---
title: Payment profile sessions
description: Secure hosted flows for managing customer payment methods
---

A payment profile session is a hosted flow in which a customer adds, updates, or removes a
payment method. The session does that one job. It processes no order and it collects no
payment.

## Payment profile session entity

A payment profile session in the API represents:

- **Profile management flow**: Hosted interface specifically for payment method addition and updates
- **Security context**: PCI DSS compliant environment for handling sensitive payment information
- **Customer integration**: Seamless integration with customer accounts and existing payment profiles
- **Validation framework**: Real-time payment method validation and fraud detection

## Key capabilities

- **Profile creation** — Secure hosted flows for customers to add new payment methods to their accounts.
- **Profile updates** — A customer updates the details of a payment method and its billing information.
- **Method validation** — Real-time validation of payment methods with fraud detection and verification.
- **Seamless integration** — Embed payment profile management directly into customer portals and applications.

## Common use cases

- **Account setup** — Guide new customers through payment method setup during account registration.
- **Profile management** — Enable existing customers to manage their stored payment methods through self-service.
- **Payment recovery** — Assist customers in updating payment methods when automatic billing fails.
- **Method verification** — Verify customer payment methods for compliance and fraud prevention requirements.

## Related resources

Payment Profile Session entities coordinate with other API resources:

- **Payment profiles**: Create and update payment profiles through dedicated hosted sessions
- **Customers**: Customer-specific payment profile management and account integration
- **Payment sessions**: Standard payment flows that can also create payment profiles
- **Subscriptions**: Payment profile updates for subscription billing and automatic payments
- **Payments**: Use updated payment profiles for immediate and future payment processing

## Next steps

- [Create profile session](/api-reference/payment-profile-sessions.md#tag/payment-profile-sessions/POST/payment-profiles/sessions) — Start a new payment profile management flow
- [Get profile session](/api-reference/payment-profile-sessions.md#tag/payment-profile-sessions/GET/payment-profiles/sessions/{paymentProfileSessionId}) — Check payment profile session status
- [Cancel profile session](/api-reference/payment-profile-sessions.md#tag/payment-profile-sessions/POST/payment-profiles/sessions/{paymentProfileSessionId}/cancel) — Cancel an active profile management session