Tip Jar setup guide for Hong Kong & Taiwan creators (Stripe Connect)

A Tip Jar turns your bio page into a direct-support channel. Fans who love your work drop $5, $30, or whatever they feel like, and the money lands in your bank account. This guide walks HK and TW creators through the full setup — from connecting Stripe to placing the block on your page and collecting your first tip.

Total time: about 15 minutes. You'll need a Creator plan (or Business), a bank account in your region, and a photo ID for Stripe verification.

Why Tip Jar?

Creators in Asia have fewer monetization tools than their Western counterparts. Most paid newsletter platforms don't support TWD or HKD payouts. Most patreon-style products charge high fees or aren't localized. Tip Jar fills that gap:

• Direct payouts. Stripe Connect sends money to your Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, or Malaysia bank in the creator's local currency. No middlemen.
• No subscription commitment. Unlike Patreon, fans can tip once without committing to monthly recurring payments.
• Built-in thank-you flow. After a tip, fans see a custom thank-you message. You can include a bonus link or a shout-out prompt.
• Low fees. 5% platform fee on Creator tier, 1% on Business — plus Stripe's standard processing fees. That's meaningfully lower than Patreon (12%) or Ko-fi Gold ($6/mo fixed).

Step 1: Upgrade to Creator plan

Tip Jar requires a paid plan. The Creator plan is $7.90/month (about NT$240 / HK$60 / MYR 36) and unlocks unlimited links, tip acceptance, and removes LinkAsia branding.

From your dashboard, go to Settings → Subscription and pick Creator. Annual billing saves 17%.

Step 2: Connect your Stripe Express account

LinkAsia uses Stripe Connect Express to route tips directly to your bank account. Unlike Stripe Standard, Express accounts take about 5 minutes to set up and handle all the KYC on Stripe's side.

1. From dashboard, go to Settings → Tips & Payments.
2. Click Connect Stripe Express. You'll be redirected to Stripe's onboarding flow.
3. Pick your country: Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, or Malaysia. Stripe enforces country-level KYC so you can only pick one.
4. Provide the required info: legal name, date of birth, local address, national ID (required in TW), and a bank account in the chosen country.
5. Upload a government-issued photo ID. Stripe verifies it within 1–2 business days.
6. Once verified, you'll be redirected back to LinkAsia with Tips enabled on your dashboard.

Step 3: Add a Tip Jar block to your page

Open your page in the builder. In the blocks sidebar, drag Tip Jar into your page. It lands on the phone preview immediately.

In the properties panel, configure:

• Description. The text above the buttons. E.g. "Buy me a coffee" or "Support my work" or "投下每月第一杯咖啡".
• Preset amounts. Three common amounts. For HK creators: HK$30, HK$80, HK$200. For TW: NT$100, NT$300, NT$600. Fans can still enter a custom amount if "Allow custom" is on.
• Currency. Pick the currency your audience actually uses. TWD for Taiwan, HKD for Hong Kong, SGD for Singapore, MYR for Malaysia, or USD for international audience.
• Button label. "Send a Tip" or "打賞" or whatever feels right.
• Thank-you message. Custom text shown after a successful tip. Use this to reward tippers — link to exclusive content, a Discord invite, or a simple heartfelt thanks.

Step 4: Test the tip flow

Before sharing your page, test the flow end-to-end. Open your published page in an incognito window, click Send a Tip, pick an amount, and pay with a real card (you can tip yourself — Stripe takes its fee and returns the net to your bank).

You should see your custom thank-you message. Check your LinkAsia dashboard — the tip shows up immediately. Check your Stripe dashboard — the payout is queued (usually 2 business days in TW/HK).

Step 5: Share your bio link

Update the link in your Instagram, TikTok, and Threads bios to linkasia.me/yourname. Add a soft call-to-action in your captions: "Link in bio to support" works well in HK/TW creator voice.

How much can you realistically earn?

It depends on your audience size and how directly you ask. Some rough benchmarks from similar creator-economy research:

• 10k engaged followers: ~5–20 tips per month at NT$200 average → NT$1,000–4,000/month
• 50k engaged followers: ~20–80 tips per month at NT$250 average → NT$5,000–20,000/month
• 100k+ engaged followers: varies wildly — depends on how directly you promote tips, whether you offer rewards, and audience paying willingness

Hong Kong amounts tend to run higher per-tip (HK$50–200 range); Taiwan tips skew more frequent but smaller (NT$100–500 range). Singapore creators see tips in a mix of SGD and USD.

Common questions

What fees does LinkAsia take?

On Creator tier: 5% of the tip amount. On Business tier: 1%. Plus Stripe's standard card processing fee (roughly 2.9% + NT$10 / HK$2 / SGD $0.50 depending on country). So a NT$300 tip on Creator tier nets you around NT$275 after all fees.

How fast does the money reach my bank?

Standard Stripe Connect payout schedule is 2 business days for TW/HK accounts. First payout may take 7 days while Stripe verifies your initial setup.

Can I accept tips in multiple currencies?

You can configure one primary currency per Tip Jar block. For a multi-currency flow, add separate Tip Jar blocks — one configured in TWD, another in HKD — and label them accordingly. Fans paying in a currency different from your Stripe account's will incur a small Stripe FX fee.

What if a tipper wants a refund?

Refunds go through Stripe. From your Stripe dashboard, find the payment and click Refund. Full or partial refunds supported. LinkAsia's platform fee is refunded automatically when you refund the tip.

Can I show the tip count publicly?

Yes — in the Tip Jar block settings, toggle Show supporter count. This shows "142 people supported" above the tip buttons. It's a mild social-proof nudge that noticeably lifts conversion.

Does this work for creators outside HK/TW/SG/MY?

Stripe Connect Express is currently limited to those four APAC countries plus the US. If you're in Japan, Korea, Vietnam, or elsewhere, you can still use LinkAsia's free plan for your page — Tip Jar will unlock once Stripe extends Express support to your country, or when LinkAsia ships a fallback via a local payment provider.

Ready to set up?

Start at linkasia.me/settings if you already have an account, or linkasia.me/signup if not. The whole setup — plan upgrade, Stripe connect, first block — takes about 15 minutes. First tip usually arrives within a few days of sharing the page.