Getting started
Quick Reference
Base URL
https://public-api.sandbox.bunq.com/v1/
https://api.bunq.com/v1/
API key
Generated via API or developer app
Generated in the bunq mobile app
Real money
No
Yes
Signing required
No (except payments/sessions)
Yes
See Environments for full details.
1. Create a bunq Account
To use the bunq API in production, you'll need a personal or business bunq account, which you can create directly in the bunq mobile app.
But if you're just getting started, you don't need a real account yet.
We provide a sandbox environment where you can:
Generate sandbox users instantly
Access test accounts with fake money
Experiment freely without risk
To get started with the sandbox account we recommend you start with our tutorial: Your first payment which guides you through all the steps.
2. Choose Between Sandbox and Production
bunq offers two environments for developers:
Sandbox
Free and open to anyone — no real bunq account required
Preloaded with test money and mock users
Safe to experiment, test features, and simulate payments
Ideal for:
Trying out the API
Building and testing your integration
Running automated tests
Production
Connects to real bunq accounts and live money
Requires a valid bunq personal or business account
Used for actual payments, user data, and transactions
Use this when:
You're ready to go live
You want to interact with real users and money
Follow these instructions to start and here to .
3. Generate an API Key or Register an OAuth Client
If you're building something just for your own bunq account, you can generate a personal directly from the bunq app:
Grants full access to your own account
Ideal for internal tools, scripts, or personal automations
Simple to set up: no redirects, no user consent flow
If you're building an app or service that needs access to other users' bunq accounts, use OAuth:
Users grant permission to your app
You get access only to the scopes they approve
Required for multi-user apps, SaaS products, and platforms
4. Set Up Your Development Environment
Install the tools for your environment. See the Tools page for Postman collections and other utilities.
5. Install an SDK
To make integration easier, we offer official SDKs in the most popular languages:
Python
Java
C#
PHP
These SDKs handle encryption, session creation, and API communication for you — so you can focus on building.
The official SDKs are archived on GitHub and no longer actively maintained, but remain available as a reference:
For new integrations, we recommend calling the API directly using the examples in these docs.
Why use an SDK?
Simplifies authentication and session handling
Automatically manages request signing and response parsing
Speeds up development with helpful abstractions
6. Try a Tutorial
We offer a few Tutorials that help you step-by-step to understand the basics. These tutorials exist:
7. Explore Callbacks (Webhooks) for Real-Time Updates
bunq supports webhooks to notify your app in real time when something happens — like receiving a payment or a card transaction. These events are also available via the API, but webhooks let you react instantly without polling. Just register a callback URL, and bunq will send a signed POST request whenever an event occurs.
Learn how to set up these callbacks here
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