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Sandbox vs Live ​

FairShare supports two separate environments: Sandbox and Live.

These environments serve different purposes and should be treated as separate setups.

Sandbox ​

Sandbox is for testing only.

In sandbox mode, you can safely test your FairShare setup using test payment provider accounts, dummy payments, test API credentials, and test webhook flows. No real money is processed in sandbox.

Use sandbox to:

  • Test your checkout or payment links
  • Validate your integration
  • Test webhooks and event handling
  • Create and review test split sessions
  • Confirm your full FairShare flow before launch

Live ​

Live is for real production payments.

Once you switch to live mode, all payments and events are real. This environment should only be used after your sandbox setup has been fully tested.

Sandbox and Live Are Separate ​

Sandbox and live do not share the same configuration.

When moving to live, you will need to use your live setup, including:

  • Live payment provider connection
  • Live API credentials
  • Live webhook configuration
  • Live application settings

A provider connected in sandbox will not automatically be connected in live, and sandbox API keys and webhook settings will not work in production.

Moving from Sandbox to Live ​

After you have completed your setup in sandbox, moving to live is usually straightforward.

Once you have already:

  • Integrated FairShare into your checkout
  • Added the split payment button
  • Configured your webhooks
  • Tested your full flow in sandbox

Then moving to live mainly involves switching your environment-specific credentials and configuration.

For example, when creating split sessions through the API, you will need to replace your sandbox API key with your live API key.

You should also make sure your payment provider connection and webhooks are configured for the live environment.

Before You Can Switch to Live ​

Before enabling live mode, you must add a valid payment method to your FairShare account.

You cannot switch to live without a payment method on file.

Summary ​

  • Sandbox is for fake/test payments
  • Live is for real production payments
  • Sandbox and live are configured separately
  • Moving to live is easy once you have completed setup and testing in sandbox
  • When going live, you must update environment-specific items such as your provider connection, webhooks, and API key
  • When creating split sessions, replace your sandbox API key with your live API key