Instance name
July 30, 2026
What the instance name is in FlowAlp Pay, where it appears in your payment page domain, and how to pass it in every Merchant API request.
The instance — also called the tenant name — is the technical identifier of your merchant account in FlowAlp Pay. It appears in the domain of your payment pages and must be sent as the instance query parameter with every Merchant API request.
Where the instance appears
Instance: demo-shop
Tenant URL: https://demo-shop.pay.flowalp.com
API request: https://api.pay.flowalp.com/v1.16/SignatureCheck/?instance=demo-shopThe general form of your tenant domain is https://<instance>.pay.flowalp.com. You use it to sign in to your dashboard, and your hosted payment pages are served under it.
Instance vs. other identifiers
Do not confuse the instance with other identifiers you will meet in the documentation:
| Identifier | What it identifies |
|---|---|
| Instance name | Your merchant account (this article). |
| API Secret | The credential that authenticates your API requests — never share it. |
| Gateway ID | One checkout session created through the API. |
| Transaction ID | One payment transaction. |
| referenceId | Your own order ID, passed by you when creating a payment. |
| FlowAlp Organization ID | Your organization in the FlowAlp Dashboard, outside FlowAlp Pay. |
Using the instance in the Merchant API
Every request carries the instance as a query parameter:
https://api.pay.flowalp.com/v1.16/:object/:id?instance=<instance>| Part | Description |
|---|---|
| :object | The resource, for example Gateway, Transaction, or Subscription. |
| :id | The entity ID, used for GET, PUT, and DELETE on a single entity. |
| instance | Your instance name — always in the query string. |
For POST requests, all other parameters belong in the request body; only instance stays in the query string. Details: Merchant API overview and Authentication.
Check your setup
Combine your instance with an API Secret (see API credentials) and verify the pair with SignatureCheck:
curl --request GET \
--url "https://api.pay.flowalp.com/v1.16/SignatureCheck/?instance=demo-shop" \
--header "x-api-key: <api-secret>"A response with HTTP status 200 and a success status confirms that the instance and API Secret are valid.
Security notes
- The instance name is visible in URLs and is not a secret on its own — but never expose it together with the API Secret in frontend code.
- Requests with a valid instance but a missing or wrong API Secret are rejected.
- You may log the instance name; never log the API Secret.
Instance identified? Create your API credentials next, then send your first API request.