Written by Admin on 2025-05-06

Expiring Download Links with WordPress and PayPal

Do you sell digital products on your WordPress site? If so, you're probably familiar with the frustration of customers sharing download links with others or downloading your content multiple times without paying. Thankfully, there's a solution: expiring download links.

With PayPal, you can set up expiring download links so that customers have a limited amount of time to download their purchase. Here's how to do it:

1. Install a Download Management Plugin

There are several WordPress plugins that allow you to manage downloads, but not all of them support expiring links. One option is Easy Digital Downloads, which has a built-in option for expiring links. Another option is Download Monitor, which has a premium add-on for expiring links.

2. Set Up PayPal IPN

PayPal Instant Payment Notification (IPN) is a service that PayPal provides to notify your site when a payment has been made. This is essential for setting up expiring download links. To set up PayPal IPN, follow these steps:

• Log in to your PayPal account.
• Click on the gear icon in the top right corner and select "Account Settings."
• Click on "Website payments" in the left menu.
• Click on "Instant Payment Notification (IPN)" and then click "Choose IPN Settings."
• In the Notification URL field, enter your site's IPN URL. This will vary depending on your plugin and hosting setup. Refer to your plugin's documentation for instructions.

• Click "Save" to complete.

  3. Set Expiration Limits

Now that you have a download management plugin and PayPal IPN set up, you can set expiration limits for your downloads. In EDD, for example, you can do this by going to "Settings" > "File Download Limits" and choosing a time limit for your links. In Download Monitor, you can set expiration limits in the "Download Monitor" tab of each download's settings.

4. Test Your Links

Before making your downloads available to customers, test your links to make sure they're working properly. Try placing a test order on your site and downloading the file. Make sure that the link expires after the allotted time and that customers can't download it again without placing another order.

Expiring download links are a great way to protect your digital products and ensure that customers are paying for what they're getting. With the right plugin and PayPal setup, it's easy to implement this feature on your WordPress site.