Credentials
Credentials are exclusive access keys used to identify an integration in your account. They are necessary to securely capture payments on online stores and other platforms.
Each application will have two pairs of production credentials and, when applicable to the product, a pair of test credentials.
Obtaining credentials
To obtain the credentials, whether for production or testing, you must first create an application within Mercado Pago. If you have not created any yet, access the Developer panel documentation for more information.
Next, learn how to obtain your credentials and in which situations they should be used.
Production credentials
Production credentials are a set of keys that allow you to receive real payments on stores and other applications.
You can obtain your production credentials in two ways:
- Through your Mercado Pago account, by accessing Your business > Settings > Management and administration > Credentials through the Developer dashboard.
When accessing your production credentials, the following credential pairs will be displayed: Public Key and Access Token, along with Client ID and Client Secret.
Public Key and Access Token
The Public Key and the Access Token are credentials that will be used, not necessarily together, in integrations made with Mercado Pago's payment solutions, including:
These credentials are also used in Mercado Pago plugin integrations with e-commerce platforms.
Type | Description |
Public key | The application's public key is usually used on the frontend. It allows, for example, accessing information about payment methods and encrypting card data. |
Access token | The application's private key that should always be used on the backend to generate payments. It is essential to keep this information secure on your servers. |
For more information on which credentials will be needed for your integration, consult the specific documentation of the solution being integrated.
Client ID and Client Secret
The Client ID and Client Secret are credentials used in some older integrations with e-commerce platforms and primarily in integrations that use OAuth as a protocol for obtaining private information from Mercado Pago accounts. Specifically, they are used during the Client Credentials flow (grant type), which allows access to a resource on one's own behalf and obtaining an Access Token without user interaction.
Type | Description |
Client ID | Unique identifier that represents your integration. |
Client secret | A private key used in some plugins to generate payments. It is extremely important to keep this information secure on your servers and not allow access to any system user or intruder. |
Test credentials
Test credentials are a set of keys used to test the integration. They can be combined with test credit cards to simulate transactions and verify the correct operation of the integrations.
You can obtain your test credentials, as long as they are available for your integration, by accessing Your integrations > "Your application" > Test credentials.
When creating an application, if you selected a Mercado Pago product that does not require test credentials, you will see the following screen:
If you are integrating a product that does not use test credentials, you will not be able to use them. Instead, you should use test accounts to test your integration properly.
Share credentials
When you receive assistance in integrating or setting up your payment channels, you can safely share your credentials with another Mercado Pago account. To do so, you can do it in two ways:
Through Your integrations on Mercado Pago Developers:
- Go to Your integrations and access an application.
- Go to the Test or Production section, depending on the type of credential you want to share.
- Once you select the credentials, go to the Share credentials with a developer section and click on the Share credentials button.
- Enter the email of the person you want to grant access to. Remember that the email must be associated with a Mercado Pago account.
Through Mercado Pago:
- Access your Mercado Pago account.
- Go to Your business > Settings > Management and Administration > Credentials.
- On that page, select the production credentials or test credentials, depending on what you want to share.
- Once you select the credentials, go to the Share credentials with a developer section and click on the Share credentials button.
- Select the application from which you want to share your credentials and enter the email of the person you want to grant access to. Remember that the email must be associated with a Mercado Pago account.
Renew credentials
If for security reasons or any other relevant reason you need to renew your credentials, click on More options (three dots at the end of the card) > Renew.