Transfer Requests

Transfer requests are the simplest form of Solana Pay integration. They create non-interactive payment URLs that wallets can use to directly compose and send transactions without requiring a server.

Overview

A transfer request URL follows this format:

solana:<recipient>
      ?amount=<amount>
      &spl-token=<spl-token>
      &reference=<reference>
      &label=<label>
      &message=<message>
      &memo=<memo>

Basic SOL Transfer

Create a simple SOL payment request:

import { address } from "@solana/kit";
import { encodeURL } from "@solana/pay";

// Recipient's Solana wallet address
const recipient = address("FvJ8k8HhXp4a3zQyFMZd4FvEqcYdYE7gSZWxrEBRfBsB");

// Create the payment URL
const url = encodeURL({
  recipient,
  amount: 0.01, // 0.01 SOL
  label: "My Store",
  message: "Thanks for your purchase!"
});

console.log(url.toString());
// Output: solana:FvJ8k8Hh...?amount=0.01&label=My%20Store&message=Thanks%20for%20your%20purchase!

SPL Token Transfer

Create a USDC payment request:

import { address } from "@solana/kit";
import { encodeURL } from "@solana/pay";

// USDC mint address on mainnet
const usdcMint = address("EPjFWdd5AufqSSqeM2qN1xzybapC8G4wEGGkZwyTDt1v");

const url = encodeURL({
  recipient: address("FvJ8k8HhXp4a3zQyFMZd4FvEqcYdYE7gSZWxrEBRfBsB"),
  amount: 10.5, // $10.50 USDC
  splToken: usdcMint,
  label: "Coffee Shop",
  message: "Grande Latte + Tip"
});

console.log(url.toString());

URL Parameters

Required Parameters

Recipient

The recipient's Solana wallet address (base58-encoded):

const recipient = address("FvJ8k8HhXp4a3zQyFMZd4FvEqcYdYE7gSZWxrEBRfBsB");

Optional Parameters

Amount

Payment amount in user-friendly units (SOL or token units):

// SOL amounts
const solAmount = 1.5; // 1.5 SOL
const smallAmount = 0.001; // 0.001 SOL

// Token amounts (USDC example)
const usdcAmount = 25.99; // $25.99 USDC

If omitted, the wallet will prompt the user to enter the amount.

SPL Token

For token transfers, specify the mint address:

// Common SPL tokens
const USDC = address("EPjFWdd5AufqSSqeM2qN1xzybapC8G4wEGGkZwyTDt1v");
const USDT = address("Es9vMFrzaCERmJfrF4H2FYD4KCoNkY11McCe8BenwNYB");
// Omit splToken for native SOL transfers

Reference

Unique identifiers for tracking payments. Generate an address to use as a reference key:

import { generateKeyPair, getAddressFromPublicKey } from "@solana/kit";

// Generate a unique reference
const keypair = await generateKeyPair();
const reference = await getAddressFromPublicKey(keypair.publicKey);

Label

Merchant or app name displayed to users:

const label = "Acme Coffee Shop";

Message

Description of the payment:

const message = "Order #12345 - 2x Americano";

Memo

On-chain memo (publicly visible):

const memo = "OrderId:12345";

QR Code Integration

Generate QR codes using the built-in createQR function:

import { address } from "@solana/kit";
import { encodeURL, createQR } from "@solana/pay";

const url = encodeURL({
  recipient: address("FvJ8k8HhXp4a3zQyFMZd4FvEqcYdYE7gSZWxrEBRfBsB"),
  amount: 0.05,
  label: "Donation",
  message: "Support our project"
});

// Generate a QR code element
const qr = createQR(url);

// Append to DOM
const element = document.getElementById("qr-code");
qr.append(element);

Payment Validation

Using the Merchant Client

The simplest way to find and validate payments:

import { address } from "@solana/kit";
import { createMerchantClient } from "@solana/pay";

const merchant = createMerchantClient({
  rpcUrl: "https://api.mainnet-beta.solana.com"
});

const recipient = address("FvJ8k8HhXp4a3zQyFMZd4FvEqcYdYE7gSZWxrEBRfBsB");
const reference = address("YOUR_REFERENCE_ADDRESS");

// Find the transaction by reference
const found = await merchant.pay.findReference(reference);

// Validate the transfer matches expected fields
await merchant.pay.validateTransfer(found.signature, {
  recipient,
  amount: 0.1
});

console.log("Payment confirmed!", found.signature);

Using Standalone Functions

import { createSolanaRpc, address } from "@solana/kit";
import { findReference, validateTransfer } from "@solana/pay";

const rpc = createSolanaRpc("https://api.mainnet-beta.solana.com");
const reference = address("YOUR_REFERENCE_ADDRESS");

// Find transaction by reference
const found = await findReference(rpc, reference);

// Validate transaction details
await validateTransfer(rpc, found.signature, {
  recipient: address("FvJ8k8HhXp4a3zQyFMZd4FvEqcYdYE7gSZWxrEBRfBsB"),
  amount: 0.1
});

console.log("Payment confirmed!", found.signature);

Watching for Payments (WebSocket)

The recommended approach — watchReference subscribes via WebSocket and resolves as soon as a matching transaction lands. No polling needed.

async function waitForPayment(reference, recipient, amount) {
  const merchant = createMerchantClient({
    rpcUrl: "https://api.mainnet-beta.solana.com"
  });

  // Resolves on the first transaction mentioning this reference
  const result = await merchant.pay.watchReference(reference);

  if (result.err) {
    throw new Error(`Transaction failed: ${JSON.stringify(result.err)}`);
  }

  // Validate that the transaction matches the expected payment
  await merchant.pay.validateTransfer(result.signature, { recipient, amount });

  return { signature: result.signature };
}

Polling for Payments (HTTP fallback)

If WebSocket subscriptions aren't available (e.g. some RPC providers), fall back to polling with findReference:

async function pollForPayment(reference, recipient, amount) {
  const merchant = createMerchantClient({
    rpcUrl: "https://api.mainnet-beta.solana.com"
  });

  const checkPayment = async () => {
    try {
      const found = await merchant.pay.findReference(reference);
      await merchant.pay.validateTransfer(found.signature, {
        recipient,
        amount
      });
      return { success: true, signature: found.signature };
    } catch {
      return { success: false };
    }
  };

  // Check every 2 seconds
  return new Promise((resolve) => {
    const interval = setInterval(async () => {
      const result = await checkPayment();
      if (result.success) {
        clearInterval(interval);
        resolve(result);
      }
    }, 2000);
  });
}

Complete Example

Here's a complete example with QR code generation and payment monitoring:

import { address, generateKeyPair, getAddressFromPublicKey } from "@solana/kit";
import { encodeURL, createQR, createMerchantClient } from "@solana/pay";

const recipient = address("FvJ8k8HhXp4a3zQyFMZd4FvEqcYdYE7gSZWxrEBRfBsB");
const amount = 0.1;

// Generate unique reference for this payment
const keypair = await generateKeyPair();
const reference = await getAddressFromPublicKey(keypair.publicKey);

// Create payment URL and QR code
const url = encodeURL({
  recipient,
  amount,
  reference,
  label: "Demo Store",
  message: "Test Purchase"
});
const qr = createQR(url);
qr.append(document.getElementById("qr-code"));

// Monitor for payment
const merchant = createMerchantClient({
  rpcUrl: "https://api.mainnet-beta.solana.com"
});

const interval = setInterval(async () => {
  try {
    const found = await merchant.pay.findReference(reference);
    await merchant.pay.validateTransfer(found.signature, {
      recipient,
      amount,
      reference
    });
    clearInterval(interval);
    console.log("Payment confirmed!", found.signature);
  } catch {
    // Payment not found yet, keep polling
  }
}, 2000);

Best Practices

Security

Always validate payments server-side
Use unique references for each payment
Verify transaction amounts and recipients
Check for transaction success status

User Experience

Show clear payment amounts and descriptions
Provide payment status updates
Handle wallet connection gracefully
Support both QR codes and direct links

Error Handling

Handle wallet connection failures
Provide fallback for unsupported wallets
Show helpful error messages
Implement payment timeouts

Common Use Cases

Point of Sale

const posPayment = encodeURL({
  recipient: merchantWallet,
  amount: 15.99,
  label: "Local Coffee Shop",
  message: `Receipt #${receiptNumber}`,
  memo: `POS-${terminalId}-${Date.now()}`
});

Donations

// Flexible donation amount (user enters amount in wallet)
const donationUrl = encodeURL({
  recipient: charityWallet,
  label: "Save the Ocean",
  message: "Support marine conservation"
});

E-commerce Checkout

const checkoutUrl = encodeURL({
  recipient: storeWallet,
  amount: cartTotal,
  reference: orderReference,
  label: storeName,
  message: `Order ${orderId}`,
  memo: `ORDER:${orderId}`
});

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