Responding to disputes using the API

You can respond to disputes in the Stripe Dashboard, where we guide you through submitting the optimal evidence for each dispute reason.

You can also programmatically manage disputes using the API. With the API, you can upload evidence, respond to disputes, and receive dispute events using webhooks. For more details, retrieve a Dispute object:

curl https://api.stripe.com/v1/disputes/{{DISPUTE_ID}} \
  -u 
sk_test_4eC39HqLyjWDarjtT1zdp7dc

The response contains information about the dispute and any response or evidence that’s already been provided.

{
  object: "dispute"
  id: "{{DISPUTE_ID}}",
  charge: "ch_5Q4BjL06oPWwho",
  evidence: {
    customer_name: "Jane Austen",
    customer_purchase_ip: "127.0.0.1",
    product_description: "Widget ABC, color: red",
    shipping_tracking_number: "Z01234567890",
    uncategorized_text: "Additional notes and comments",
  },
  evidence_details: {
    due_by: 1403047735,
    submission_count: 1
  }
  ...
}

You update the Dispute object and pass structured evidence with the evidence parameter.

curl https://api.stripe.com/v1/disputes/{{DISPUTE_ID}} \
  -u 
sk_test_4eC39HqLyjWDarjtT1zdp7dc
 \
  -d "evidence[customer_email_address]"="email@example.com" \
  -d "evidence[shipping_date]"=2/18/2023 \
  -d "evidence[shipping_documentation]"="{{FILE_ID}}"

To view all available fields for the evidence parameter, see Dispute evidence. There are two types of evidence you can provide, depending on the field being updated:

• Text-based evidence, such as customer_email and service_date. These types of evidence take a string of text.
• File-based evidence, such as service_documentation and customer_communication. These take a file_upload object ID.

You can provide documents or images (for example, a contract or screenshot) as part of dispute evidence using the File Upload API. You first upload a document with the purpose of dispute_evidence, which generates a File_upload object that you can use when submitting evidence. Make sure the file meets Stripe’s recommendations before uploading it for evidence submission.

If you’re only interested in submitting a single file or a large amount of plaintext as evidence, use uncategorized_text or uncategorized_file. However, fill in as many fields as possible so you have the best chance at overturning a dispute.