Authorize.net Integration: Setting up sandbox account for new form without affecting existing live connections

Hello

We have existing forms that are functional. We cloned one to create a new form, but we need to put it in test mode with our authorize.net sandbox account. This was straightforward the last time we created a new form.

Now when going to payment settings in the form if we try to connect the new form to the authorize.net sandbox account, it appears to apply that payment setting to all the forms, making them inoperable. It keeps creating connections that get greyed out each time a new one is created. We can't choose between the live connection and the sandbox connection either, but we are sure we were able to do this a couple of years ago when we set up the first forms.

The chatbot is not helping.

We need help by a person walking us through setting up the connection to authorize.net sandbox account for our new form, without affecting the connections for our existing forms, and allowing us to switch to the live connections once the form is fully tested.

I can't upload a screenshot because I'm on a PC and when I take it and save it, it's a PDF.

Hi PMAC,

Thanks for reaching out to Jotform Support. I'm an AI assistant here to assist you.

Let me walk you through how Authorize.Net connections work now and how you can set up a sandbox connection for just your new (cloned) form.

Important background about Authorize.Net connections

Jotform now uses reusable payment connections for Authorize.Net. That means:

• Each connection (live or sandbox) is created once with your API Login ID, Transaction Key, and Client Key.
• That connection then appears in a list and can be reused on multiple forms.
• When you see multiple connections that look “greyed out,” those are just saved reusable connections; they are not all active on every form. Each form still uses only the specific connection you select for that form.

So, to test only your new cloned form in sandbox mode, you just need to create (or select) a Test Mode Authorize.Net connection and then attach that connection only to this form.

Phase 1 – Add Authorize.Net to your cloned form

Here’s how to do it:

1. Go to your cloned form in Form Builder.
2. Click on Add Element on the top-left side of the page.
3. Click on the Payments tab.
4. Select Authorize.Net to add it to your form (if it is already there from the clone, just click on the existing Authorize.Net / Product List field instead).

Phase 2 – Create or select a sandbox (Test Mode) connection

Now you will work only with the payment settings of this cloned form:

1. Click on the Authorize.Net / Product List field, then on the right side open the Payment Settings panel (the wand/gear icon).
2. In the Payment Connection section, click on the Plug icon next to the Trash Can icon.

1. In the window that opens, at the top-right, select Test Mode (this is what connects to your Authorize.Net sandbox). Make sure it is not set to Live Mode for this connection.
2. Enter a clear Connection Name, for example: AuthorizeNet Sandbox or PMAC Sandbox.
3. Enter your sandbox API Login ID, Transaction Key, and Client Key from your Authorize.Net sandbox account.
4. Click on Connect with Authorized.Net.

1. Once you see the confirmation that the connection was successful, click on Save.

After saving, you will see a list of your existing Authorize.Net connections (this is where you are seeing multiple entries and some greyed out).

1. Find and select the sandbox connection you just created (e.g., AuthorizeNet Sandbox).
2. Click on Use so that this form uses that sandbox connection.

At this point:

• Your cloned form is using the Test Mode / sandbox connection.
• Your older forms will continue using whichever live connection is selected in their own Payment Settings; they are not automatically switched just because you created a new connection.

Phase 3 – Switching the cloned form from sandbox to live later

Once you finish testing and want to go live on this new form:

1. Open the same cloned form in Form Builder.
2. Click on the Authorize.Net / Product List field and open Payment Settings.
3. Click on the Plug icon again in the Payment Connection section.
4. Either select an existing Live Mode connection from the list (for example the same live connection your other forms use) and click Use, or create a new Live Mode connection by switching to Live Mode at the top-right, entering your live API credentials, and saving.

This change affects only the form where you perform these steps; other forms keep their own selected connection.

If your other forms became inoperable

If some of your existing forms stopped working after experimenting with connections, it usually means those forms no longer have a valid connection selected. For each affected form:

1. Open the form in Form Builder.
2. Open Payment Settings for the Authorize.Net field.
3. Click on the Plug icon, then select the correct Live Mode connection from the list and click Use.

Once that is done, the form should work again with live payments.

If anything on your screen looks different from these steps (for example, you do not see Test Mode / Live Mode, or the Plug icon), please describe exactly what you see in the Payment Settings panel (any labels, buttons, or messages), and after we hear back from you, we’ll have a better idea of what’s going on and how to help.

Reach out again if you need any other help.

adding the new connection to the sandbox account at authorize.net doesn't work. authorize.net requires it to be in live mode, but if I add a new connection in live mode and test I get an error. If I add it in test mode it connects to authorize.net, but when I try a transaction it fails.

would be nice to speak to a real person who can walk through and troubleshoot the issues

Hi PMAC,

One of our Support Team members will take it from here to follow up shortly.

Let us know if you have any other questions.

that's what you said yesterday and I'm still waiting. How will they contact me? How long am I supposed to sit here waiting?

Hi pmacsociety,

I cloned your form and was able to connect it to the Authorize.net payment integration in Test Mode or Sandbox. I've followed the steps shared by our AI assistant above:

1. In Form Builder, click on the Credit Card icon on the right side, and on the Payment Properties that comes from the right, click on the Plug icon.
2. Now, a Payment Connections window will pop up. Click on the Add New Connection button, select Authorize.net payment integration, and click on the Next button.
3. Next, in the Add Authorize.Net Connections window, toggle Authorize.net to Test Mode. Then enter all the credentials for the test account. Take note that the credentials for Live Mode and Test Mode are different. You can go to Developer Sandbox Account to get test credentials.
4. After that, click on the Connect with Authorize.net button. Finally, click on the Save button.

You mentioned that after following the steps above, the other forms using Authorize.net payment integration were automatically switched to Test Mode as well. If possible, could you share a short screen recording showing that behavior? That would really help us understand what’s happening. Loom works well for recording, or you can upload to Google Drive or Dropbox and send us the link.

Give it a try and let us know if you’ve got other questions. 

I didn't say the other forms using Authorize.net payment integration were automatically switched to Test Mode as well. I said when it was in test mode the test transaction didn't work. It didn't say why.

I now have it working. thanks