Bill Pay is Relay's built-in accounts payable tool. Upload invoices, route them for approval, and pay vendors by ACH, check, or wire from one dashboard.
Who Bill Pay is for
Bill Pay is included on every Relay Subscription Plan and works for any business that pays vendors on a recurring or one-off basis. Common use cases:
Small business owners handling accounts payable in-house
Bookkeepers and accountants processing bills across multiple client accounts
Businesses using QuickBooks Online or Xero that want bills and payments to sync automatically
Teams that need review and approval steps before money leaves the account
How Bill Pay works
Bill Pay centralizes every step of the accounts payable process inside your Relay account, from bill intake through payment settlement.
A bill enters your account by manual upload or by forwarding an invoice to your dedicated Bill Pay inbox address.
Relay reads the invoice and drafts a bill record with the vendor, amount, due date, and invoice number filled in.
You review the draft, add any missing details, and (if approval rules apply) route it to an approver.
Once approved, you schedule payment by ACH, check, or domestic wire from any Relay checking account.
The bill's status updates automatically as it moves from scheduled to processing to paid, and the payment syncs back to your accounting software if you have QuickBooks Online or Xero connected.
What's included in each Relay Subscription Plan
Every Relay Subscription Plan comes with Bill Pay's core capabilities. The Grow Plan and Scale Plan add automation for higher-volume accounts payable workflows.
Included on the Starter Plan, Grow Plan, and Scale Plan:
Manual bill uploads and bill forwarding by email
Automatic extraction of invoice details (vendor, amount, due date, invoice number)
ACH, check, and domestic wire payment methods
Vendor records with full payment history and audit trails
Centralized status tracking (scheduled, processing, paid)
Payment approval rules
QuickBooks Online and Xero connections for two-way sync
Added on the Grow Plan and Scale Plan:
Batch payments (pay multiple vendors in one action)
Custom accounting rules that auto-categorize bills as they come in
For a full plan comparison, see Overview of Relay Subscription Plans.
How to turn on Bill Pay
Bill Pay is enabled by default on every Relay account. To start using it:
Sign in to your Relay account.
Open Payments in the left navigation, then select Bills.
Upload your first bill, or forward an invoice to the Bill Pay email address listed at the top of the Bills page.
Once your first bill is in the dashboard, you can schedule payment right away or set up approval rules first if more than one person needs to sign off.
Who can do what: roles and permissions
Bill Pay uses three permission levels so you can separate who submits bills from who approves and releases payment. Roles are assigned when you invite a team member or advisor to your Relay account.
Administrators have full control. They can upload, edit, approve, and pay bills, and they can also set up approval rules and manage other team members' roles.
Approvers can review and approve bills that are routed to them. They cannot upload, edit, or release payment on their own.
Contributors can upload and edit bills. They cannot approve or release payment.
For step-by-step setup, see Assigning Roles and Permissions in Bill Pay.
How to track the status of a bill
Every bill in your Bill Pay dashboard shows one of three statuses so you always know where the payment stands:
Scheduled: the bill has been approved (if approval rules apply) and is queued to pay on a specific date.
Processing: the payment is in flight. ACH transfers are clearing, checks are in the mail, or the wire is being sent.
Paid: the payment has settled from your Relay account and, if you have accounting software connected, the transaction is reconciled.
You can filter and sort by status from the Bills tab to see everything that still needs your attention.
Frequently asked questions
Which payment methods does Bill Pay support?
Bill Pay supports ACH, check, and domestic wire transfers from your Relay account. International wires are handled separately through Relay's international wire flow, not the Bill Pay dashboard.
Can I sync bills with my accounting software?
Yes. Bill Pay connects to QuickBooks Online and Xero. Once the connection is set up, bills and payments sync automatically so your books stay current without manual entry.
Do I need a paid plan to use Bill Pay?
No. Bill Pay is included on every Relay Subscription Plan, including the Starter Plan. The Grow Plan and Scale Plan add batch payments and custom categorization rules on top of the core Bill Pay features.
How does the bill forwarding email work?
Each Relay account gets a unique inbox address for Bill Pay. Forward an invoice from your regular email, and Relay extracts the vendor, amount, due date, and invoice number to create a draft bill record you can review before scheduling payment.
What happens if a bill needs approval before payment?
If your account has payment approval rules set up, a bill routes to the assigned approver before it can be scheduled for payment. Approvers see the bill in their queue and either sign off or send it back for edits. For setup, see Setting up Payment Approvals in Relay.
Related articles
Talk to our Customer Experience team
If this article did not fully answer your question, our Customer Experience team is here to help.