API Reference
The PayPal API makes powerful functionality available to developers by exposing various features of the PayPal platform. To use the PayPal API, you must have a Premier or Business account, and you must acquire a set of API Credentials to authenticate your API calls. PayPal offers APIs for sending money, receiving money, refunding transactions, searching transaction histories, and more.
API Operations
PayPal offers the following API operations.
| Group | APIs | Description |
| Transaction Search and Transaction Details | TransactionSearch GetTransactionDetails |
Retrieve information about previous transactions in your account history. |
| Issuing Refunds | RefundTransaction | Issue a refund for a PayPal transaction. |
| Mass Payment | MassPay | Pay one or more recipients. |
| Direct Payment | DoDirectPayment | Process a credit card payment. |
| Authorize & Capture | DoAuthorization DoReauthorization DoCapture DoVoid |
Authorize funds for an order authorization |
| Express Checkout | SetExpressCheckout GetExpressCheckoutDetails DoExpressCheckoutPayment |
Allows your customers to use shipping and billing information stored securely at PayPal to check out so they don't have to re-enter it on your site. |
| Recurring Payments | CreateRecurringPaymentsProfile GetRecurringPaymentsProfileDetails ManageRecurringPaymentsProfileStatus BillOutstandingAmount UpdateRecurringPaymentsProfile SetCustomerBillingAgreement GetBillingAgreementCustomerDetails |
Enables you to bill a customer for a fixed amount of money on a fixed schedule. |
| Reference Transactions | DoReferenceTransaction | Create reference transactions for direct credit card transactions. |
| Fraud Management Filters | ManagePendingTransactionStatus Note: Use this API operation to accept or deny a payment whose status is pending. |
You can determine the PayPal Fraud Management Filter status for BillUser, DoDirectPayment, DoExpressCheckoutPayment, and DoReferenceTransaction. IMPORTANT: Your code must handle the SuccessWithWarning acknowledgement status in the response of these API operations. |
Using the PayPal API
Once you have acquired your API Credentials, you are ready to make PayPal API calls. There are two interfaces to the PayPal API. You should use the one that makes the most sense for your development style and environment:
- Name-Value Pair (NVP) interface - Requests and responses are sent using simple HTTP. This interface is better for those who prefer more lightweight, script-based development.
- SOAP interface - Requests and responses are sent using SOAP. This interface is better for those who prefer object-oriented development.
Error Codes
View all PayPal API error codes, what they mean, and what to do when you encounter them.
API Endpoints
The API Endpoints for your API calls depend on which authentication mechanism you use and which calling mechanism you use. The table below summarizes all of the endpoints.
| Environment | Authentication | Calling | Endpoint |
| Live | API Certificate | Name-Value Pair | https://api.paypal.com/nvp |
| Live | API Signature | Name-Value Pair | https://api-3t.paypal.com/nvp |
| Live | API Certificate | SOAP | https://api.paypal.com/2.0/ |
| Live | API Signature | SOAP | https://api-3t.paypal.com/2.0/ |
| Sandbox | API Certificate | Name-Value Pair | https://api.sandbox.paypal.com/nvp |
| Sandbox | API Signature | Name-Value Pair | https://api-3t.sandbox.paypal.com/nvp |
| Sandbox | API Certificate | SOAP | https://api.sandbox.paypal.com/2.0/ |
| Sandbox | API Signature | SOAP | https://api-3t.sandbox.paypal.com/2.0/ |
API Version History
The PayPal WSDL identifies the following changes from Version 2.4 of the APIs:
| Version | Changes |
| Version 2.4 | Added the following mobile checkout APIs:
|
| Version 3.0 | Changed the data type of the RefundType element in the RefundTransactionRequest message. Changed the signature of the BAUpdate API. Added the DoReferenceTransaction API. Added the following billing agreement APIs:
|
| Version 3.1 | Changed the data type of the CreditCard element in the DoReferenceTransactionRequest message. Added the following mobile checkout API:
|
| Version 3.2 | Added the ReqBillingAddress element to the GetExpressCheckoutDetailsReqest message. Added the BillingAddress element to the GetExpressCheckoutDetailsResponse message. Added the ReqBillingAddress element to the GetBillingAgreementCustomerDetailsReqest message. Added the BillingAddress element to the GetBillingAgreementCustomerDetailsResponse message. Added the ShippingMethod element to the PaymentInfoType data type. Changed the data types of the Amount, ShippingAmount, and TaxAmount elements in the BillingPeriodDetailsType data type. Removed the MessageID element from the AbstractRequestType data type. |
| Version 3.2 (release 48) | Added the SoftDescriptor element to the DoReferenceTransactionRequest message. |
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