WP Companion

Getting started

PowerTranz Payment Gateway getting started guide

From prerequisites to your first live transaction. Work through this in order to start accepting payments using Powertranz.

Prerequisites

Ask your bank or PowerTranz for a staging PowerTranz ID and password, and a login for the PowerTranz merchant portal. Staging is the test environment. If you want saved cards, subscriptions or Kount fraud screening, ask PowerTranz support to switch those on too. Your store needs WordPress 6.1 or higher, WooCommerce 6.0 or higher and PHP 7.4 or newer, and it must run on https.

You do not need your live account to start. Staging credentials let you build and test your whole checkout while the rest of your application is still in progress.

Installation

During early access

We send you the plugin as a zip file by email. It is not on WordPress.org yet. If you do not have it, request early access and we will email it within one business day.

Without a licence the plugin runs in test mode only, with every feature unlocked. You need a licence to take live payments.

Install and activate

01 Request early access and download the zip file we email you.
02 In WordPress, go to Plugins, then Add New Plugin, then Upload Plugin.
03 Choose the zip file, click Install Now, then click Activate.
04 Opt in when you are asked. If you have a licence key, enter it.

Connect your PowerTranz account

Go to WooCommerce, then Settings, then Payments, and click Manage next to PowerTranz. Tick Enable PowerTranz. Enter your staging ID and password in the test fields, and leave the live fields empty for now.

Click Save changes, then Test connection. Do not proceed until the test passes. The gateway stays hidden at checkout until your payment page is set up in the next step.

Design and install your payment page

01 Go to Settings, then PowerTranz. Pick one of four designs, set your colours and wording, and click Save design.
02 Log in to the PowerTranz merchant portal and create a hosted payment page. Set Editor Type to Advanced, and write down the Page Set Name and Page Name.
03 Open the page in the portal editor. Paste in the HTML and Custom Styles blocks from the designer, then click Save.
04 Publish the page. A page that is saved but not published will not load at checkout.
05 Back in WordPress, enter the Page set and Page name in the gateway settings exactly as the portal shows them, and click Save changes.

When you change the design later, paste both blocks into the portal again and publish. The page on PowerTranz does not update by itself. Read the portal steps in full.

Testing in test mode

In test mode the plugin uses the PowerTranz staging environment and no real money moves. Log in as an administrator first. In test mode the gateway only shows at checkout for administrators and shop managers.

Place an order and pay with these test cards, with any future expiry date.

4012 0000 0002 0006 4012 0000 0002 0071 4333 3333 3333 2222

The first card asks you to confirm with the bank: use security code 323 and password 3ds2. The second goes straight through. The third should be declined. Then refund an order, close the payment window once without paying, and pay on a phone. Test mode has no time limit. See the full test list.

Going live

01 Get your production PowerTranz ID and password. PowerTranz issues them once your staging setup works.
02 Ask PowerTranz support to switch on saved cards, subscriptions or Kount again for production. Features on staging do not carry over.
03 Create and publish your payment page again in the production portal. Use the same Page Set Name and Page Name.
04 Activate your licence. Untick test mode, enter the live ID and password, save, and click Test connection.
05 Place one small real order with your own card and read the order notes.
06 Refund that order from WooCommerce, and ask your bank to confirm the payment and the refund.

If the gateway does not appear at checkout after you go live, check that your store runs on https and that your production payment page is published. Read the going live checklist.

Stuck on any of these steps?

Every plan includes hands-on setup and testing support, including the free version. We answer from Trinidad and Tobago, within one business day.