Use Cases

One-Off Payment Without Saving the Payment Method

Scenario: A one-time payment where the customer is present, and the payment method is not saved for future use.
Use Case: Customers making a one-time purchase without any desire to save their payment method for future use.
Session Type: one_time
Behavior:
- The customer completes the payment via the hosted Checkout page.
- The payment method is not saved because the save_payment_method option is set to never.
Example: Buying a product or service without storing the card for future payments.

One-Off Payment With Saving the Payment Method

Scenario: A one-time payment where the customer is present, and the payment method is only saved for future payments where the customer is present.
Use Case: Customers who want to reuse their payment method for other purchases initiated by them in the future.
Session Type: one_time
Behavior:
- The customer completes the payment via the hosted Checkout page.
- The payment method is saved for use when the customer is present and the save_payment_method option is set to always or prompt.
Example: Purchasing a product and saving the card for future use during checkout.

Setup for Future Payments

Scenario: The first payment in a series where the customer is present, and the payment method is saved with a mandate for future payments.
Use Case: Merchants setting up recurring payments for subscriptions or installment plans.
Session Type: first_in_series
Behavior:
- The customer completes the initial payment via the hosted Checkout page.
- A mandate is created authorising future payments that occur when the customer is not present.
Example: Signing up for a monthly subscription with an initial payment.

Recurring Payments

Scenario: A follow-up payment where the customer is not present, using a payment method saved in a previous first_in_series session.
Use Case: A merchant initiates a recurring payment based on an existing mandate.
Session Type: next_in_series
Behavior:
- No customer interaction is required.
- The payment is processed programmatically using the saved payment method and existing mandate.
Example: Processing a subscription payment each month.

A quick overview of the differences between these scenarios are as follows:

Scenario	Session Type	Customer Interaction	Saving Payment Method	Examples
One-off payment without saving	`one_time`	Required (customer-present)	No	Buying a product one time.
One-off payment with saving	`one_time`	Required (customer-present)	Yes (for future customer-present use)	Purchasing and saving card for later.
Setup for future payments	`first_in_series`	Required (customer-present)	Yes (for future customer-not-present use)	Signing up for a subscription.
Recurring payment	`next_in_series`	Not required (customer-not-present)	Uses previously saved payment method	Monthly subscription payment.