How payouts work on Distinction

How a sale becomes money you can withdraw

The path from sale to bank account is short and predictable. When a sale settles, Distinction takes the fee that matches the product and places the rest in your wallet. Once you have completed identity verification (KYC) and linked a bank account, you can withdraw that balance. Payouts are available worldwide; the exact processor varies by country, and Distinction only offers a gateway that is live in your market.

You can build a course or a file before you verify your identity — nothing stops you from creating. Verification simply needs to be in place before you withdraw, and the bank account should match the person or organisation you verified. This guide is about that withdrawal path; the fees themselves are covered in How Distinction pricing works and on Distinction pricing.

The fee on the sale still matters

Your wallet balance reflects the product you sold. A course sale uses course economics — you keep up to 97% of each course sale, with processing separate — while a file sale uses the store fee. Academy enrolments follow the course model; ebooks on Sell digital products and notes on the student store follow the store model. Lecturer plans are a separate product, so check lecturer pricing rather than assuming the same rate.

It helps to remember that "keep up to 97%" is the platform's share of a course sale, not the amount that reaches your bank — card networks still take their cut. If you are still choosing what to sell, Should you sell a course, a digital product, or lecture notes? will help.

Verifying your identity and linking a bank

Start verification when you publish, not when a buyer is already waiting on a date. Use the legal name and the account that match: a personal account attached to an organisation's verification, or the reverse, is the most common reason a payout stalls. Getting this right once keeps every later withdrawal smooth.

Price your product in the currency your buyer pays in. Settlement may convert into your payout currency, and catalog pages may show the product's currency, but the withdrawal itself always follows your verified identity and the usual review.

Reading your wallet

After your first sale, open the wallet and you will see the sale, the fee that was withheld, any card processing, and the amount available to withdraw. Those few lines are the source of truth — far more reliable than estimating from the list price. A course sale and a file sale in the same week will look different, and that is exactly as it should be: academy enrolments should resemble course sales, while notes and ebooks resemble store sales.

Available balance is the number you can withdraw. Pending amounts are not yet cash, because refunds and reviews can still adjust a line after it appears. A small minimum withdrawal exists so that tiny balances do not create unnecessary bank transfers; if you are under it, the next sale will carry you over.

Getting into the habit of reconciling against the wallet, rather than against a screenshot of the sale, keeps your own bookkeeping clean. The wallet already accounts for the fee model, any processing, and the timing of each release, so it is the single figure to quote yourself when you plan a withdrawal or report earnings. Buyers never need to see these internal lines; they simply need the course or file to unlock, which it does the moment their payment succeeds.

What to expect on timing

Withdrawals are reviewed, and banks work on their own schedules, so it is worth setting expectations honestly with buyers. A first payout after verification often takes a little longer than later ones on an established account. Until you have completed the cycle once, describe payouts as arriving "after verification and review" rather than promising same-day cash. Refunds, chargebacks, or a failed fraud check can reverse a line, so treat the available balance — not the list price — as what you can actually move.

Your first withdrawal, step by step

1. Publish on the right product: a course, a digital product, or student-store notes.
2. Complete KYC for the person or organisation that will receive the money.
3. Link the matching bank account and resolve any name mismatch early.
4. Make or receive a small test sale and confirm the lesson unlocked or the file downloaded.
5. Open the wallet and check that the withheld fee matches the product.
6. Wait until the balance is available, including any refund window.
7. Request a withdrawal at or above the minimum.
8. If compliance asks a question, answer it promptly, and reconcile the transfer against the wallet when it lands.

Follow that once and payouts become routine. A verified account, a matching bank, a wallet line that matches the product, and a withdrawal that lands — that is the whole of it.