A cloud receipt printing API that prints instantly
Trigger a designed receipt on a real thermal printer from anywhere your code runs — server, edge function, or webhook — with one HTTPS call. Fully managed: no print server to host, no rendering to build, no drivers to ship.
Print from the cloud, without the cloud tax
A cloud receipt printing API lets any application trigger a physical receipt without ever talking to the printer directly. That's essential for web and mobile apps, which can't reach a local printer on their own.
The usual trade-off is speed: most cloud approaches either make the printer poll for jobs or stream a fully rendered image on every sale. ReceiptKit avoids both. The cloud coordinates the print and stores your templates, while a bridge on the printer's network does the rendering — so you get cloud convenience with local speed.
Cloud coordinates, bridge renders
One call to print
It's plain HTTP and JSON — call it from any language or framework.
1// One HTTPS call from anywhere — server, edge, or webhook. 2const res = await fetch('https://www.receiptkit.io/api/bridge/print', { 3 method: 'POST', 4 headers: { 5 'Authorization': 'Bearer rk_live_xxxxx', 6 'Content-Type': 'application/json' 7 }, 8 body: JSON.stringify({ 9 printerEndpoint: 'tcp:00:11:62:32:5a:2a',10 templateId: 'your-template-id',11 data: { orderNumber: '1042', total: 25.98 }12 })13});Two ways to print: HTTP or direct MQTT
Every example here uses the HTTP API. For real-time or high-frequency printing, the ReceiptKit SDK can publish directly to the bridge over MQTT — bypassing the HTTP hop and adding live bridge and printer status. Read the SDK docs →
A managed platform, not just an endpoint
Instant, push-based prints
The API sends a tiny JSON message over MQTT to a bridge on the printer's network, which renders and prints locally — so receipts start printing the instant the data arrives, not after a polling cycle.
Managed templates
Design receipts once in a visual editor and reference them by ID. Update a template and every future print uses it — no redeploys, no hard-coded layouts in your app.
Multi-location & teams
Organizations, team members, and per-org printers are first-class, so many locations and staff share one account and one API cleanly.
Simple, secure auth
Authenticate with API keys and print over HTTPS. Manage keys, printers, and bridges from the dashboard.
Resilient by design
Because rendering happens locally at the bridge, the printer keeps working even when only a small control message needs to reach it — no giant image to stream on every sale.
Nothing to host
The cloud coordinates prints and stores templates; you never stand up or maintain a print server. Call the API and go.
Running in production today
The same cloud API prints thousands of real receipts from a browser-based POS at Family Hardware. See how it came about →
Common questions
What is a cloud receipt printing API?
It's an HTTP API that lets any app trigger a receipt on a physical thermal printer without talking to the printer directly. Your app sends order data to the cloud, and the service gets a printed receipt to the right device — handling rendering, formatting, and delivery.
How does ReceiptKit's cloud API reach the printer?
It sends a small JSON message over MQTT to a lightweight bridge running on the printer's local network. The bridge combines that data with a cached template, renders the receipt locally, and streams it to the printer over TCP or USB.
Why not just stream a rendered image from the cloud?
Streaming a full rendered image on every sale is slow and gets worse with logos and barcodes. Sending only the order JSON (a few hundred bytes) and rendering at the bridge keeps prints sub-second regardless of design complexity.
What do I need to install?
A free bridge on a machine that shares a network with the printer — a desktop app or a Raspberry Pi image. After that, printing is a plain HTTPS call from anywhere your code runs.
Which printers and connections are supported?
Star Micronics thermal printers over TCP/IP (Ethernet or Wi-Fi on the same network) or USB. You keep the hardware you already have.
Start printing from the cloud
Design a template, install the free bridge, and print with a single API call — no print server to run.