# Payment States and Lifecycle

Explains how payments transition through their states in Orchestration, how each payment attempt tracks its own state, and how automatic versus manual capture affects the flow. Presented across three tabs: Payment States, Payment Attempts, and Capture Modes.

## What this page covers
- The payment state machine and a reference for each payment status
- The payment attempt lifecycle and how it differs from the overall payment
- Automatic versus manual capture modes and the authorisation window

## Payment states

The overall status values a payment moves through:

- `requires_payment_method` — payment created but no payment method attached yet
- `requires_confirmation` — payment method attached, awaiting confirmation
- `requires_action` — additional customer action needed (for example, 3DS authentication)
- `requires_capture` — payment authorised, awaiting capture (manual capture mode)
- `processing` — being processed by the payment processor
- `succeeded` — completed successfully
- `failed` — declined or errored
- `cancelled` — cancelled by merchant or system
- `partially_captured` — only part of the authorised amount has been captured

## Payment attempt states

Each attempt tracks its own connector-specific state:

- `Started` — attempt initiated
- `AuthenticationPending` — waiting for the customer to complete 3DS
- `AuthenticationSuccessful` — 3DS completed successfully
- `AuthenticationFailed` — 3DS failed or was abandoned
- `Authorizing` — authorisation request sent to the processor
- `Authorized` — authorised, funds reserved on the customer's card
- `AuthorizationFailed` — declined by processor or issuer
- `Charged` — captured successfully
- `Voided` — authorisation voided before capture
- `RouterDeclined` — routing failed (no eligible connector)

## Payment vs attempt
- A payment represents the merchant's intent to collect funds, has a single `payment_id`, tracks overall status, and can have multiple attempts.
- An attempt is a single try to process the payment, has its own `attempt_id`, tracks connector-specific status and response details, and failed attempts can trigger retries.

## Capture modes
- `capture_method: "automatic"` — funds captured immediately on authorisation. Default and most common. Best for digital goods, instant delivery, subscriptions.
- `capture_method: "manual"` — authorisation and capture are separate; funds reserved but not transferred until you capture. Best for physical goods, hotels/rentals, marketplaces.
- Authorisations under manual capture typically expire after around 7 days (varies by network and issuer); the `extend_authorization` endpoint can extend the window if the connector supports it.

## Related
- [Payment explorer](/payment-explorer.md): see a real payment highlighted on the state diagram
- [Payment flows](/payment-flows.md): choose a payment pattern that uses these states
- [API Playground](/playground.md): drive state transitions with confirm, capture, and cancel calls
- [Glossary](/glossary.md): definitions of authorisation, capture, CIT/MIT, and 3DS

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Interactive version: https://playground.peachpayments.com/payment-states