The payment service behind a checkout
An online shop can use Stripe Checkout, a ready-made payment page, or connect its own checkout to Stripe through an API. Stripe processes the payment and reports whether it succeeded or failed. The shop still manages the order and customer experience, including fulfilment and refund decisions.
Staff can review payments in Stripe’s dashboard. Developers can test payment flows in a separate sandbox without moving real money.
Payment status can arrive later
Some payments finish after the customer leaves the checkout page. Stripe can send the result to the shop through a webhook. The shop should mark an order as paid only after Stripe confirms payment.