Learn how to securely store payment details as tokens for future payments, subscriptions, and card-on-file transactions

Create Tokens

Tokenization allows you to store your customer's payment details securely. When a customer pays for the first time, you can save their payment method as a token and use it for future transactions without requiring them to re-enter their card details.

Prerequisites

Before creating tokens, ensure you have:

A Plexy account with API keys from the Plexy Dashboard
A shopper_id to identify the customer whose payment method you're storing

The shopper_id is a unique identifier you create to link payment methods to a specific customer. This is required for all tokenization operations.

Token Types

Plexy supports three types of tokens based on how you intend to use them:

Token Type	Use Case	Shopper Present	Example
CardOnFile	Customer-initiated payments with saved card	Yes	One-click checkout
Subscription	Fixed-amount recurring charges	No	Monthly subscription
UnscheduledCardOnFile	Variable-amount merchant-initiated charges	No	Usage-based billing, account top-ups

CardOnFile

Use this when the customer will be present and actively initiating the payment, such as:

One-click checkout on your website
Reordering previous purchases
Express checkout in mobile apps

Subscription

Use this for predictable, scheduled recurring payments where:

The amount is fixed or known in advance
Payments occur on a regular schedule
The customer has agreed to automatic billing

UnscheduledCardOnFile

Use this for merchant-initiated transactions where:

The payment amount varies
The timing is irregular or triggered by events
Examples include: usage charges, account top-ups, pay-as-you-go services

Creating a Token During Payment

The most common way to create a token is during the initial payment. Set store_payment_method to true and specify the token type.

curl -X POST https://api.plexypay.com/v2/payments \
  -H "x-api-key: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "amount": 10000,
    "currency": "KZT",
    "payment_method": {
      "type": "card",
      "card": {
        "number": "4111111111111111",
        "exp_month": 12,
        "exp_year": 2028,
        "cvc": "123"
      }
    },
    "shopper_id": "shopper_123456",
    "store_payment_method": true,
    "recurring_processing_model": "CardOnFile",
    "shopper_interaction": "Ecommerce",
    "return_url": "https://yoursite.com/checkout/complete",
    "metadata": {
      "order_id": "order_789"
    }
  }'

import { Plexy } from '@plexy/plexy-web';

const plexy = new Plexy({
  apiKey: process.env.PLEXY_SECRET_KEY,
});

const payment = await plexy.payments.create({
  amount: 10000,
  currency: 'KZT',
  payment_method: {
    type: 'card',
    card: {
      number: '4111111111111111',
      exp_month: 12,
      exp_year: 2028,
      cvc: '123',
    },
  },
  shopper_id: 'shopper_123456',
  store_payment_method: true,
  recurring_processing_model: 'CardOnFile',
  shopper_interaction: 'Ecommerce',
  return_url: 'https://yoursite.com/checkout/complete',
  metadata: {
    order_id: 'order_789',
  },
});

console.log('Payment ID:', payment.id);
console.log('Token ID:', payment.token_id);

import os
from plexy import Plexy

plexy = Plexy(api_key=os.environ['PLEXY_SECRET_KEY'])

payment = plexy.payments.create(
    amount=10000,
    currency='KZT',
    payment_method={
        'type': 'card',
        'card': {
            'number': '4111111111111111',
            'exp_month': 12,
            'exp_year': 2028,
            'cvc': '123',
        },
    },
    shopper_id='shopper_123456',
    store_payment_method=True,
    recurring_processing_model='CardOnFile',
    shopper_interaction='Ecommerce',
    return_url='https://yoursite.com/checkout/complete',
    metadata={
        'order_id': 'order_789',
    },
)

print(f'Payment ID: {payment.id}')
print(f'Token ID: {payment.token_id}')

Response

{
  "id": "pay_abc123def456",
  "status": "authorized",
  "amount": 10000,
  "currency": "KZT",
  "token_id": "tok_card_visa_4242",
  "shopper_id": "shopper_123456",
  "payment_method": {
    "type": "card",
    "card": {
      "brand": "visa",
      "last4": "1111",
      "exp_month": 12,
      "exp_year": 2028,
      "funding": "credit"
    }
  },
  "recurring_processing_model": "CardOnFile",
  "created_at": "2026-03-25T10:30:00Z"
}

The token_id in the response is what you'll use for future payments. Store this securely along with the shopper_id in your database.

Creating a Token Without Payment

You can also create a token without processing a payment. This is useful for:

Saving a card for future use before the customer makes a purchase
Validating a card before a subscription starts
Setting up a backup payment method

curl -X POST https://api.plexypay.com/v2/tokens \
  -H "x-api-key: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "payment_method": {
      "type": "card",
      "card": {
        "number": "4111111111111111",
        "exp_month": 12,
        "exp_year": 2028,
        "cvc": "123"
      }
    },
    "shopper_id": "shopper_123456",
    "recurring_processing_model": "Subscription",
    "verify": true
  }'

import { Plexy } from '@plexy/plexy-web';

const plexy = new Plexy({
  apiKey: process.env.PLEXY_SECRET_KEY,
});

const token = await plexy.tokens.create({
  payment_method: {
    type: 'card',
    card: {
      number: '4111111111111111',
      exp_month: 12,
      exp_year: 2028,
      cvc: '123',
    },
  },
  shopper_id: 'shopper_123456',
  recurring_processing_model: 'Subscription',
  verify: true,
});

console.log('Token ID:', token.id);
console.log('Card brand:', token.card.brand);

import os
from plexy import Plexy

plexy = Plexy(api_key=os.environ['PLEXY_SECRET_KEY'])

token = plexy.tokens.create(
    payment_method={
        'type': 'card',
        'card': {
            'number': '4111111111111111',
            'exp_month': 12,
            'exp_year': 2028,
            'cvc': '123',
        },
    },
    shopper_id='shopper_123456',
    recurring_processing_model='Subscription',
    verify=True,
)

print(f'Token ID: {token.id}')
print(f'Card brand: {token.card.brand}')

Response

{
  "id": "tok_card_visa_5678",
  "type": "card",
  "shopper_id": "shopper_123456",
  "recurring_processing_model": "Subscription",
  "card": {
    "brand": "visa",
    "last4": "1111",
    "exp_month": 12,
    "exp_year": 2028,
    "funding": "credit"
  },
  "verified": true,
  "created_at": "2026-03-25T10:35:00Z"
}

Setting verify: true performs a zero-amount authorization to validate the card. This ensures the card is valid and can be charged, but some card issuers may show a temporary hold to the cardholder.

Using Plexy Checkout for Tokenization

For PCI compliance and a better user experience, use Plexy Checkout to collect card details securely.

Create a checkout session with tokenization enabled.

curl -X POST https://api.plexypay.com/v2/checkout/sessions \
  -H "x-api-key: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "mode": "setup",
    "shopper_id": "shopper_123456",
    "recurring_processing_model": "CardOnFile",
    "success_url": "https://yoursite.com/setup/success",
    "cancel_url": "https://yoursite.com/setup/cancel"
  }'

const session = await plexy.checkout.sessions.create({
  mode: 'setup',
  shopper_id: 'shopper_123456',
  recurring_processing_model: 'CardOnFile',
  success_url: 'https://yoursite.com/setup/success',
  cancel_url: 'https://yoursite.com/setup/cancel',
});

// Redirect customer to session.url
console.log('Redirect to:', session.url);

session = plexy.checkout.sessions.create(
    mode='setup',
    shopper_id='shopper_123456',
    recurring_processing_model='CardOnFile',
    success_url='https://yoursite.com/setup/success',
    cancel_url='https://yoursite.com/setup/cancel',
)

# Redirect customer to session.url
print(f'Redirect to: {session.url}')

Redirect the customer to the checkout URL returned in the response.

// On your frontend
window.location.href = session.url;

After the customer completes the checkout, Plexy sends a webhook with the token details.

// In your webhook handler
app.post('/webhooks/plexy', (req, res) => {
  const event = plexy.webhooks.constructEvent(
    req.body,
    req.headers['plexy-signature'],
    process.env.PLEXY_WEBHOOK_SECRET
  );

  if (event.type === 'checkout.session.completed') {
    const session = event.data;
    const tokenId = session.token_id;
    const shopperId = session.shopper_id;

    // Store the token_id for future payments
    await saveTokenToDatabase(shopperId, tokenId);
  }

  res.status(200).send('OK');
});

Request Parameters

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
`payment_method`	object	Yes	The payment method details to tokenize
`shopper_id`	string	Yes	Your unique identifier for the customer
`store_payment_method`	boolean	No	Set to `true` to create a token (default: `false`)
`recurring_processing_model`	string	Yes*	Token type: `CardOnFile`, `Subscription`, or `UnscheduledCardOnFile`
`shopper_interaction`	string	No	`Ecommerce` (online) or `ContractPresent` (in-person)
`verify`	boolean	No	Validate the card with a zero-amount auth

*Required when store_payment_method is true

Choosing the Right Token Type

Customer initiates: Use CardOnFile
Merchant initiates: Use Subscription or UnscheduledCardOnFile

Fixed amount, regular schedule: Use Subscription
Variable amount or irregular timing: Use UnscheduledCardOnFile

Error Handling

import { Plexy, PlexyError } from '@plexy/plexy-web';

try {
  const token = await plexy.tokens.create({
    payment_method: { /* ... */ },
    shopper_id: 'shopper_123456',
    recurring_processing_model: 'CardOnFile',
  });
} catch (error) {
  if (error instanceof PlexyError) {
    switch (error.code) {
      case 'card_declined':
        console.error('Card was declined:', error.message);
        break;
      case 'invalid_card_number':
        console.error('Invalid card number');
        break;
      case 'expired_card':
        console.error('Card has expired');
        break;
      default:
        console.error('Tokenization failed:', error.message);
    }
  }
}

from plexy import Plexy, PlexyError

try:
    token = plexy.tokens.create(
        payment_method={ ... },
        shopper_id='shopper_123456',
        recurring_processing_model='CardOnFile',
    )
except PlexyError as error:
    if error.code == 'card_declined':
        print(f'Card was declined: {error.message}')
    elif error.code == 'invalid_card_number':
        print('Invalid card number')
    elif error.code == 'expired_card':
        print('Card has expired')
    else:
        print(f'Tokenization failed: {error.message}')

Testing

Use these test card numbers to verify your tokenization integration:

Card Number	Scenario
`4111 1111 1111 1111`	Successful tokenization
`4000 0000 0000 0002`	Card declined
`4000 0000 0000 0069`	Expired card
`4000 0000 0000 0127`	Invalid CVC

Next Steps

Now that you can create tokens, learn how to use them:

Make Token Payments - Process payments using saved tokens
Manage Tokens - List, update, and delete tokens

Create Tokens

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