Accepting Payments with Monieswitch in PHP

Who is this for?

PHP developers who want to accept payments, create payment links, or automate payouts using Monieswitch APIs.

Overview

This guide covers:

Setting up your PHP environment
Authenticating with the Monieswitch API
Making your first API request
Creating a payment link
Handling errors and best practices

Prerequisites

Set Up PHP

PHP 7.4+ installed. Download from php.net.

Create Monieswitch Account

A Monieswitch account. Register at Monieswitch Dashboard.

Get API Key

API Key from your Monieswitch dashboard.

1. Install Dependencies

We recommend using Guzzle for HTTP requests. Install via Composer:

composer require guzzlehttp/guzzle vlucas/phpdotenv

2. Configure Your API Key

Create a .env file in your project directory:

MONIESWITCH_API_KEY=your_api_key_here

Never commit your .env file or API keys to source control.

3. Making Your First API Request

Here’s a sample script to fetch your merchant details from Monieswitch:

merchant_details.php

<?php
require 'vendor/autoload.php';

use GuzzleHttp\Client;
use Dotenv\Dotenv;

$dotenv = Dotenv::createImmutable(__DIR__ . '/../../../../');
$dotenv->load();

$apiBase = 'https://nini.monieswitch.com';
$apiKey = $_ENV['MONIESWITCH_API_KEY'];

$client = new Client([
    'base_uri' => $apiBase,
    'headers' => [
        'Authorization' => "Bearer $apiKey",
        'Content-Type'  => 'application/json'
    ]
]);

try {
    $response = $client->get('/merchant/details');
    $data = json_decode($response->getBody(), true);
    echo "Merchant Details:\n";
    print_r($data);
} catch (\GuzzleHttp\Exception\RequestException $e) {
    if ($e->hasResponse()) {
        echo "API Error: " . $e->getResponse()->getStatusCode() . "\n";
        echo $e->getResponse()->getBody();
    } else {
        echo "Request Error: " . $e->getMessage();
    }
}

4. Creating a Payment Link

create_payment_link.php

<?php
require 'vendor/autoload.php';

use GuzzleHttp\Client;
use Dotenv\Dotenv;

$dotenv = Dotenv::createImmutable(__DIR__ . '/../../../../');
$dotenv->load();

$apiBase = 'https://nini.monieswitch.com';
$apiKey = $_ENV['MONIESWITCH_API_KEY'];

$client = new Client([
    'base_uri' => $apiBase,
    'headers' => [
        'Authorization' => "Bearer $apiKey",
        'Content-Type'  => 'application/json'
    ]
]);

$payload = [
    'amount' => 5000,
    'channel' => 'API',
    'name' => 'Product',
    'currency' => 'NGN',
    'description' => 'Test payment link',
    'email' => '[email protected]'
];

try {
    $response = $client->post('/payment-links', [
        'json' => $payload
    ]);
    $data = json_decode($response->getBody(), true);
    echo "Payment Link Created:\n";
    print_r($data);
} catch (\GuzzleHttp\Exception\RequestException $e) {
    if ($e->hasResponse()) {
        echo "API Error: " . $e->getResponse()->getStatusCode() . "\n";
        echo $e->getResponse()->getBody();
    } else {
        echo "Request Error: " . $e->getMessage();
    }
}

5. Handling Errors and Best Practices

Always check for HTTP status codes and handle exceptions. The Monieswitch API returns detailed error messages in the response body.

Keep your API keys secret using environment variables.
Validate all API responses before using the data.
Read the API Reference for all available endpoints and parameters.

Next Steps

Explore more endpoints in the API Reference
Learn how to accept payments with Monieswitch in mobile apps (guide)
Set up webhooks for real-time notifications

​Who is this for?

​Overview

​Prerequisites

​1. Install Dependencies

​2. Configure Your API Key

​3. Making Your First API Request

​4. Creating a Payment Link

​5. Handling Errors and Best Practices

​Next Steps

Who is this for?

Overview

Prerequisites

1. Install Dependencies

2. Configure Your API Key

3. Making Your First API Request

4. Creating a Payment Link

5. Handling Errors and Best Practices

Next Steps