Choose Your Integration Path

There are two integration paths for Payflow Pro:

1. Payflow Software Development Kit (SDK). The Payflow SDK is available as a .NET or Java library. PayPal recommends using the SDKs to simplify your integration.
2. Build your own API to connect to PayPal directly. Customize your Payflow Pro instance by creating simple transactions that include connection parameters, user parameters, and transaction data parameters in name-value pair format. This page describes the required parameters.

Requirements for simple transactions

• Name-Value pairs
• Payflow connection parameters
• User parameter data
• Transaction data
• Format other Payflow Gateway transactions

Name-Value pairs

Name-value pair (NVP) is the format you use to specify the parameter information you send in a transaction request to the Payflow server. A name-value pair consists of the parameter name and its value. The equal sign (=) is a special character that associates the name and its value:

1PARAMNAME=value

Typically, you send several name-value pairs as a parameter string to the server. The ampersand (&) is a special character that separates each name-value pair in the parameter string:

1PARAM1NAME=value&PARAM2NAME=value&PARAM3NAME=value

Special characters and syntax guidelines

Because the ampersand and equal sign characters have special meanings, they are invalid in a name-value pair value.

To include special characters in the value portion of a name-value pair, use a length tag. The length tag specifies the exact number of characters and spaces that appear in the value.

Follow these special character and syntax guidelines when you create name-value pairs:

• Do not use spaces in values.
• Do not place quotation marks within the body of the NVP parameter string.
• Separate all NVPs with an ampersand.
• Set the VERBOSITY transaction parameter to HIGH to have the response return detailed information. Act upon the returned values that you need for the transaction.
• If you duplicate a parameter in your NVP string, the last item will always be the one used and the others will be discarded.
• Do not URL encode Name-Value parameter data because it can cause problems with authentication and reporting.

Incorrect:

1TRXTYPE%3DS%26TENDER%3DC%26USER%3DMerchantUserID%26PWD%3DPwd4Gateway%26PARTNER%3DPayPal%26ACCT%3D5105105105105100%26EXPDATE%3D1215%26AMT%3D23.45%26COMMENT1%3DAirport+Shuttle%26BILLTOFIRSTNAME%3DJamie%26BILLTOLASTNAME%3DMiller%26BILLTOSTREET%3D123+Main+St.%26BILLTOCITY%3DSan+Jose%26BILLTOSTATE%3DCA%26BILLTOZIP%3D951311234%26BILLTOCOUNTRY%3DUS
2%26CVV2%3D123%26CUSTIP%3D0.0.0.0

Correct:

1TRXTYPE=S&TENDER=C&USER=MerchantUserID&PWD=Pwd4Gateway&PARTNER=PayPal&ACCT=5105105105105100&EXPDATE=1215&AMT=23.45
2&COMMENT1=Airport Shuttle&BILLTOFIRSTNAME=Jamie&BILLTOLASTNAME=Miller&BILLTOSTREET=123 Main St.&BILLTOCITY=San Jose
3&BILLTOSTATE=CA&BILLTOZIP=951311234&BILLTOCOUNTRY=840&CVV2=123&CUSTIP=0.0.0.0

Payflow connection parameters

The Payflow SDK passes connection parameters to define the connection to the Payflow server.

Pass the connection parameters in the format and syntax required by the Payflow SDK and programming language that you are using. See your integration documentation for details.

In addition to the connection parameters, you must pass the NVP parameters that specify the payment information for the transaction.

User parameter data

All Gateway transactions require user parameters.

Transaction parameter data

In addition to the required connection and user parameters, each transaction type requires other parameters and can include a number of optional parameters.

For example, to perform a sale transaction involving a credit card, pass these parameters:

This example shows a typical name-value pair string for a sale transaction. Besides the required sale transaction parameters, the string includes other Payflow parameters typically included in a sale transaction.

1TRXTYPE=S&TENDER=C&USER=MerchantUserID&VENDOR=MerchantUserID&&PWD=Pwd4Gateway&PARTNER=PayPal&ACCT=5105105105105100&EXPDATE=1215&AMT=23.45&COMMENT1=AirportShuttle&BILLTOFIRSTNAME=Jamie&BILLTOLASTNAME=Miller&BILLTOSTREET=123 Main St.&BILLTOCITY=SanJose&BILLTOSTATE=CA&BILLTOZIP=951311234
2&BILLTOCOUNTRY=840&CVV2=123&CUSTIP=0.0.0.0&VERBOSITY=HIGH

Format other Payflow Gateway transactions

For details on how to format other Payflow transactions, see the examples in the next step or see Submitting Credit Card Transactions for more types.

For information on credit card parameters, see Core Credit Card Parameters.

Next

Choose the transaction type.

Additional information

• Advanced features:
  • Reporting
  • Recurring billing
  • Fraud protection