ChatRate connects your expertise to paying clients through video calls. You bring the knowledge — we handle booking, payments, and calls. Here's everything you need to set up.
A Stripe account
Free — processes your call payments directly
Your email address
For your ChatRate login and client notifications
A short bio
What you do + why clients should book you
Your rate
Flat fee or per-minute pricing
$4.99 one-time fee
Unlocks your public booking page
Stripe processes all call payments directly into your account. ChatRate never touches your money — every charge goes straight to you.
Your Stripe keys are encrypted at rest in our database and never exposed in API responses. Only your server-side requests to Stripe use them.
If you don't have a Stripe account, create one for free. No monthly fees — Stripe only charges when you get paid.
Before you can accept live payments, Stripe requires identity and business verification. This takes about 5 minutes.
You can use test keys (pk_test_ / sk_test_) to try ChatRate first — no real money moves. Switch to live keys when ready to charge clients.
This is where you'll find both keys needed for ChatRate onboarding.
This is safe to share — it's used on the client side to tokenize cards. It starts with pk_live_ or pk_test_.
This is used server-side to charge cards after calls. Never share this publicly. It starts with sk_live_ or sk_test_.
Click Reveal live key in the Stripe dashboard to see the full key, then copy it.
Never paste your secret key anywhere public — not in chat, not in emails, not in GitHub. Only enter it into the ChatRate onboarding form.
ChatRate supports two pricing models. You can change your rates any time from your dashboard.
Client is charged based on actual call duration. The meter starts when both parties join and stops when the call ends.
Best for open-ended advice, coaching, and support calls where duration varies.
Client pays a fixed price for the call regardless of how long it runs. Charge happens at the end of the call.
Best for structured sessions like strategy calls, reviews, or fixed-scope consultations.
You can offer clients a written transcript of the call for an additional fee. They opt in during booking. Set it to $0 to disable entirely.
ChatRate uses Daily.co for high-quality video and audio. No setup required on your end — rooms are created automatically when a booking is confirmed.
When a client confirms a booking, ChatRate automatically creates a private Daily.co room and emails both of you the join link.
Go to your dashboard, find the upcoming booking, and click Join Call. Your client gets the same link by email.
For per-minute pricing, you'll see a live timer and running dollar total on screen. Stripe charges the client the moment you end the call.
If the client opted in at booking, Daily.co captures a transcript automatically. It's emailed to them after the call and stored in your dashboard.
Once onboarding is complete, your public booking page is live at chatrate-app.com/book/your-username.
Choose your username → fill in your profile → set your rates → add Stripe keys → pay $4.99 activation.
From your dashboard, flip the availability toggle to Open. While toggled off, your booking page shows a “not accepting bookings” message.
Copy your link and add it to your social bio, email signature, website, or anywhere you promote your services.
When a client books, you get an email immediately with their details, the scheduled time, and the call room link.
Setting the right rate is one of the most important decisions you'll make. Too low and clients undervalue your time. Too high and they bounce before booking. Here's how to find your number.
Start with what you charge for a full hour of work. Set your per-minute rate as hourly ÷ 60. If you bill $120/hr, that's $2/min — a rate clients understand because short calls stay affordable and long calls feel fair.
Choose flat rate if:
Choose per-minute if:
If 80%+ of people who view your page are booking, you're priced too low. The right rate has some drop-off — it filters for clients who take your time seriously. If you haven't raised your rate in 6 months and you're fully booked, raise it by 25%.
Once you're live, your dashboard is your command center. Here's how to run a smooth client operation without juggling multiple tools.
Toggle availability to Open only when you're ready to accept new bookings. Toggle off when you're traveling or fully booked. Clients see a “not accepting bookings” message — no awkward emails needed.
Every new booking triggers an email with the client's name, scheduled time, and call room link. Add the time to your calendar immediately.
Go to your ChatRate dashboard and click Join Call from the upcoming booking card. The room is already created — no setup required on the day.
Use the reschedule button on any upcoming booking card to set a new time. The booking updates in place — no need to cancel and re-book.
If you don't want surprise bookings during a project sprint, toggle off at the start of the week and back on when your calendar has room.
Put your booking link in your email signature. Every outbound email becomes a soft offer to book time with you.
Mention your rate in your bio. Transparent pricing filters out tire-kickers. Clients who book are pre-qualified.
Use flat-rate for first calls. New clients hesitate at open-ended billing. A fixed intro call removes friction. Switch to per-minute for returning clients who know your value.
Enable transcripts. Clients who pay for a transcript are more engaged — they're investing in the outcome. It also cuts follow-up emails asking you to repeat advice.
Your booking page can be live in under 10 minutes.
One-time payment · No monthly fees · Cancel availability any time