Destination tags and memos: how crypto payments match your invoices

If you've ever sent or received XRP or XLM, you've probably run into a field called a destination tag (on the XRP Ledger) or a memo (on Stellar). Small fields, big job: they're how a payment finds its way to the right invoice.

Why they exist

On these networks, a business usually takes every payment at one single address. So when two customers both pay that same address, how do you tell the two apart? That's the destination tag / memo's whole reason for being: a short number the payer tucks into the transfer that says, in effect, "this one belongs to invoice X."

Destination tag (XRP & RLUSD)

On the XRP Ledger, the identifier is a 32-bit number called a destination tag. XRP and RLUSD both use it. Send to an exchange or a business and the tag tells them whose account, or which invoice, the funds belong to.

Memo (XLM & USDC)

On Stellar, the counterpart is a numeric memo (MEMO_ID). XLM and USDC payments lean on it the same way the destination tag works over on the XRP Ledger.

Do I have to manage these by hand?

No. Every invoice gets its own tag or memo, and it's pre-filled on the hosted pay page and QR code. Your customer scans and pays, the tag rides along with the payment, and a background watcher matches it to the invoice, marks it paid, and sends a receipt.

The one thing customers must do

If someone pays manually, typing your address in themselves instead of scanning, they have to include the tag or memo, or the payment can't be auto-matched. That's why the scan-to-pay QR matters: it carries the tag for them.

Want to watch it happen? Create an account and send yourself a test invoice, the tag and amount are filled in for you.