# Setup Polar

> Interactive onboarding wizard to set up Polar payment integration from scratch. Use this skill when: (1) User wants to "set up Polar" or "integrate Polar" in their project; (2) User is starting fresh with Polar and needs guided setup; (3) User asks "how do I get started with Polar"; (4) User wants to add payments/subscriptions/checkout to their app using Polar; (5) User needs help creating their first Polar product and checkout. This skill walks through MCP installation, authentication, product creation, and generates framework-specific integration code.

- Skill: `polarsource/setup-polar` (Agent Skill)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add polarsource/setup-polar`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/polarsource/setup-polar/raw
- Safety review: pending
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: AI & ML
- Author: polarsource (https://skillmd.com/u/polarsource)
- Updated: 2026-09-17
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/polarsource/setup-polar

---


# Polar Setup Wizard

Interactive setup guide to get Polar payments working in your project.

## Setup Flow

Follow these steps in order:

### Step 1: Check MCP Availability

First, check if the Polar MCP server is available. Try listing products or organizations using MCP tools.

**If MCP tools work:** Skip to Step 3.

**If MCP not available:** Continue to Step 2.

### Step 2: Install Polar MCP

Guide the user to install the Polar MCP server based on their environment:

**Claude Code:**
```bash
# Production
claude mcp add --transport http "Polar" "https://mcp.polar.sh/mcp/polar-mcp"

# Sandbox (recommended for setup)
claude mcp add --transport http "Polar Sandbox" "https://mcp.polar.sh/mcp/polar-sandbox"
```

**Cursor** (`.cursor/mcp.json`):
```json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "Polar Sandbox": {
      "url": "https://mcp.polar.sh/mcp/polar-sandbox"
    }
  }
}
```

After installation, the user must:
1. Restart their editor/CLI
2. Authenticate when prompted (redirects to polar.sh)

Once authenticated, verify MCP works by listing organizations.

### Step 3: Gather Project Context

Ask the user:

1. **Framework**: What framework are you using?
   - Next.js (App Router)
   - Next.js (Pages Router)
   - Express.js
   - FastAPI (Python)
   - Other

2. **Environment**: Start with sandbox or production?
   - Sandbox (recommended for new setups)
   - Production

3. **Product type**: What are you selling?
   - Subscription (recurring)
   - One-time purchase
   - Both

### Step 4: Create Organization (if needed)

Use MCP to check if user has an organization. If not, guide them to create one at:
- Sandbox: https://sandbox.polar.sh/start
- Production: https://polar.sh/start

### Step 5: Create First Product

Use MCP to create a test product. Example for subscription:

```
Create a product with:
- Name: "Pro Plan"
- Monthly price: $29
- Organization: [user's org]
```

Store the returned product ID for checkout integration.

### Step 6: Generate Integration Code

Hand off to the `polar-integration` skill to generate the Checkout, Customer Portal, and Webhooks endpoints for the framework selected in Step 3. That skill has the canonical, framework-agnostic recipes plus per-framework variations.

Before invoking it, make sure the user has these environment variables ready (use whatever loader their framework provides):

```bash
POLAR_ACCESS_TOKEN=    # from polar.sh/settings (or sandbox)
POLAR_WEBHOOK_SECRET=  # created in Step 7
POLAR_SERVER=sandbox   # omit or set to "production" when going live
```

Pass along the product ID from Step 5 so checkout links can be tested in Step 8.

### Step 7: Set Up Webhooks

1. Start the local development server.
2. Start ngrok against the dev server's port:
   ```bash
   ngrok http <port>
   ```
3. Copy the ngrok URL (e.g., `https://abc123.ngrok.io`).

Use MCP to create a webhook endpoint, or guide the user to the dashboard:
- Sandbox: https://sandbox.polar.sh → Settings → Webhooks
- Add endpoint: `https://[ngrok-url]/<webhook-path>` (use the path from the route generated in Step 6).
- Select events: `order.paid`, `subscription.created`, `subscription.canceled`.
- Copy the webhook secret into the env var loader from Step 6.

### Step 8: Test the Integration

1. Start the dev server.
2. Visit the checkout URL with the product ID from Step 5 (path and query shape come from the route generated in Step 6).
3. Complete checkout using test card: `4242 4242 4242 4242`.
4. Verify the webhook was received in terminal logs.
5. Check the success page displays correctly.

### Step 9: Next Steps

Once basic setup works, suggest:

1. **Add customer portal** - Let users manage subscriptions (Recipe 2 in `polar-integration`).
2. **Link to your auth** - Pass `externalCustomerId` in checkout.
3. **Add benefits** - License keys, file downloads, Discord roles.
4. **Go production** - Switch `POLAR_SERVER` from `sandbox` to `production`.