.com with:
- Your phone type (iPhone or Android)
- A screenshot or video
- A brief description of the issue
- Please note our team can take 1-3 business days to reply
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a card reader?
No. Your phone becomes the card reader.
Can I sell without uploading inventory?
Yes. Simply create a Custom Item during checkout and enter the artwork title and price.
Does Tap-to-Pay work on tablets or laptops?
Tap-to-Pay does not work on laptops or tablets, as the tap feature is compatible with phone hardware only. For your non-phone devices, you can simply type in the buyer's card details when checking out using our invoice tool.
Is Tap-to-Pay secure?
Yes. Payments are processed through Stripe using industry-standard encryption and security protocols.
Why did my buyer's payment decline even though their card is valid?
For higher-value purchases, it's common for a buyer's bank to temporarily pause a transaction while it verifies that the purchase is legitimate. This is a security measure by the buyer's bank—not an issue with Cohart.
In most cases, the buyer will simply need to complete an additional verification step, such as:
- Entering a PIN
- Approving the purchase via a one-time code sent by text or email
- Confirming the purchase with their bank over the phone
In most cases:
- The payment declines after using Tap-to-Pay or manually entering the card details
- A verification pop-up appears requesting additional confirmation or an extra PIN step
- After entering the PIN, the buyer receives a one-time 6-digit verification code via text and/or email on their own phone
- The buyer shares the code with you and you enter it into the verification screen
- The verification confirms successfully (close the screen when prompted)
After the verification is complete, simply retry the payment. Most transactions are approved successfully on the second attempt.
Tip: Stay with your buyer during the process—it usually only takes a minute or two, and this type of verification is fairly common for higher-value art purchases.
Can I use Tap-to-Pay internationally?
Yes, where supported. Tap-to-Pay availability depends on your device and country. If Tap isn't supported, you can still complete sales by manually entering the buyer's card details.
Where do I see completed sales?
After every sale you can view:
- Sales Record — completed sales
- Transactions — payment activity
- Invoices — sent and paid invoices
Is a bank hold or additional payment verification normal for high-value art sales?
Yes, this is relatively common for purchases over several thousand dollars. Banks often flag transactions that are:
- Larger than the buyer’s normal spending behavior
- Above a certain price threshold
- With a new merchant
- Taking place at an event or location outside of usual spending patterns
Does Tap to Pay require an internet connection?
Yes - Tap to Pay does need an internet connection for processing payments. The transaction will proceed once the connection is established.
Can I use Tap to Pay with both Android and iPhone devices?
Yes, Tap to Pay works with both Android and iPhone devices, so you can accept payments from customers using either platform.
Does Tap to Pay work on the Free (Basic) Plan?
No - you need to be on a paid Cohart membership plan to access this feature. If you remain on the free plan, you can still complete checkout by selecting the Payment button and manually typing in the cardholder's details instead.
Are there other payment processing tools I can use instead?
Yes, we offer QR code artwork scans (self-pay), custom invoicing, and "Buy Now" online marketplace sales options. To learn more, visit Cohart Sales Processing Tools.