AlphaWebConnect PayPal
Connect your PayPal Business account to AlphaWeb. Set up sandbox testing or live payments, and check the requirements for saved payments and automatic renewals.
You need access to your workspace's payment settings and the PayPal Business account that will receive payments. PayPal account activation or eligibility reviews can take longer than this setup.
Keep your client secret private
Enter the client secret only in AlphaWeb's payment connection form. Keep it out of AI chats, screenshots and video recordings. Your PayPal password is not an API credential.
Open PayPal and choose the payment environment
In AlphaWeb, select your workspace, open Payments, then select PayPal.
Select Preview. This connection requires credentials from a PayPal Sandbox app and uses simulated payments.
Preview and Live connections are separate. Configuring one does not configure the other.
Open or create your seller's REST app
Sign in to the PayPal Developer Dashboard and open Apps & Credentials.
- Select Sandbox.
- Open an existing REST app for your sandbox Business seller account, or select Create App and associate it with that account.
- Use a separate Personal sandbox account as the buyer when testing checkout. Find or create these under Testing Tools → Sandbox Accounts.
The seller app supplies the credentials for AlphaWeb. The buyer account supplies the login used in the PayPal payment window. See PayPal's sandbox account guide.
Keep the app open for the next steps.
Enable saved payments if you sell subscriptions
For ordinary one-time PayPal purchases, continue to the next step. For subscriptions or other future charges using a saved PayPal wallet, check vaulting first.
AlphaWeb manages the renewal schedule and uses the buyer-approved PayPal payment reference for subsequent charges. You do not need to create a separate PayPal subscription plan for this AlphaWeb integration.
In your sandbox app settings, enable Accept payments, then Vault under its advanced options. Some dashboard versions label this Save payment methods. Save your changes.
Use PayPal's vaulting setup and eligibility instructions if your dashboard differs.
Connected does not certify subscription eligibility
AlphaWeb checks that your app credentials authenticate. That check does not grant PayPal's vaulting approval. The buyer must also approve future payments, and checkout must obtain a reusable payment reference before an automatic renewal can work.
Copy the app credentials into AlphaWeb
Copy both values from the same REST app and environment:
| AlphaWeb field | PayPal value |
|---|---|
| Client ID | The app's Client ID. |
| Client secret | The app's Secret, revealed in the app details. |
Do not enter a seller email, buyer password, merchant ID, webhook ID or a temporary access token. AlphaWeb handles API authentication using the client ID and secret.
This form uses PayPal REST app credentials. It does not take Stripe-style pk_, sk_ or rk_ keys, or legacy PayPal API username/password/signature credentials.
Select regions and finish connecting
- On the Live tab, select the regions where PayPal should be offered under Enable in regions. This also applies when testing a published checkout with Sandbox mode. Preview has no region selector.
- Click Connect once and wait for the result.
- Use Refresh status if checkout setup is still finishing.
AlphaWeb verifies and securely saves the credentials, then configures the payment connection and its webhooks as setup completes. You do not need to paste a webhook ID or manually create a webhook for this connection flow. Webhooks belong to the specific PayPal app and environment.
If the store is ready but has no regions, create one in your store Admin and refresh this page. If regions are temporarily unavailable, refresh rather than creating duplicates. If the store is still being provisioned, you can save credentials and let checkout setup finish afterward.
Credentials can be saved before checkout setup finishes. Wait for the background setup message to clear before testing. If setup reports an error, address it and use Retry connection. Use Re-enter credentials when the app credentials themselves need replacing.
Verify checkout in Sandbox before going live
- Confirm Connected, the expected mode badge, and no pending setup or error message.
- Open a checkout that uses your Sandbox connection. For a published checkout, check that PayPal is enabled in its region.
- Select PayPal and sign in with your Personal sandbox buyer account. Approve the test purchase and return to checkout.
- Confirm the completed order in AlphaWeb and the corresponding transaction in the sandbox seller account.
- If you sell subscriptions, also test buyer consent, the saved-payment setup and a renewal. A successful initial payment alone is not proof that automatic renewals work for that account. Test refunds too if you offer them through AlphaWeb.
For real payments, connect the live app on AlphaWeb's Live tab, select Live — real payments, and verify the Live mode badge. Keep Preview configured with Sandbox credentials.
Troubleshooting
Copy the client ID and secret again from the same app. Check AlphaWeb's app mode against the Sandbox or Live setting in the PayPal Dashboard. An expired or replaced secret, a partial copy, or credentials from different apps can fail authentication.
Use the Personal test account from Testing Tools → Sandbox Accounts, not your real PayPal login or the Business seller account. View or reset the buyer's sandbox credentials there. Do not submit the buyer password in AlphaWeb's connection form.
Check the vaulting section above for the app environment you are using. Confirm PayPal has approved the live account where required, the buyer accepted future charges, and the payment method was saved. If those are in place, contact support with the order reference and error message, without sharing your client secret.
Check which connection the checkout uses, whether setup has finished, and whether PayPal is enabled in the shopper's region. The account and checkout currency must also be supported by PayPal. A configured Preview connection does not enable PayPal on a published checkout.
Open the correct workspace and payment tab, choose Re-enter credentials, and submit the current app's client ID and secret together. Wait for connection setup to finish so its runtime and webhooks use the correct app. Update Preview and Live separately when applicable.