INDEPENDENT MERCHANT INTELLIGENCEPUBLIC BETA / SEPTEMBER 2026 BASELINE
Protocol decision brief / No winner badges

MPP vs x402

Which machine payment flow fits your resource and payment methods?

Merchant answer / Editorial synthesis

Both address machine-oriented payments. MPP’s team documents x402 exact-flow support in its SDK; that is a concrete interoperability claim with a specific scope, not proof every method is interchangeable. Compare supported methods, request semantics, facilitator or settlement dependencies, refunds and operational ownership for your exact use case. Public SDK availability is not a production test.

What this establishes
A practical way to inspect evidence and make the next merchant decision.

What it cannot establish
Live merchant deployment, private account eligibility, purchase completion or guaranteed AI selection.

Evidence dates and document versions remain attached to the ledger below. Editorial presentation reviewed 30 September 2026; this is not a new source verification.

The overlap

Both address machine-oriented payments. MPP’s team documents x402 exact-flow support in its SDK; that is a concrete interoperability claim with a specific scope, not proof every method is interchangeable.

The merchant decision

Compare supported methods, request semantics, facilitator or settlement dependencies, refunds and operational ownership for your exact use case. Public SDK availability is not a production test.

Layer-aware comparison / protocol

Where they overlap.
Where they complement.

Compare roles and implementation work. A shared capability does not make two systems interchangeable.

Decision dimensionMPPx402
LayerPaymentsPayments
RoleLets agents negotiate and pay for service access across supported payment methods.Connects a resource request to payment requirements and a paid retry.
Statusactive individual Internet-Draftpublished specification
Versiondraft-httpauth-payment-01 · normative core; broader SDK/method versions separate2
DiscoveryPayment offers for servicesResource-specific payment requirements
CheckoutNot a retail checkout modelOutside retail checkout scope
PaymentCore role: service accessHTTP 402 payment flow
AuthorizationPayment method and intent dependentScheme-dependent
TransportHTTP-oriented; SDK integrationHTTP-native
AdoptionTeam documents service integrations; not independently transactedPublic implementations; merchant deployment Unknown
What it does not solveDoes not supply retail catalogs, fulfillment or a complete store checkout.Does not describe a retail order, shipping policy or return workflow.
Evidence3 source record(s)

Checked 2026-09-28

draft; scope-dependent

3 source record(s)

Checked 2026-09-28

live; scope-dependent

Unknown ≠ unsupported. Announcements and product documentation are not proof of your live integration.

Overlap and replacement risk

These entries occupy a related layer. Test their exact operations, data paths and eligibility before treating one as a substitute. Keep your source of product truth, fulfillment responsibility and payment obligations explicit.

Evidence ledger

Go to the source.

Primary documentation records what is publicly stated. It does not independently prove outcomes or your account’s eligibility.

  • Machine Payments Protocol

    MPP · official primary · Checked 2026-09-28

    Claim scope: Agent payments for web services

    Open payment-method-extensible protocol; no retail-wide adoption inferred.

    Source ID: mpp-home · Published: Not stated

  • EVM and x402 support

    MPP · official primary · Checked 2026-09-28

    Claim scope: SDK interoperability

    MPP team documents x402 exact flows in mppx.

    Source ID: mpp-x402 · Published: 2026-06-08

  • Mpp Ietf — V1.1 source capture

    MPP authors / IETF Datatracker · official primary · Checked 2026-09-28

    Claim scope: Version metadata and documented changes only; not merchant adoption.

    SHA-256 of retrieved source response: fcb287fd83f5a74d9ebf5b06ade3849cbad9ca4581a88fc075554afc28956b69

    Source ID: v11-mpp-ietf · Published: Not stated

  • x402 repository

    x402 project · official primary · Checked 2026-09-28

    Claim scope: HTTP payment flow

    Repository says canonical development moved to x402 Foundation; Coinbase repo is a development fork.

    Source ID: x402-spec · Published: Not stated

  • x402 official site

    x402 · official primary · Checked 2026-09-28

    Claim scope: Internet-native payments

    Source ID: x402-site · Published: Not stated

  • X402 V2 — V1.1 source capture

    x402 maintainers · official primary · Checked 2026-09-28

    Claim scope: Version metadata and documented changes only; not merchant adoption.

    SHA-256 of retrieved source response: aa6dc5e8ccc7758689945fc7502674f51cd0f21f09ec886aa1dbc4cd86bc81b6

    Source ID: v11-x402-v2 · Published: Not stated

Dispute a fact or suggest a source