GitHub Self-host free

How do I run RevenueDot and make a first purchase in 5 minutes?

Start the server with Docker, seed it with a Test Store app, make a purchase with curl, then point an SDK at it. You need no App Store or Google Play account. Most of the 5 minutes is the first image build.

You need Docker with Compose v2, plus git, curl and jq. To skip running a server, sign up for RevenueDot Cloud at app.revenuedot.app and use https://api.revenuedot.app wherever this page says http://localhost:8787.

1. Start RevenueDot#

Shell
git clone https://github.com/revenuedot/revenuedot.git
cd revenuedot
cp .env.example .env          # sets POSTGRES_PASSWORD; change it before the first start
docker compose up -d          # builds the image, starts the server and Postgres
curl http://localhost:8787/v1/health
JSON
{"status":"ok"}

One container serves the SDK API, the REST API and the dashboard on port 8787. To use another host port, set REVENUEDOT_PORT=8797 in .env. The dashboard is at http://localhost:8787/login; the bare / path returns a small JSON document.

2. Seed a project with a Test Store app#

The seed script uses only the public API. It creates a dashboard account and project, a Test Store app, three products, a pro entitlement, a default offering and a secret key.

Shell
curl -fsSLO https://raw.githubusercontent.com/revenuedot/examples/main/selfhost/docker-compose/seed.sh
bash seed.sh                   # RD_URL=http://localhost:8797 bash seed.sh for another port
Text
RevenueDot is seeded.
  Dashboard        http://localhost:8787  (sign in as dev@example.com)
  Project id       projqhf9p5jb
  Test Store key   test_960d2b3001bac439c7a73d7f4214514c      <- the SDK's API key; the SDK's proxy URL is http://localhost:8787
  Secret key       sk_8b8dc12a743e51f4de759b0b9c6d372e6d25d32fe7280672    <- server-side only (REST API, backend checks)
Try it:
  curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer test_960d2b3001bac439c7a73d7f4214514c" http://localhost:8787/v1/subscribers/user_1/offerings

Save the two keys for the next steps:

Shell
export TEST_KEY=test_...   # the Test Store key printed above
export SECRET_KEY=sk_...   # the secret key printed above

To see what the script does, or to do it by hand, read the seed script. Each step is one REST API v2 call. You can also do everything in the dashboard.

3. Ask for offerings, as the SDK does#

Shell
curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $TEST_KEY" http://localhost:8787/v1/subscribers/user_1/offerings
JSON
{"current_offering_id":"default","offerings":[{"description":"Standard plans","identifier":"default","metadata":null,"packages":[{"identifier":"$rc_monthly","platform_product_identifier":"pro_monthly"},{"identifier":"$rc_annual","platform_product_identifier":"pro_annual"},{"identifier":"$rc_lifetime","platform_product_identifier":"pro_lifetime"}]}]}

4. Make a Test Store purchase#

In an app, the SDK makes this call for you after the user confirms the Test Store dialog. The Test Store accepts any fetch_token of the form test_<purchase time in ms>_<id>.

Shell
curl -s http://localhost:8787/v1/receipts \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TEST_KEY" -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d "{\"app_user_id\":\"user_1\",\"fetch_token\":\"test_$(date +%s)000_quickstart\",\"product_id\":\"pro_monthly\",\"price\":9.99,\"currency\":\"USD\"}"

The answer is the customer's info. pro is now in entitlements, active until one month from now:

JSON
{
  "request_date": "2026-09-30T19:49:29Z",
  "subscriber": {
    "entitlements": {
      "pro": { "expires_date": "2026-10-30T19:49:29Z", "grace_period_expires_date": null, "product_identifier": "pro_monthly", "purchase_date": "2026-09-30T19:49:29Z" }
    },
    "original_app_user_id": "user_1",
    "subscriptions": {
      "pro_monthly": { "store": "test_store", "is_sandbox": true, "period_type": "normal", "expires_date": "2026-10-30T19:49:29Z", "...": "..." }
    }
  },
  "purchased_products": { "pro_monthly": { "should_consume": false } }
}

Check the same customer through the REST API with the secret key:

Shell
curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $SECRET_KEY" \
  "http://localhost:8787/v2/projects/<project id>/customers/user_1/active_entitlements"

5. Point an SDK at your server#

Use the Test Store key as the SDK's API key and your server as its proxy URL. The shortest path is the purchases-js web example, which runs in a browser in two minutes:

Shell
git clone https://github.com/revenuedot/examples.git && cd examples/web/purchases-js-vite
npm install
printf "VITE_REVENUEDOT_URL=http://localhost:8787\nVITE_REVENUEDOT_API_KEY=$TEST_KEY\n" > .env.local
npm run dev                    # open http://localhost:5199, click Buy, then "Test valid purchase"

In your own app, the change is the same on every platform: set the proxy URL before configuring, and turn off the response-signature check where the SDK has one.

Swift
// iOS: Point the SDK at your RevenueDot server; nothing else in the app changes.
Purchases.proxyURL = URL(string: "http://localhost:8787")!
Purchases.configure(with: Configuration.Builder(withAPIKey: "test_...").with(entitlementVerificationMode: .disabled).build())
Kotlin
// Android: Point the SDK at your RevenueDot server; nothing else in the app changes.
Purchases.proxyURL = URL("http://10.0.2.2:8787")   // the emulator reaches your computer as 10.0.2.2
Purchases.configure(PurchasesConfiguration.Builder(context, "test_...").entitlementVerificationMode(EntitlementVerificationMode.DISABLED).build())
TypeScript
// React Native / Expo: Point the SDK at your RevenueDot server; nothing else in the app changes.
await Purchases.setProxyURL("http://localhost:8787");
Purchases.configure({ apiKey: "test_..." });

Per-platform details, including Flutter, Capacitor, Kotlin Multiplatform, Unity and Cordova, are in the SDK guides. To use the RevenueDot fork packages instead, see How do I connect my app?.

Give each Test Store product a price in the dashboard (Product catalog, Edit product, Test Store price) so the paywall shows it; a product without one shows 0. Real prices come from the App Store and Google Play. See Test Store.

Next steps#

Edit this page on GitHub ↗ View as Markdown Last updated