Choose between Invoicing solutions

PayPal Invoicing supports two ways to create and manage invoices:

PayPal Invoicing (Dashboard) – Manual invoice creation in the PayPal dashboard
Invoicing REST API – Programmatic invoice creation and automation through backend integration

The key difference between these options is how invoices are created, sent, and tracked: either manually in the Dashboard, programmatically in your application, or a mix of both.

PayPal Invoicing (Dashboard)

PayPal Invoicing (Dashboard) lets you to create, send, and manage invoices directly from your PayPal business account without writing code.

Invoicing API

The Invoicing REST API lets you to create, update, send, and manage invoices programmatically from your backend systems.

All invoices, regardless of how they are created, are accessible in the PayPal dashboard for tracking and management. The primary difference between these options is how invoices are created and updated: manually in the dashboard or programmatically through your application.

Comparision

Category	PayPal Invoicing (Dashboard)	Invoicing REST API
Who should use it	Businesses that want a no-code solution and manually create invoices from the PayPal dashboard Ideal for low to moderate invoice volume	Businesses that need automated invoicing, higher invoice volumes, or integration with backend systems such as ERP, CRM, or SaaS platforms
How invoices are created	Manually in the PayPal dashboard	Programmatically via REST API calls from your backend
Technical requirements	No development required	Requires backend development and REST API integration Uses OAuth 2.0 authentication
Automation	Limited to dashboard-based workflows	Full automation of invoice creation, sending, reminders, and reconciliation
Invoice lifecycle management	Manage invoices in the PayPal dashboard (status tracking, reminders, refunds, offline payments)	Manage invoices via API and webhooks Invoices are also visible in the PayPal dashboard for operational support
Payer experience	PayPal-managed payment workflow with multiple payment methods such as PayPal, debit and credit cards, digital wallets, and eligible local payment methods	PayPal-managed payment workflow with multiple payment methods such as PayPal, debit and credit cards, digital wallets, and eligible local payment methods

Overview

Invoice lifecycle and status flow

⌘I

Grow your business

Send payouts

Manage disputes

Analyze reports

Agentic commerce

Choose between Invoicing solutions

PayPal Invoicing (Dashboard)

Invoicing API

Comparision

PayPal Invoicing (Dashboard)

Invoicing API

​Comparision

Comparision