# PayPal Setup Easy Digital Downloads comes with built-in PayPal integration. This gateway uses the latest PayPal checkout experience, featuring smart buttons and a "Pay with PayPal" modal that keeps users on your site throughout the entire payment process. This documentation covers everything you need to know about managing your PayPal setup. Upgrading from a different PayPal gateway? See our [upgrade notes](#upgrade). **NOTE:** This PayPal integration requires an SSL certificate. If you do not yet have one, see our article on [how to set up SSL](https://www.wpbeginner.com/glossary/ssl/). - [Configure PayPal](#aioseo-configure-paypal) - [Fallback IPN](#ipn) - [Checkout experience](#experience) - [Recurring payments integration](#recurring) - [Browser support](#browser-support) - [Creating Sandbox account](#sandbox) - [Upgrading from other PayPal gateways](#upgrade) - [FAQs](#faqs) Configure PayPal ---------------- ### 1. Connect to your PayPal account You will need a PayPal account to accept payments. If you do not already have an account, you will be given the option to create one during the onboarding process. Log in to your WordPress admin and go to **Downloads** > **Settings** > **Payments** > **PayPal**. You will see a button to connect to PayPal in your store's current mode (either sandbox or live). ![Set up PayPal settings in Easy Digital Downloads.](https://easydigitaldownloads.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/edd-paypal-settings-connect.png)Click the button to open up a PayPal modal. This will prompt you to enter your email address and country. Proceed through the steps to either log in to your existing account or create a new one. **Important:** You need to have browser popups enabled in order for the PayPal page to open up in a modal. If you do not see a modal, please check your browser pop-up settings, close the browser, and try again. If the pop-up window still does not show, you could try with the Chrome browser. If you're connecting in test mode, you will need to log in with your sandbox account credentials. If you don't yet have a PayPal sandbox account, see [our article on how to create one.](https://easydigitaldownloads.com/docs/paypal-setup/#sandbox) ![PayPal connect modal with log in form.](https://easydigitaldownloads.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/6184cd234c516.png)After completing all of the steps, you should see this success message: ![](https://easydigitaldownloads.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/6184cd238f2e5.png)Make sure you click the button to return to your store. If you don't click this button, we will not be able to complete the onboarding process, and you will have to begin again. ### 2. Check your account status Back in the EDD admin settings, the "Connection Status" area will check your connection to PayPal. Your account was successfully connected, and you are ready to accept payments! ![](https://easydigitaldownloads.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/Paypal-connected-800x282.png)### 3. Configure the available payment methods Once PayPal is connected, you can choose on this same page, as seen below. ![](https://easydigitaldownloads.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/PayPal-gateways-800x318.jpg)### 4. Enable the PayPal gateway Be sure to enable the gateway in the general gateway settings in order to have it displayed on the checkout page. ![PayPal gateway checked on.](https://easydigitaldownloads.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/6184cd24c8149.png)### Repeat in live mode If you initially connect in test mode, you will need to repeat this connection process once you switch your store to live mode. --- **Fallback IPN** ---------------- Easy Digital Downloads will let you use a fallback IPN service that handles any scenarios in which a Webhook event might not be delivered to your website. To configure the IPN, you need to log in to your PayPal account and hover over the cog in the upper right corner of the screen, then select **Account Settings** ![](https://easydigitaldownloads.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/6184cd2d73df6.png)Click on Notifications on the left side of the screen, then click Update next to **Instant Payment Notifications**. ![](https://easydigitaldownloads.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/6184cd2db5d70.png)If you did not have IPN enabled before, you will see a Choose IPN Settings button. In the IPN settings page, add your website URL in the format: **https://yoursite.com/?edd-listener=eppe** Replace yoursite.com in the link with your actual website URL. ![](https://easydigitaldownloads.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Screenshot-on-2022-11-23-at-20-24-08-1200x678.png)Check the **Receive IPN messages (Enabled)** box, then click **Save**. That's all there is to it! This will now act as a fallback to the main Webhook that the PayPal setup uses when connecting your account. --- Checkout experience ------------------- This payment gateway uses PayPal's modern checkout buttons. Instead of a normal "Purchase" button, your customers will see this at the end of the checkout form, along with other payment options if available, such as Venmo, Google/Apple Pay, Fastlane, Pay Later, and direct credit/debit card payment. ![PayPal purchase button](https://easydigitaldownloads.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/6184cd2634507.png)--- Recurring payments integration ------------------------------ This PayPal gateway has complete support for the [Recurring Payments extension](https://easydigitaldownloads.com/extension/recurring-payments?utm_campaign=documentation&utm_source=helpscout&utm_medium=doc&utm_term=405-setup-documentation-for-stripepro-payment-gateway). See the [Recurring Payments PayPal setup documentation](https://easydigitaldownloads.com/docs/recurring-payments-paypal-gateway-configuration/) for configuration instructions. --- Browser support --------------- Support is guaranteed for the following desktop browsers. For any browsers not on this list, the buttons could continue to work, but compatibility is not guaranteed. - Chrome version 41 and later - Firefox version 43 and later - Safari version 8 and later - Opera version 12 and later - Edge version 14 and later - \* Internet Explorer version 11 and later \* Note: While the buttons should work on IE11, we have to load several polyfills to make it compatible. For the best checkout experience, we recommend using a more modern browser. If you would prefer to not load the IE11 polyfills, you can disable them by adding this custom code to your site: ``` add_filter( 'edd_load_ie11_polyfills', '__return_false' ); ``` If you add this code snippet, the PayPal gateway will **not** work in IE11. For more information about PayPal Checkout browser requirements, see [PayPal's Browser Support page](https://developer.paypal.com/docs/checkout/troubleshoot/support/). --- Creating a PayPal Sandbox account --------------------------------- The PayPal Sandbox allows you to set up test accounts that can be used to test the full purchase process in Easy Digital Downloads with the PayPal gateway. No real charges take place, and you may use it for as long as you like, as these are test accounts that mimic the real PayPal flow. To create a sandbox account, visit <https://developer.paypal.com> and click *Login* or *Signup* if you do not already have a PayPal account set up. You can log in with your existing PayPal account if you do. Once logged in, follow the steps below to create a Sandbox account 1. Go to Testing Tools > [Sandbox Accounts](https://developer.paypal.com/dashboard/accounts "Sandbox Accounts"). 2. Click on "Create Account". 3. Select "Business", choose the account country, and click "Create Account". 4. Click again on "Create Account" and this time select "Personal" as the account type. The above steps will create a Merchant account that you will use to connect inside EDD and a Personal one that you will use during the Checkout flow to simulate a payment. While on the Sandbox Accounts page, you can click on the account you wish to view/edit and you can view the default password that was set during creation or set your custom password. How Can I Be Sure I'm In Test Mode? ----------------------------------- To make sure your site is operating in Test Mode, go to **Downloads > Settings** > **Payments,** and check the Test Mode box at the top of the page. Remember -------- Before you go live with your site, take it out of Test Mode, or none of your sales will be valid. It might be required for you to connect with your Live PayPal account once you deactivate test mode. --- Upgrading from other PayPal gateways ------------------------------------ Upgrading to the new PayPal gateway is simply connecting, following the configuration steps above, then disabling the old gateway(s). If you previously used one of our old PayPal integrations, such as PayPal Standard, PayPal Express, PayPal Pro, or PayPal Payments Advanced, you will be prompted to switch over to this new gateway after updating to Easy Digital Downloads version 2.11. **How does the upgrade work?** Until you connect to the new gateway, payments will continue to process through your site using the existing gateway you've selected. When you connect to the new PayPal integration, you should connect using the exact same PayPal account you used before. Once the connection process is complete and you've enabled the new gateway, payments will start processing via the new PayPal integration. Be sure to disable the old gateway so that only the new one is active. Inside PayPal itself, you won't notice any difference. Payments will still come in the same way as before. Only the checkout experience on your site has been updated. **What about Recurring payments?** If you use our Recurring Payments extension, you can safely switch over to the new PayPal gateway without affecting existing subscriptions. Old subscriptions will continue to process and renew as normal. However: 1. Once the new gateway is set up, you can uncheck the old gateway from the list of enabled payment gateways. 2. For PayPal Express and Pro, you do need to keep your old PayPal IPN configured ([Express / Pro IPN Doc](https://easydigitaldownloads.com/docs/paypal-legacy-gateways-standard-express-pro-advanced/#express-pro)), as subscriptions that were created with the old gateway will continue to use IPN to let EDD know about renewal payments. PayPal Standard doesn't rely on IPN, as the URL is hard-set in the IPN. If you don't use your PayPal Account with multiple stores, we recommend setting it in the event PayPal changes functionality in the future ([Standard IPN Doc](https://easydigitaldownloads.com/docs/paypal-legacy-gateways-standard-express-pro-advanced/#standard)), but it's not required. 3. If you're using PayPal Express or PayPal Pro, you do need to keep that plugin activated. The gateway itself should not be enabled (**Downloads** » **Settings** » **Payments**), but the plugin should be. This is to ensure that the gateway can continue to process old IPNs, as noted in step 2. **Note: Using Aelia Currency Switcher?** PayPal will need to be re-added in Aelia Payment Gateways Settings for the currencies supported on your site. Otherwise, PayPal will no longer be a gateway available on checkout. **Do I have to upgrade to the new integration?** All old PayPal integrations will be deprecated. They will no longer receive updates moving forward. Additionally, many of the old integrations are deprecated on PayPal's end too, and represent older checkout experiences. Old integrations should continue to work in EDD 2.x, but we recommend switching to the new gateway before 3.0, as old PayPal extensions will not be updated to become 3.0 compatible. FAQs ---- **I see SANDHILLS DEVELOPMENT, LLC during the connection process. Is this expected?** Yes, Easy Digital Downloads is a SANDHILLS DEVELOPMENT, LLC product. You are agreeing to connect your PayPal account to your Easy Digital Downloads (a SANDHILLS DEVELOPMENT, LLC product) store. Unfortunately, PayPal requires the use of the company name instead of our product's name. **Can I connect to PayPal with a personal account?** A business account is required to connect EDD to PayPal. You cannot connect EDD to a personal PayPal account. If you don't have a business account, you can create a separate business account and have multiple PayPal accounts if you don't want to make your personal account a business account. **Why is "Unexpected authentication error" appearing on my checkout page?** This is likely due to PayPal not being properly [connected](#configure) to your store. Check the status under **Downloads** > **Settings** > **Payments** > PayPal. You'll also want to confirm your live PayPal account is not connected to EDD in Test Mode, and your PayPal Sandbox account is not connected to your live PayPal connection (connecting to PayPal with Test Mode disabled). **Why does PayPal fail to connect to EDD?** This can be due to several issues. \- Try to connect via a different browser or device. \- Confirm that the country your PayPal account is a supported country, listed in the dropdown box during the connection process. \- Confirm your PayPal account is fully active. PayPal may have outstanding actions you need to complete. Look for notices in your PayPal account and/or contact PayPal support to confirm your account is active. **Can I add or remove the Pay in 3 or Pay in 4 buttons?** This payment method can be disabled in the PayPal gateway settings inside EDD. You can also support a set number of payments using our Recurring Payments extension. **Why doesn't PayPal Guest Checkout show?** When paying through a checkout page on PayPal.com, there is sometimes the option to pay by credit card without logging in to PayPal. This is known as "guest" checkout mode or PayPal Account Optional. See the PayPal instructions [here](https://www.paypal.com/us/smarthelp/article/how-do-i-accept-credit-cards-with-checkout-using-the-guest-checkout-option-faq3226) to enable or disable. Here’s how to enable the PayPal account optional setting: 1. Hover over your name in the top right corner. 2. Click **Account Settings** in the drop-down menu. 3. Click **Website payments** under 'Products & Services' on the left of the page. 4. Click **Update** beside 'Website preferences'. 5. Select **On** under 'PayPal account optional'. **Do I need SSL if I use PayPal?** Yes, you need SSL enabled on your website, even though payments are processed off-site with PayPal. **Customers are not redirected back to my site after paying.** When people pay with PayPal, they expect to be redirected back to your website after paying. If this isn't working properly, then the auto-return option probably needs to be enabled in your PayPal profile. Log in to your PayPal account and go to your profile settings. ![](https://easydigitaldownloads.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/6184cd33d5048.png) In your settings, click on Website Preferences. ![](https://easydigitaldownloads.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/6184cd341e8e9.png) There you will have an option to enable automatic return. ![](https://easydigitaldownloads.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/6184cd3461cbd.png) In the example above, it's off. To turn it on, choose the On radio button, and then in the field below, make sure you put in the address you want your customers redirected to.