Building Stripe's API

How we built the Stripe API: lessons learned, and things we did to make the API as easy to use as possible.

Transcript

1. BUILDING
   STRIPE'S API
   AMBER FENG @amfeng
   

   View Slide

2. STRIPE:
   PAYMENTS FOR DEVELOPERS
   

   View Slide

3. View Slide

4. WE CARE ABOUT
   API DESIGN
   

   View Slide

5. PAYMENTS API
   CREDIT CARD PAYMENTS
   TOKENIZED & STORED CARDS
   RECURRING BILLING
   > curl https://api.stripe.com/v1/charges \
   -u sk_test_mkGsLqEW6SLnZa487HYfJVLf: \
   -d amount=400 \
   -d currency=usd \
   -d "card[number]=4242424242424242" \
   -d "card[exp_month]=12" \
   -d "card[exp_year]=2014" \
   -d "card[cvc]=123"
   

   View Slide

6. DESIGNING
   THE API
   

   View Slide

7. RPC ORIENTED
   ○ method=list_charges
   ○ All calls are POST, and return 200
   POST /v0?method=list_charges
   &key=KEY
   v0 API (2010, beta)
   

   View Slide

8. DESIGN GOALS:
   CONSISTENCY,
   SIMPLICITY,
   POWER
   

   View Slide

9. HTTP ORIENTED
   ○ GET, POST, DELETE
   ○ HTTP status code to indicate result
   GET /v1/charges?count=60
   -u KEY:
   v1 API
   

   View Slide

10. GET /v1/charges
    GET /v1/charges/CHARGE_ID
    POST /v1/charges
    POST /v1/charges/CHARGE_ID
    DELETE /v1/charges/CHARGE_ID
    v1 API
    

    View Slide

11. SUPPORTING
    THE API
    

    View Slide

12. MAKE IT EASY TO
    GET STARTED
    

    View Slide

13. View Slide

14. View Slide

15. LANGUAGE-SPECIFIC
    LIBRARIES & DOCS
    

    View Slide

16. View Slide

17. View Slide

18. FOCUSED API THAT
    ALLOWS FLEXIBILITY
    

    View Slide

19. LET USERS BUILD EXTENSIONS
    WEBHOOKS
    ○ Posted events to a webhook URL
    ○ charge.succeeded, charge.refunded, etc.
    CONNECT
    ○ OAuth2 API
    ○ Users can authorize access to their Stripe accounts
    ○ Full access to Stripe API
    

    View Slide

20. PROVIDE A TESTING
    ENVIRONMENT
    

    View Slide

21. View Slide

22. View Slide

23. HELP YOUR USERS
    DEBUG
    

    View Slide

24. View Slide

25. {
    "error": {
    "message": "You must provide an integer
    value for 'exp_year'.",
    "type": "card_error",
    "param": "exp_year"
    }
    }
    

    View Slide

26. >> Stripe::Customer.create
    Stripe::AuthenticationError: No API key
    provided. (HINT: set your API key using
    "Stripe.api_key = ". You can
    generate API keys from the Stripe web
    interface. See https://stripe.com/api for
    details, or email support@stripe.com if you
    have any questions.)
    

    View Slide

27. >> Stripe.api_key = TEST_KEY
    => ...
    >> Stripe::Charge.retrieve(LIVE_CHARGE_ID)
    Stripe::InvalidRequestError: (Status 404) No
    such charge: ch_17SOe5QQ2exd2S; a similar
    object exists in live mode, but a test mode
    key was used to make this request.
    

    View Slide

28. View Slide

29. View Slide

30. DEALING WITH
    CHANGE
    

    View Slide

31. BACKWARDS INCOMPATIBLE CHANGES
    ○ Per-user version, set on first API call
    ○ Allow upgrading versions and detailed changelog
    ○ Pass version override in headers
    FEATURE GATING
    ○ Experimental or one-off
    ○ shows_applications
    VERSIONING
    

    View Slide

32. MANY DEFINITIONS
    OF A "GOOD API"
    

    View Slide

33. THANKS! (:
    AMBER FENG @amfeng
    

    View Slide