Sandbox accounts

Use sandbox accounts to test PayPal transactions without moving real money. A typical test transaction uses 2 sandbox accounts: a personal account that acts as the buyer and a business account that acts as the seller.

When you first log into the Developer Dashboard, PayPal creates a default personal account and a default business account for you. The default business account includes sandbox API credentials. Create more accounts when you need to test with more than one buyer or seller, such as a marketplace that pays several sellers.

Create a sandbox account

PayPal generates an email address and password for each new sandbox account. Use the email address to identify the account in test API calls. Use the email address and password to log into the sandbox at sandbox.paypal.com/signin.

1. Log into the Developer Dashboard and go to Testing Tools > Sandbox Accounts.
2. Select Create account.
3. For Account type, select Personal for a buyer or Business for a seller.
4. Select a Country/Region.
5. Select Create account.

The new account appears in the Sandbox test accounts table with a default balance and other default details.

Personal account email addresses use the format sb-[random-string]@personal.example.com.

Business account email addresses use the format [email protected].

Optional: To set your own email address, password, name, PayPal balance, bank account, and payment cards, select Create at the bottom of the Create Sandbox Account dialog.

Change a sandbox account password

1. Log into the Developer Dashboard and go to Testing Tools > Sandbox Accounts.
2. In the Settings column, select the menu icon for the account.
3. Select View/Edit account.
4. Under Login Info, select Change password.
5. Enter a password of 8 to 20 characters in New password and Confirm password.
6. Select Save Changes.

Duplicate a sandbox account

Duplicate an account to create a similar buyer or seller with small differences, such as a different balance. The copy has the same account type, first name, last name, and PayPal balance as the original. The password isn't copied.

PayPal suggests an email address for the copy that adds -1 to the original address. The next copy of the same account uses -2, and so on.

1. Log into the Developer Dashboard and go to Testing Tools > Sandbox Accounts.
2. In the Settings column, select the menu icon for the account you want to copy.
3. Select Duplicate account.
4. Optional: In the Duplicate sandbox account dialog, change the First Name, Last Name, Email Address, or PayPal Balance.
5. Enter a password of 8 to 20 characters.
6. Select Duplicate Account.

You can duplicate an account only after PayPal finishes creating it. You can't duplicate an account that failed during creation.

Link a sandbox account to your developer account

Link an existing sandbox account that isn't in your Sandbox test accounts table.

1. Log into the Developer Dashboard and go to Testing Tools > Sandbox Accounts.
2. Select Link other sandbox accounts to this developer account. A sandbox login page opens in a new tab.
3. Log in with the sandbox account's email address and password.

The account appears in your Sandbox test accounts table. You can link a sandbox account to only 1 developer account at a time.

Delete a sandbox account

1. Log into the Developer Dashboard and go to Testing Tools > Sandbox Accounts.
2. In the Settings column, select the menu icon for the account.
3. Select Delete.
4. In the confirmation dialog, select Delete.

To delete up to 5 accounts at once, select the checkbox next to each account, then select Delete above the table.

A deleted account no longer appears in the table, but its transactions and notifications remain in the sandbox. You can't delete the accounts labeled Default in the table.

Next steps

• Test card payments
• Make test requests for NVP/SOAP apps