How to Integrate Payments API for In-World Purchases (2026)

TL;DR

The Payments API is Highrise’s server-side scripting interface that lets World Creators charge Gold for exclusive content, special access, or gameplay features inside their experiences. Creators keep 90% of each transaction as Earned Gold, which can be cashed out through the Creator Exchange once they accumulate at least 35,000 Earned Gold. Implementation requires setting up products in the Creator Portal, writing Lua scripts in Highrise Studio, and handling all purchase logic on the server side.

What Is the Payments API?

The Payments API is the technical tool that makes In-World Purchases (IWP) possible inside Highrise Worlds. It provides server-side functions that let you prompt a player to buy something, process that purchase, and acknowledge it, all within the World experience you’ve built in Highrise Studio.

In-World Purchases are the product type. The Payments API is the mechanism that delivers them. When someone talks about how to integrate payments API for in-world purchases, they’re describing the full workflow: registering a product, writing the Lua script that triggers a purchase prompt, and handling the result.

What can you actually sell? The scope is broad:

• Exclusive items like clothing, furniture, or accessories unique to your World
• Access passes for VIP areas, locked rooms, or premium zones
• Gameplay features like power-ups, extra lives, or special abilities
• Tokens or currency that players spend within your World’s internal economy

Players pay with Gold, Highrise’s primary in-game currency. You can browse examples of the kinds of items creators design in the Highrise item catalog, though IWP products are specific to individual Worlds rather than listed in the global marketplace.

The system works similarly to how Roblox handles Developer Products, where creators define purchasable items and script the purchase flow. Highrise’s CEO has drawn this comparison directly, noting that creators build and monetize experiences through the Payments API in much the same way Roblox developers do through their platform’s purchase system.

How the Revenue Split Works

This is where things get interesting for creators, and where some confusion has crept in across Highrise’s own documentation.

The Current IWP Rate: 90/10

The most specific and recent Highrise documentation states that creators retain 90% of Gold spent on In-World Purchases. The platform keeps the remaining 10% to cover app store fees and infrastructure costs. That 90% is credited to your account as Earned Gold.

This is confirmed across the Highrise Support Center and the Payments scripting tutorial on the Creator Portal. If you integrate payments API for in-world purchases in your World today, you should expect the 90/10 split on those transactions.

Why You Might See 70/30 Elsewhere

Some broader earning overview pages on Highrise’s documentation still reference a 70/30 split. This discrepancy is a genuine source of confusion for creators. Practitioners on Reddit and in community forums have flagged the inconsistency when trying to calculate potential earnings.

The most likely explanation: the 70/30 figure applies to other monetization channels or reflects an older rate that hasn’t been updated across every documentation page. The IWP-specific pages consistently cite 90/10, and that’s the number to use when planning your monetization strategy.

How It Compares to Roblox

The comparison matters because both platforms target UGC creators building interactive experiences. Roblox’s standard developer revenue split is 70/30, meaning Roblox keeps 30% of every in-experience purchase. When you factor in the DevEx cash-out rate, Roblox developers effectively retain roughly 28% of what players originally spend, according to analysis from industry researchers.

Highrise’s 90% creator share on IWP (before the Earned Gold to cash conversion) is significantly more favorable. This positioning as a creator-friendly platform is intentional and frequently cited in press coverage, including Fast Company’s recognition of Pocket Worlds among the most innovative gaming companies of 2025.

Factor	Highrise IWP	Roblox Developer Products
Currency	Gold (Earned Gold to creator)	Robux
Revenue split	90/10	70/30
Cash-out threshold	35,000 Earned Gold	30,000 earned Robux
Script language	Lua (Highrise Studio/Unity)	Luau (Roblox Studio)
Server-side required	Yes	Yes
Product registration	Creator Portal	Roblox Studio

How In-World Purchases Fit the Creator Earning Ecosystem

The Payments API isn’t a standalone feature. It’s one of four monetization pillars available to Highrise creators. Understanding where IWP sits in this system helps you build a sustainable earning strategy rather than relying on a single income stream.

The Four Pillars

1. In-World Purchases (IWP): Active, transactional income. You set the product, price, and trigger conditions. Players choose to buy. This is what you get when you integrate payments API for in-world purchases.

2. Engagement-Based Payouts: Passive, daily income. Worlds earn payouts based on how much time Highrise+ subscribers spend in them. These are settled daily and paid automatically to all qualifying creators. Your World needs a rating above 50% to be eligible.

3. Tipping and Bot Tips: Players can tip other players and bots. Tips sent to bots are automatically converted to Earned Gold, creating another monetization path that’s related to but distinct from IWP.

4. Designer Payouts: For creators who design clothing, furniture, and accessories. In 2023, over 5,000 designers created unique items, with nearly half a million dollars paid to creators. You can submit your own concepts to Highrise through the design pipeline.

IWP is the pillar where creators have the most control. You decide what to sell, how much to charge, and what triggers the purchase prompt. Engagement payouts reward you for building sticky experiences. Tipping rewards social engagement. Designer payouts reward item creation. Together, they form a diversified monetization model.

For the latest changes to any of these earning channels, check the Highrise blog where updates are regularly announced.

Key Implementation Steps

Here’s a practical summary of how to integrate payments API for in-world purchases in your Highrise World. This covers the core workflow from product creation to testing.

Step 1: Create a Product in the Creator Portal

Before writing any code, you need to register the product you want to sell. Go to the Creator Portal and create a new product with a unique product ID. This ID is what your script will reference when prompting a purchase.

Give each product a clear name and description. Think about it from the player’s perspective: what are they getting, and is the value obvious?

Step 2: Write a Server-Side Lua Script

This is the most important technical requirement: all payment-related scripts must run on the server side. Do not use payment-related functions on the client side. This isn’t a suggestion. Client-side payment logic will not work and introduces security risks.

In Highrise Studio, create a Lua module script and attach it to an empty GameObject. Your script will use the Payments:PromptPurchase() function to trigger the purchase prompt for a player.

Step 3: Handle the Purchase Callback

When a player accepts or declines the purchase, your script receives a callback. You need to handle both outcomes:

• On success: Grant the item, unlock the area, or activate the feature the player paid for.
• On failure/decline: Make sure nothing changes. Don’t grant partial access.

The callback must acknowledge the purchase. Skipping this step can leave transactions in a broken state.

Step 4: Persist the Result

Use Highrise’s Storage or Inventory systems to save what the player purchased. Do not store purchase results in local variables, because those won’t survive a server restart or player reconnection. If someone buys a VIP pass and the server restarts, they should still have it.

Testing Your IWP

Testing has a couple of quirks you need to know about:

• World owners cannot purchase their own IWP products. You’ll need a second account to test the purchase flow in the live app.
• Before uploading your World, you can use goldfish or eel as test product IDs to simulate purchases directly in Unity. These are built-in test IDs that let you verify your script logic without setting up real products.
• After uploading, switch to the actual product IDs you created in the Creator Portal and test with your second account.

These testing restrictions create some friction, but they protect the integrity of the purchase system. Plan for the second account from the start.

If you haven’t set up your development environment yet, download Highrise to get started with Highrise Studio and begin building your World.

Earned Gold and Cashing Out

When you integrate payments API for in-world purchases and a player buys something, your 90% share arrives as Earned Gold. This is a distinct currency type within Highrise.

What Earned Gold Can Do

Earned Gold functions like regular Gold inside the platform. You can spend it on items, use it in the marketplace, or hold it. But unlike regular Gold, Earned Gold is also eligible for conversion to real money through the Creator Exchange.

Cash-Out Requirements

To convert Earned Gold to cash:

• You need a minimum of 35,000 Earned Gold in your account.
• Cash-out requests are processed through the Creator Exchange.
• Creators are allowed one completed cash-out request per calendar month.
• Payments are processed via Tipalti (the same processor Roblox uses for developer payouts).

The 35,000 threshold means you need to build real traction before cashing out. This isn’t a quick-flip system. It rewards creators who build sustained experiences that generate ongoing purchases and engagement.

Players purchase Gold through the Highrise shop, and when that Gold is spent on your IWP, you capture 90% of it as Earned Gold. The economic loop is straightforward: players buy Gold, spend it in your World, and you earn from every transaction.

Comparing IWP to Other Platform Models

The UGC economy is growing fast. According to the Naavik State of UGC 2026 report, platform payouts to creators reached approximately $2.2 billion in 2025, a 47% year-over-year increase. Highrise is part of this wave, and its IWP economics stand out.

For creators evaluating where to invest their development time, the revenue split is a critical factor. Highrise’s 90/10 IWP split means you keep nine times what the platform takes. On Roblox, you keep roughly 2.3 times what the platform takes (70/30 standard), and the gap widens further when you account for DevEx conversion rates.

Both platforms require server-side scripting for purchases, both use Lua (Highrise uses standard Lua, Roblox uses Luau), and both require product registration through a portal. The workflows are similar enough that Roblox developers transitioning to Highrise will find the concepts familiar.

Highrise’s scale supports real earning potential. The platform has over 50 million users and more than 10,000 creators. GamesBeat’s coverage of the Highrise 4.0 launch highlighted that some creators earn six-figure incomes, with Fast Company reporting one creator earned approximately $300,000 from a poker-themed speakeasy World.

You can explore published Worlds to see the range of experiences creators have built, many of which use IWP as a core monetization strategy.

Practical Tips for IWP Success

Beyond the technical implementation, a few strategic considerations will shape how much you actually earn from in-world purchases.

Price with the player in mind. Gold has a real cost to players. Set prices that feel fair for what you’re offering. A VIP area that unlocks thirty minutes of unique content justifies a higher price than a one-time cosmetic effect.

Layer IWP with engagement payouts. The best-earning Worlds combine both pillars. Compelling IWP products give players reasons to spend, while high engagement times generate passive daily payouts. Design experiences that keep players coming back, and offer purchases that enhance (not gate) the core experience.

Use IWP to reward, not punish. Players respond better to purchases that add value than to paywalls that block progress. A power-up that lets someone skip a tough challenge is more appealing than a locked door with no alternative.

Connect with other creators. The Highrise community is a good place to share strategies, get feedback on pricing, and see what’s working in other Worlds.

Related Terms

Understanding the vocabulary around IWP helps you navigate the documentation and community discussions more effectively.

• Earned Gold: Gold earned through IWP, engagement payouts, or tipping. It can be spent like regular Gold or cashed out through the Creator Exchange.
• Creator Exchange: The dashboard where creators convert Earned Gold to real-world cash. Requires 35,000 minimum Earned Gold and is limited to one cash-out per month.
• Gold Bars: Tradeable, fixed-denomination Gold used in player-to-player trades. These are a separate mechanism from IWP.
• World Wallet: A programmatic wallet API for awarding Gold within a World. This is a developer tool for incentivizing player behaviors, distinct from the Payments API.
• Engagement-Based Payouts: Passive daily earnings based on how much time Highrise+ subscribers spend in your World. Settled daily, paid automatically.
• Highrise Studio: The development environment (built on Unity with Lua scripting) where creators build Worlds and integrate features like the Payments API.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I buy my own IWP products to test them?

No. World owners cannot purchase their own In-World Purchases. You’ll need to use a separate account to test the purchase flow. For early testing in Unity before uploading, use the built-in test product IDs goldfish or eel.

What’s the minimum amount needed to cash out Earned Gold?

You need at least 35,000 Earned Gold to be eligible for a cash-out through the Creator Exchange. You’re limited to one completed cash-out request per calendar month.

Is the revenue split 90/10 or 70/30?

For In-World Purchases specifically, the current split is 90/10 (creator keeps 90%). Some broader earning overview pages still show 70/30, which likely reflects other monetization channels or an older rate. The IWP-specific documentation consistently states 90/10.

Do I need to know Lua to integrate payments API for in-world purchases?

Yes, Lua scripting is required. However, the Payments API uses straightforward functions like Payments:PromptPurchase(), and Highrise Studio provides templates and documentation. Basic scripting knowledge is enough to get started.

Can bots process In-World Purchases?

Bots and IWP are different systems. Bots can receive tips that convert to Earned Gold, but In-World Purchases are handled through the Payments API in Highrise Studio, not through the Bot API. Both generate Earned Gold, but they work through separate mechanisms.

How do engagement payouts differ from IWP earnings?

Engagement payouts are passive and automatic, calculated daily based on how much time Highrise+ subscribers spend in your World. IWP earnings are transactional, meaning you earn only when a player actively makes a purchase. Both result in Earned Gold.

Does Highrise work on PC, or is it mobile only?

Highrise is available on iOS, Android, macOS, Windows, and Steam. You can check out the Highrise Steam hub for the desktop version. Cross-platform play means your IWP products reach the full player base regardless of device.

How does Highrise’s IWP split compare to Roblox?

Highrise gives creators 90% of each IWP transaction. Roblox’s standard in-experience purchase split gives developers 70%. When you account for Roblox’s DevEx conversion rates, developers effectively retain roughly 28% of original player spending. Highrise’s split is substantially more favorable for creators.