What is Stripe for WordPress?
Stripe is an ecommerce solution reminiscent of PayPal, with a focus on open-source developer tools and APIs. These tools enable companies to quickly integrate unique, custom implementations into their WordPress websites. Thanks to this flexibility, there are many options for offering a seamless ecommerce experience on your WordPress site using Stripe.
The Stripe plugin is free to set up, and charges per transaction rather than requiring a subscription fee. It offers a secure way to accept both one-time and recurring payments in its core service. Stripe also supports Apple Pay, and even stores customer information securely so users can easily reuse the same card in future transactions.
WordPress integration with Stripe is typically accomplished using plugins that incorporate the Stripe APIs. However, each plugin is unique and offers a somewhat different set of features. Your mileage may vary depending on the third-party plugin you select – so be sure to check that all the features you need are built into your chosen solution.
In order to use Stripe on your WordPress site, you will first need to ensure that SSL is set up for the domain you intend to sell from. This is a requirement for all Stripe users, to protect the buyers’ security.
How to Set Up Stripe for WordPress
To add Stripe to WordPress, you’ll need to use an existing WordPress Stripe plugin or create your own from scratch. Plugins are WordPress add-on features that extend its core features and functionality.
Plugins are WordPress add-on features that extend its core features and functionality. To add Stripe to WordPress, you’ll need to use an existing Stripe plugin or create your own from scratch.
In most situations, using a plugin created by a trusted developer or agency is your best bet. On the other hand, if you have a development team and your business has very specific requirements, building a custom plugin might be the way to go.
If you do decide to opt for an existing plugin, you’ll notice that several involve a platform called WooCommerce. This is a popular ecommerce solution for WordPress and makes it easy to set up an online store. It’s worth checking out, since there are plugins that enable you to use Stripe to automatically accept payments through your WooCommerce store, with a little-to-no extra setup in Stripe itself.
Now that you know what you’re looking for, let’s review how to integrate Stripe payment gateway in WordPress in a few different ways.
How to Setup Stripe WordPress Plugins
Many Stripe WordPress plugins are built by third-party developers who represent neither Stripe nor WordPress. Therefore, it’s particularly important to choose a plugin that is built and maintained by a trusted developer or agency. To use any of these plugins, you’ll need a Stripe account and your API keys.
Anytime you’re looking for a WordPress plugin, follow these steps:
- Log into WordPress and go to your dashboard.
- Select Plugins > Add New from the left-hand side.
- Search for your desired eCommerce plugin at the top right corner of the screen.
How to Setup Stripe for WooCommerce
WooCommerce is one of the most popular ecommerce platforms on the web. It’s a powerful, free WordPress plugin that allows you to manage inventory, sales, and more. The makers of WooCommerce offer a free Stripe integration plugin, available in the WordPress directory as WooCommerce Stripe Payment Gateway. You can set up Stripe with WooCommerce in four steps.
Step 1
To get started with this tool, you’ll first need to install and set up WooCommerce itself if you don’t already have it. Download the WooCommerce plugin by searching “WooCommerce” in the Plugins > Add New section of your WordPress dashboard.
Step 2
Once you have WooCommerce up and running, you’ll also need to download and install the WooCommerce Stripe Payment Gateway plugin. Locate this plugin by searching for it by name (like you did in step 1).
Step 3
Next, go to WooCommerce > Settings and click on the Checkout tab. In the submenu, you should see Stripe available at the end:
Check the box to Enable Stripe, then add your Stripe API keys in the appropriate boxes. You can find your API keys in the Stripe Dashboard:
In this section, you can also choose to enable Stripe Checkout. When you select this option, customers will see Stripe’s payment form with a pay button and a modal credit card payment form when checking out (instead of the traditional credit card fields). Now hit Save Changes.
Step 4
Finally, navigate to the Checkout options tab (listed in blue at the top). At the bottom of this section, you’ll see “Force secure checkout.” Because the Stripe WordPress plugin can’t accept credit cards without an SSL certificate, be sure to check this option.
When you’re done, click Save Changes. That’s it! Stripe integration is complete. WooCommerce will handle the rest for you automatically.
WP Simple Pay
WP Simple Pay is a standalone plugin that allows you to integrate Stripe without requiring any other ecommerce platform, and it comes in both a free and paid version. Once you’ve activated it, you can use shortcodes anywhere on your WordPress site to sell your goods and services through Stripe. This approach is ideal for those with simple ecommerce needs, or who don’t want to use WooCommerce.
Getting started with WP Simple Pay is a cakewalk. Here’s how to integrate Stripe with WordPress using the Simple Pay plugin:
Step 1
Search for WP Simple Pay in the Add New plugin section of the WordPress dashboard. Download and install it.
Step 2
After installing the plugin, navigate to the Simple Pay Lite admin menu to access the settings. Enter your Stripe API keys in the appropriate boxes.
When you’re ready for Stripe to go live, you can switch the Live Mode setting from Off to On. For now, press Save Changes.
Step 3
Click over to the Default Settings tab at the top, and set up your site. Under this tab, you can name your site, select the default currency, add redirect URLs, and more.
Save your changes and you’re all done! You can now use shortcode to add a simple payment button anywhere on your WordPress website.
