RESEARCH · CONSUMER BANKING

Stripe's Conversion Scorecard

Stripe scored a 70.8 / 100 for customer conversion on its business bank account application.

Why SOLO Scores

SOLO works with 100s of fintech programs to optimize the unit economics and customer conversion of their data collection processes on behalf of their sponsor banks. This research provides a baseline for the impacts of data reusability through the SOLO network.

Where Stripe Ranked

See where Stripe landed in the review and rankings of the Conversion Scorecard for Stripe Payments Accounts.

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What’s behind the score.

Stripe delivers a working account the moment the application ends, tracks progress in a persistent sidebar, and asks for nothing afterward. The path there is long: 44 fields across 20 screens, a five-screen bank-connection detour required before any decision, and data-use terms buried in links.

data fields across 20 screens, many repeated — both at the rubric floor
User Effort
start to finish — but zero follow-up tasks after submission
Application time
Instant
account ready and functional at the end of the application
Decision speed
on data-usage understanding and privacy controls — terms buried in links
Outcome transparency

Methodology

SOLO reviewed the application across four primary categories: User Effort, Application Time, Decision Speed, and Outcome Transparency. Each sub-metric is scored 1–5 against a fixed rubric.

Full Scorecard

17 SUB-METRICS

Sub-metric · What's measured

Total number of screens

How many times the user clicks to the next screen

Score

1 / 5

Why this score — And not more

20 total screens — four times the 5+ floor; the bank-connection detour alone spans five screens.

Sub-metric · What's measured

Total number of fields

Total fields / data points supplied

Score

1 / 5

Why this score — And not more

44 total fields, many repeated — well past the ≥25 floor. Best-in-class is ≤7.

Sub-metric · What's measured

Manual data entry

Information the user must type in manually, excluding uploads and account connections

Score

3 / 5

Why this score — And not more

Dropdowns and light prefill — like the business website — assist entry, but core details are still typed by hand. A 4 requires most data pulled automatically.

Sub-metric · What's measured

Document / file uploads

Level of document collection required

Score

3 / 5

Why this score — And not more

The requested document was reasonably available and the upload straightforward.

Sub-metric · What's measured

Account connections

Level of account connections required or optional, and how they improve the experience

Score

2 / 5

Why this score — And not more

The account connection was functional, but required before a decision — the user would have preferred an option to skip it until after.

Sub-metric · What's measured

Repeated actions

Number of times a user completes redundant work

Score

3 / 5

Why this score — And not more

Fields are shown redundantly across screens, but mostly arrive pre-filled for the user.

Sub-metric · What's measured

Sensitivity of information required

How much trust is required of the user, and whether it is merited

Score

3 / 5

Why this score — And not more

Basic explanations accompany sensitive asks. A 4 stages asks with clear rationale and reassurance.

Sub-metric · What's measured

User self-sufficiency

Can the user complete the application on their own

Score

5 / 5 · ceiling

Why this score — And not more

Fully self-sufficient end-to-end — no human review or hand-off.

Sub-metric · What's measured

Total number of follow-up actions required

All tasks completed within the same application flow — zero follow-ups.

Score

5 / 5 · ceiling

Why this score — And not more

No follow-up tasks required — submission is complete and decisionable.

Sub-metric · What's measured

Error recovery & resilience

The text with the application link made resuming very quick and easy.

Score

5 / 5 · ceiling

Why this score — And not more

Cross-device functionality for MFA; recovery is seamless.

User effort. Full Conversion Scorecard methodology by category and sub-metric.
Sub-metric · What's measured	Score	Why this score — And not more
Total number of screens How many times the user clicks to the next screen	1 / 5	20 total screens — four times the 5+ floor; the bank-connection detour alone spans five screens.
Total number of fields Total fields / data points supplied	1 / 5	44 total fields, many repeated — well past the ≥25 floor. Best-in-class is ≤7.
Manual data entry Information the user must type in manually, excluding uploads and account connections	3 / 5	Dropdowns and light prefill — like the business website — assist entry, but core details are still typed by hand. A 4 requires most data pulled automatically.
Document / file uploads Level of document collection required	3 / 5	The requested document was reasonably available and the upload straightforward.
Account connections Level of account connections required or optional, and how they improve the experience	2 / 5	The account connection was functional, but required before a decision — the user would have preferred an option to skip it until after.
Repeated actions Number of times a user completes redundant work	3 / 5	Fields are shown redundantly across screens, but mostly arrive pre-filled for the user.
Sensitivity of information required How much trust is required of the user, and whether it is merited	3 / 5	Basic explanations accompany sensitive asks. A 4 stages asks with clear rationale and reassurance.
User self-sufficiency Can the user complete the application on their own	5 / 5 · ceiling	Fully self-sufficient end-to-end — no human review or hand-off.
Total number of follow-up actions required All tasks completed within the same application flow — zero follow-ups.	5 / 5 · ceiling	No follow-up tasks required — submission is complete and decisionable.
Error recovery & resilience The text with the application link made resuming very quick and easy.	5 / 5 · ceiling	Cross-device functionality for MFA; recovery is seamless.

Sub-metric · What's measured

Time from first screen to completion screen

Stopwatch “start” → “complete”

Score

3 / 5

Why this score — And not more

Just over 10 minutes start to finish — at the bottom of the 10–20 minute band. A 4 requires 7–10 minutes.

Sub-metric · What's measured

Time to complete follow-up requests

Time it takes the user to complete assigned follow-up tasks

Score

5 / 5 · ceiling

Why this score — And not more

No follow-up tasks required.

Application time. Full Conversion Scorecard methodology by category and sub-metric.
Sub-metric · What's measured	Score	Why this score — And not more
Time from first screen to completion screen Stopwatch “start” → “complete”	3 / 5	Just over 10 minutes start to finish — at the bottom of the 10–20 minute band. A 4 requires 7–10 minutes.
Time to complete follow-up requests Time it takes the user to complete assigned follow-up tasks	5 / 5 · ceiling	No follow-up tasks required.

Sub-metric · What's measured

Time to final decision, from application start

Stopwatch “start” → account open / decision made

Score

5 / 5 · ceiling

Why this score — And not more

The account was ready and functional at the end of the application.

Sub-metric · What's measured

Time between communications

Responsiveness for additional tasks needed to move the application forward

Score

5 / 5 · ceiling

Why this score — And not more

No updates needed — progress is tracked clearly in a persistent left-hand panel throughout the application.

Decision speed. Full Conversion Scorecard methodology by category and sub-metric.
Sub-metric · What's measured	Score	Why this score — And not more
Time to final decision, from application start Stopwatch “start” → account open / decision made	5 / 5 · ceiling	The account was ready and functional at the end of the application.
Time between communications Responsiveness for additional tasks needed to move the application forward	5 / 5 · ceiling	No updates needed — progress is tracked clearly in a persistent left-hand panel throughout the application.

Sub-metric · What's measured

Clarity of approval

Is a “why” stated for the outcome

Score

3 / 5

Why this score — And not more

User is clear on the decision and the information used to make it. A 4 adds specific reason categories and what could change the outcome.

Sub-metric · What's measured

Ongoing data usage understanding

Do I know how my data is used on an ongoing basis

Score

1 / 5

Why this score — And not more

Terms and conditions buried in links — most data-use visibility came from the third-party bank integration, not the application itself.

Sub-metric · What's measured

Data privacy controls

Can I control permissions over who sees what

Score

1 / 5

Why this score — And not more

Terms and conditions buried in links — no meaningful controls over data sharing or permissions.

Outcome transparency. Full Conversion Scorecard methodology by category and sub-metric.
Sub-metric · What's measured	Score	Why this score — And not more
Clarity of approval Is a “why” stated for the outcome	3 / 5	User is clear on the decision and the information used to make it. A 4 adds specific reason categories and what could change the outcome.
Ongoing data usage understanding Do I know how my data is used on an ongoing basis	1 / 5	Terms and conditions buried in links — most data-use visibility came from the third-party bank integration, not the application itself.
Data privacy controls Can I control permissions over who sees what	1 / 5	Terms and conditions buried in links — no meaningful controls over data sharing or permissions.

Opportunity

Highlights

Wins, losses, and what the network would fix.

Category: User effort
Wins: Redundant fields arrive pre-filled, cross-device MFA recovery, full self-sufficiency, and zero follow-up tasks.
Losses: 44 fields across 20 screens — both volume sub-metrics at the floor — and a bank connection required before any decision.
Opportunities: A verified network profile would collapse the field count to confirm-and-submit and supply a verified funding account, removing the five-screen connection detour.

Category: Application time
Wins: No follow-up requests — the application is complete at submission.
Losses: 10+ minutes to complete, driven by field volume and the bank-connection flow.
Opportunities: Pre-filled data and a network-verified bank account would push completion under 7 minutes.

Category: Decision speed
Wins: Account ready and functional at submission, with clear persistent status tracking.
Losses: None — both sub-metrics at the ceiling.
Opportunities: Already best-in-class — the network preserves this while removing effort.

Category: Outcome transparency
Wins: Clear decision and clarity on the information used to make it.
Losses: Terms buried in links — most data-use visibility came from the third-party bank integration, not the application.
Opportunities: A persistent, plain-language data-use view with granular, revocable permissions would lift transparency to best-in-class.

Opportunity highlights by category: wins, losses, and what the network would fix.
Category	Wins	Losses	Opportunities
User effort	Redundant fields arrive pre-filled, cross-device MFA recovery, full self-sufficiency, and zero follow-up tasks.	44 fields across 20 screens — both volume sub-metrics at the floor — and a bank connection required before any decision.	A verified network profile would collapse the field count to confirm-and-submit and supply a verified funding account, removing the five-screen connection detour.
Application time	No follow-up requests — the application is complete at submission.	10+ minutes to complete, driven by field volume and the bank-connection flow.	Pre-filled data and a network-verified bank account would push completion under 7 minutes.
Decision speed	Account ready and functional at submission, with clear persistent status tracking.	None — both sub-metrics at the ceiling.	Already best-in-class — the network preserves this while removing effort.
Outcome transparency	Clear decision and clarity on the information used to make it.	Terms buried in links — most data-use visibility came from the third-party bank integration, not the application.	A persistent, plain-language data-use view with granular, revocable permissions would lift transparency to best-in-class.

Stripe's Conversion Scorecard

Why SOLO Scores

Where Stripe Ranked

What’s behind the score.

Methodology

Opportunity

Highlights

Replace repetitive workflows with reusable network memory.

Replace repetitive workflows with reusable network memory.