> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://paylink.mintlify.site/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Introduction

> Overview of the PayLink SDK for MCP tool integration

## What is PayLink?

PayLink is an open-source framework designed to simplify payment integrations for AI agents by leveraging the Model Context Protocol (MCP). It provides a standardized interface for various payment providers, including M-Pesa and Airtel, enabling seamless integration of payment functionalities into your AI applications.

## How It Works

PayLink SDK connects to a PayLink MCP server via Server-Sent Events (SSE), allowing your application to:

1. **Discover available payment tools** on the server
2. **Call payment tools** with appropriate arguments
3. **Process payment results** from the tools

The SDK handles all the communication details, so you can focus on integrating payment functionality into your application.

## Getting Started with PayLink

Before using the PayLink SDK, you need to complete the following setup steps:

1. **Create a PayLink Account**: Sign up for a PayLink account to obtain your API key
2. **Configure Payment Providers**: Set up the payment providers you want to use
3. **Add Payment Provider Keys**: Configure the necessary credentials for each provider

### Required Configuration

When initializing the PayLink SDK, you'll need to provide the following:

* **PayLink API Key**: Your unique API key from your PayLink account
* **PayLink Project**: Your project identifier
* **Payment Providers**: List of payment providers you want to use
* **Provider-specific Keys**: Credentials for each payment provider

You can provide these values directly when initializing the client or through environment variables:

```python theme={null}
# Example .env file configuration
PAYLINK_API_KEY=your_api_key_here
PAYLINK_PROJECT=your_project_id
PAYLINK_TRACING=enabled  # Optional for debugging
PAYMENT_PROVIDER=["mpesa"]  # JSON array of providers

# M-Pesa specific settings (if using M-Pesa)
MPESA_BUSINESS_SHORTCODE=your_shortcode
MPESA_CONSUMER_SECRET=your_consumer_secret
MPESA_CONSUMER_KEY=your_consumer_key
MPESA_CALLBACK_URL=your_callback_url
MPESA_PASSKEY=your_passkey
MPESA_BASE_URL=your_base_url
```

## Architecture Overview

The PayLink ecosystem consists of three main components:

1. **PayLink Server**: Hosts payment tools and connects to payment providers
2. **PayLink SDK**: Client libraries for connecting to the server
3. **Payment Providers**: External services like M-Pesa, Airtel, etc.

## Available SDK Clients

<CardGroup cols={3}>
  <Card title="Python" icon="python" href="/sdk/python">
    For Python applications and AI frameworks
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

## Framework Integrations

PayLink SDK provides specialized adapters for popular AI frameworks, making it easy to integrate payment functionality into AI-driven applications:

* **OpenAI Compatible**: Use PayLink with OpenAI’s function-calling API to enable AI agents to process payments.
* **LangChain Compatible**: Integrate PayLink with LangChain agents for building payment-enabled AI workflows.

## Getting Started

To start using the PayLink SDK, you'll need to:

1. **Create a PayLink Account** to obtain your API key
2. **Configure Payment Providers** in your PayLink dashboard
3. **Set up Provider Credentials** for your chosen payment methods

For detailed setup instructions and code examples, see our [Quickstart Guide](/get-started/quickstart).

## Next Steps

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Quick Start" icon="play" href="/get-started/quickstart">
    Get up and running with a simple example
  </Card>

  <Card title="SDK Reference" icon="code" href="/sdk/python">
    Explore the complete Python SDK documentation
  </Card>
</CardGroup>