Paid WiFi (Stripe)

Charge guests for timed WiFi access, paid directly on your splash page with card, Apple Pay or Google Pay. Payments go straight to your own Stripe account.

Overview

With Paid WiFi enabled, guests see a paid splash page instead of your standard sign-in form. They pick a pass (for example 1 hour for £1.00 or 24 hours for £9.99), accept your WiFi terms and conditions, and pay. As soon as the payment succeeds they are online, and they are disconnected automatically when their time runs out.

You do not need to collect names or emails on the splash page: CaptiFi logs the guest's name and email from their Stripe payment details, so your guest database keeps growing as normal.

Works with CaptiFi Plug and Play devices, UniFi, TP-Link Omada, Aruba, Cisco, Meraki and Ruckus.

One splash page at a time

Enabling Paid WiFi replaces your standard free splash page for that venue. The two cannot run at the same time. Disable Paid WiFi at any point to bring the free splash page straight back.

Setup

Step 1: Get your Stripe API keys

1. Log in to Stripe
2. Go to Developers → API keys
3. Copy the Publishable key (starts with pk_)
4. Reveal and copy the Secret key (starts with sk_)

Use your live keys for real payments. Test keys (pk_test_ / sk_test_) work too if you want a trial run first.

Step 2: Connect Stripe in CaptiFi

1. Log in to app.captifi.io or my.captifi.io
2. Go to Integrations → Paid WiFi (Stripe)
3. Select your venue
4. Paste your Publishable key and Secret key
5. Choose your currency and which payment methods to offer (card is always on; Apple Pay and Google Pay can be toggled)
6. Click Save Stripe Settings, then Test Connection to confirm

Your secret key is stored encrypted and is never shown again in full.

Step 3: Create your access plans

1. In Access Plans & Pricing, add up to 8 plans
2. For each plan set an optional label, the access time (30 minutes up to 7 days) and the price
3. Click Save Plans

Example: "Quick Browse" at 1 hour for £1.00, and "All Day" at 24 hours for £9.99.

Step 4: Enable Paid WiFi

1. In WiFi Access Mode, select Paid WiFi
2. Your standard splash page is replaced immediately
3. To go back to free access, select Standard Splash

CaptiFi automatically updates your hardware so guests can reach Stripe's payment pages before they are online (UniFi controllers via the API, CaptiFi devices over their management tunnel). If you run Omada, Meraki, Aruba or Cisco, add these domains to your controller's pre-authentication allowlist / walled garden:

js.stripe.com
api.stripe.com
m.stripe.network
q.stripe.com
pay.google.com
apple-pay-gateway.apple.com

Tracking payments

The Paid WiFi page shows, per venue:

• Total revenue, last 30 days, passes sold and how many paid guests are online now
• A Payments received table with each guest's name, email, plan, amount paid, status and the time they have left online

Every paid guest also appears in your normal Guests list, so marketing integrations and email campaigns keep working.

FAQ

Do guests still accept my WiFi terms and conditions? Yes. The standard accept/reject terms modal appears before payment, exactly as on the free splash page.

Where does the money go? Directly to your own Stripe account. CaptiFi never touches the funds and takes no commission. Stripe's standard processing fees apply.

Do guests get a receipt? Yes, Stripe emails a receipt to the address used at payment.

What happens when the time runs out? The guest is disconnected automatically. To get back online they buy another pass.

Why can't I see the Apple Pay or Google Pay buttons? The wallet buttons only appear on devices that support them: Apple Pay shows in Safari on iPhone, iPad and Mac (with a card in Wallet), and Google Pay shows in Chrome or on Android (with a card saved to the Google account). On other browsers guests simply pay by card. Both wallets must also be enabled as payment methods in your Stripe Dashboard under Settings → Payment methods (most accounts have Apple Pay on by default, but Google Pay is sometimes off). CaptiFi registers the Apple Pay payment domain with your Stripe account automatically when you save your keys.

Can I refund a guest? Yes, refund the payment in your Stripe dashboard as normal. (Refunds do not yet end an active session automatically.)