Getting Started

Start processing payments in 4 Easy Steps

Your Merchant ApplicationImplementationTestingLaunch & Get Paid


Step 1. Your Merchant Application

The first step is to complete your merchant application so you can get your Merchant Account set up and get ready to receive payments. We need to get your business fully underwritten so that we can legally process payments for you. Click here to sign up.


Step 2. Implementation

After you have submitted your merchant application, you can really get started. You should determine if you prefer to use our Payment API or our Hosted Payment Page.

Payment API

We designed the BlueSnap Payment API for easy implementation and out-of-the-box global payment processing. It supports credit and debit card payments, ACH/ECP, SEPA Direct Debit, digital wallets, and Paypal. Design your own checkout form and use our Hosted Payment Fields to securely capture your shoppers data.

Hosted Payment Page

BlueSnap’s Hosted Payment Page is an out-of-the-box payment page supporting local languages and currencies around the globe. It lets you have simple SAQ-A PCI compliance because all payment data is captured directly in the BlueSnap environment. The Hosted Payment Page is designed for businesses that only need a checkout page where payments are processed by BlueSnap.

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Step 3. Testing

Using the Production and Sandbox Environments



At BlueSnap we have two environments. The production environment is where your account accepts live payments. The sandbox environment is a test environment that is almost identical to production. In the sandbox, you can make changes without any effect on the production environment. This makes it is a great place to explore all functionality available through BlueSnap and perform any necessary testing for your integration.



To begin testing in the sandbox, try out our Payment APIs or set up your account in the Merchant Portal.



Note: These two environments are not linked in any way. Sandbox users, products, and transactions do not get transferred to production.

With our API

If you’ve used our Payment API for implementation, we have included examples for each API request and response within its page. For example, refer to the examples in Auth Capture.
In general, we recommend you at least complete a test for each of the following:

  1. Authorization-only — (if your implementation supports this) This API call is generally used to perform card validation. It is also useful if you’re selling physical goods and need to account for the delay between your shopper's payment and your ability to ship the goods.
  2. Capture — If you have support for an auth only, this is how you then capture the transaction based on the authorization.
  3. Combined Auth/Capture — This is a single step to complete 1 and 2 above.
    Note: This is the standard behavior for the Hosted Payment Page.
  4. Refund

Additionally, if you’re using our Payment API, we also recommend:

  1. Create a vaulted shopper
  2. Retrieve a vaulted shopper
  3. Update a vaulted shopper

With our Hosted Payment Page

We recommend walking through your entire checkout flow to verify the customer experience is properly set up. In addition, test a sale and a refund for each payment type you plan to offer. We also provide test card numbers you can use with your testing.

Consider the following for your checkout flow:

  • Include zip code: We find that collecting your customer’s billing postal code significantly increases your payment success rate, especially when the credit card is from the United States. When integrating with a BlueSnap API, you should consider sending this information with every credit and debit card transaction.

  • Post-Purchase: When your shoppers have completed their purchase, what should they see next? Be sure to set the Callback URL setting in BlueSnap (the page where your customers are directed after their purchase). Merchants using BlueSnap Hosted Pages can enter a URL in the Page Design settings.

  • Configure your Payment Facilitator settings (required): If your business is located in the US, CA, UK, or EU, your checkout page must display the required disclosures and policies. Refer to Payment Facilitator Settings.


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Step 4. Launch and Get paid!

Finally, you are ready to launch your site and get paid. Everything you need to know is here.

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