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Ever wondered how your WooCommerce store instantly knows when a payment is successful or a refund is issued? That’s the magic of webhooks, especially powerful when paired with Stripe. But to make them work for your store, they need to be set up correctly. And that’s exactly what we’ll walk you through: how to set up Stripe webhooks in WooCommerce accurately.
So, what are webhooks? Think of them as real-time messengers between two apps. When something happens in one system, like a customer completing a checkout on Stripe, it instantly tells another system, like WooCommerce, to take action. You don’t need to refresh anything or check manually; the systems talk to each other behind the scenes.
Now, here’s where Stripe and WooCommerce come together. Stripe webhooks allow your WooCommerce store to stay in sync with events like payments, refunds, or disputes. By enabling this through a plugin like Stripe Payment Gateway for WooCommerce by WebToffee, you can automate store updates, boost accuracy, and enhance customer experience.
Key Takeaways
- Stripe webhooks in WooCommerce help automate store actions like order status updates and payment confirmations.
- Using a plugin like Stripe Payment Gateway for WooCommerce by WebToffee, you can easily set up webhook endpoints without complexities.
- Setting up the Stripe webhook endpoint allows Stripe to notify your WooCommerce store when specific events occur.
- Securing your integration with the Stripe webhook secret key ensures that only legitimate webhook calls are processed.
Ready to get Stripe-notified with WooCommerce Stripe webhooks? Let’s begin.
A webhook is like a notification system for the internet. Imagine it as a doorbell. When someone rings it (an event occurs), it sends a signal (a message) to let you know something happened, instantly and automatically.
More technically, webhooks are HTTP callbacks triggered by specific events in one application and delivered to a specified endpoint (a URL in another system). For example, when a customer makes a payment on Stripe, Stripe can automatically send a message to your WooCommerce store via Stripe webhooks. This message lets WooCommerce know it should update the order status or trigger a follow-up action.
While APIs require your WooCommerce store to ask Stripe if something has happened, webhooks allow Stripe to tell WooCommerce directly, saving time and server resources. That’s why webhooks are ideal for payment processing, where real-time updates matter.
Webhook Glossary
- Webhook: A mechanism that sends real-time data from one app to another when an event occurs.
- Endpoint: The URL where webhook data is sent; essentially, your store’s listening post.
- The Listener: A script or system that receives and processes incoming webhook data at the endpoint.
- Webhook URL: The exact location (URL) on your server where Stripe sends its messages.
- Webhook Secret / Stripe Signing Secret: A key to verify that incoming webhook requests are genuinely from Stripe.
- Stripe Webhook Events: Specific actions like payment succeeded or charge refunded that Stripe monitors and sends data for.
- AWS EventBridge: An alternative webhook destination for event routing and integration, mostly for advanced setups.
Now that you know what a webhook is, let’s explore how Stripe webhooks function in the context of WooCommerce.
Stripe webhooks act as automated messengers that alert your WooCommerce store when certain payment-related events happen. This communication ensures that your store reflects the most current status of transactions.
Here’s how the basic Stripe webhook flow looks:
→ Customer makes a purchase on your WooCommerce store using Stripe
→ Stripe processes the payment
→ Stripe webhook is triggered for an event like payment_succeeded
→ A message is sent to your WooCommerce webhook endpoint
→ WooCommerce receives the event and updates the order status or performs another configured action
This real-time syncing keeps both systems updated and minimizes errors. For example, if a charge fails or a refund is initiated from the Stripe dashboard, your WooCommerce store is immediately informed and can take necessary action.
By configuring your WooCommerce – Stripe webhook settings correctly and using the appropriate webhook events list, you ensure your store is informed about the exact actions you care about, be it payments, disputes, or checkout completions.
Up next, we’ll walk through how to set up and manage WooCommerce Stripe webhooks using the WebToffee plugin.
Getting started with Stripe webhooks on your WooCommerce store is easy when using a plugin like WebToffee’s Stripe Payment Gateway for WooCommerce. This plugin simplifies the webhook configuration process, allowing you to accept recurring payments and use multiple payment methods, including credit/debit cards, Google Pay, Alipay, and more. It also includes Stripe Checkout, a conversion-focused Stripe-hosted checkout page.
Follow these steps to set up and secure your WooCommerce Stripe webhook integration:
Step 1: Install and Activate the WebToffee Stripe Plugin
- Go to your WordPress dashboard.
- Navigate to Plugins > Add Plugin.
- Search for “Stripe Payment Plugin for WooCommerce” by WebToffee.
- Click Install and then Activate the plugin.
Step 2: Connect Your WooCommerce Store to Stripe
- Once activated, go to WebToffee Stripe from the dashboard.
- Click Connect to Stripe and follow the on-screen prompts.
- If you don’t already have a Stripe account, you can register one during this process.
- Once connected, you’ll see a confirmation screen. If you’re in test mode, you can switch to live mode anytime by clicking Switch to live mode at the top right.
Step 3: Copy Webhook Endpoint from Stripe Plugin
- Navigate to WebToffee Stripe > General Settings page and scroll to the Webhooks section.
- Copy the webhook endpoint URL shown there.
- Click on the provided link to go directly to the Webhooks settings in the Stripe dashboard. Alternatively, in the Stripe Dashboard, go to Developers > Webhooks to access the Stripe webhook settings.
Step 4: Create a Webhook Event Destination in Stripe
- In Stripe, click Add destination to add a webhook destination.
- On the Create an event destination page, select Your account as the event source.
- Choose the relevant Stripe webhook events from the Stripe webhook events list. Here, you can discover various Stripe webhook event types like Account, Balance, Billing, Checkout, Payment, etc. Under each Stripe webhook type, you can find the related webhook events to listen to and send to the webhook destination.
- For example, you can select events under “Checkout” and “Payment method”, such as checkout.session.completed and payment_method.updated. The selected events will appear under the Selected events tab. Click Continue to proceed to the next settings.
- Next, choose Webhook endpoint as the destination type (instead of AWS EventBridge), then click Continue.
- A Stripe webhook destination configuration window opens. Paste the webhook endpoint URL you copied in Step 3 into the Endpoint URL field. You may add a description for the webhook destination, optionally.
- Then, click Create destination to create a webhook destination.
Step 5: Secure Your Stripe Webhooks
- In the Stripe dashboard, go to Developers > Webhooks. Click on the webhook you just created.
- On the right side of the Webhooks’ Overview tab, find the Signing secret (also called Stripe webhook secret). Click the eye icon to reveal the webhook secret key, then click the clipboard icon to copy.
- Go back to the plugin settings in WooCommerce and paste the key in the Webhook Secret field at WebToffee Stripe > General Settings > Webhooks.
- Click Save changes.
Step 6: Test the Webhook Connection
While the WebToffee plugin does not require extra configuration to test, it’s a good practice to simulate a test event from Stripe to confirm the webhook is functioning correctly. This gives you assurance that your WooCommerce store is receiving the right data.
What is the Stripe Signing secret?
The Stripe signing secret is a security token used to verify that incoming webhook events are really from Stripe. This prevents unauthorized sources from mimicking Stripe and triggering false events. It acts as a safeguard for your WooCommerce webhook endpoint.
By following these steps, you can set up a reliable and secure Stripe webhook endpoint for your WooCommerce store. This integration ensures your site can automatically respond to live payment and checkout events with precision.
Wrapping Up
Setting up Stripe webhooks in WooCommerce isn’t as complicated as it might seem, especially with the right plugin guiding the process. Using the Stripe Payment Gateway for WooCommerce by WebToffee, you can easily connect your WooCommerce store to the Stripe Dashboard and configure webhook endpoints, select relevant Stripe webhook event types, and secure your connection using the Stripe signing secret.
This setup enables your store to react instantly to key store events, providing a smoother and more reliable experience for both you and your customers. Be it confirming a successful checkout, processing a refund, or handling failed transactions, webhooks make your WooCommerce store smarter and more responsive.
That brings us to the end of this guide on how to enable WooCommerce Stripe webhooks using a plugin-based setup. Thanks for following along. We hope this helped make Stripe webhook configuration easier to understand and implement.
Frequently Asked Questions
AWS EventBridge is an alternative webhook destination option in Stripe that routes events to cloud applications or services. Unless you’re working with an advanced serverless setup, using the standard webhook endpoint is sufficient for most WooCommerce stores.
Webhooks are automated messages sent from one system to another when a specific event occurs. In the case of Stripe, webhooks notify your WooCommerce store about actions like payment completions or refunds.
You can set up Stripe webhooks by creating an endpoint in your Stripe dashboard and connecting it with your WooCommerce store using the WebToffee Stripe plugin. This involves copying the webhook endpoint, selecting Stripe webhook events, and securing the connection with your Stripe webhook secret key.
In payment gateways like Stripe, a webhook serves as a real-time alert system. It automatically updates your WooCommerce store when a transaction-related event occurs, helping ensure your order statuses and customer notifications stay current.
Webhooks are ideal for real-time, event-driven updates. Stripe tells WooCommerce when something happens. APIs, on the other hand, are better when your system needs to request data on demand. In most WooCommerce + Stripe payment setups, webhooks are preferred for speed and automation.
