Build on the ONDC network
Companies join ONDC (the Open Network for Digital Commerce) as 'network participants' — for example by running a buyer app, a seller app, or a gateway — after signing up on the ONDC portal, integrating with the network's APIs, and going live. One company can play multiple roles. Individual developers can get involved without formally joining: ONDC publishes its protocol specs, reference apps, SDKs, and testing tools as 141 public repositories on GitHub (audited July 2026).
Pick your role
Buyer Network Participant
BAPRuns the app that shoppers use — it searches the whole network for products, shows results, handles multi-seller carts, checkout, order confirmation, and customer support.
Seller Network Participant
BPPConnects sellers to the network through a seller application — digitizing their catalogues, dispersing payments, and training sellers on e-commerce fulfilment.
Marketplace Seller Node
MSNA type of seller app that acts as a marketplace for goods and services provided by other sellers — it does not produce or manufacture inventory of its own.
Inventory Seller Node
ISNA type of seller app operated by a seller who makes and sells its own stock, with no third-party sellers on it.
Gateway
Network plumbing that forwards search requests from every buyer app to all seller apps (and back), so any seller on ONDC can be discovered by any buyer.
Technology Service Provider
TSPBuilds and runs the software (standalone or cloud-based) that lets businesses participate in ONDC without in-house tech teams — on the buyer side, the seller side, or both.
Digital Enablement Agency
DEAAn organization with rural reach (NGO, cooperative, federation) that helps undigitized small sellers — artisans, weavers, farmers, fishermen, FPOs — get online and sell through seller apps.
The journey to going live
- Sign up on the ONDC Portal
Create a profile on the ONDC portal and explore the introductory resources.
- Explore webinars
Attend introductory briefings and stay connected through regular community webinars — ONDC runs network starter sessions and domain-specific briefings for new participants.
- Select your role and domain
Use the portal to choose what you'll be (sell on the network, build a buyer or seller experience, provide software as a service, or other services). You can take on multiple roles depending on your capabilities and offerings.
- Integrate and test
Integrate with the ONDC APIs and test your solution across three environments: Staging, Pre-Production, and Production. The developer guide walks through the API specifications domain by domain, and white-label buyer/seller app code frameworks (retail and logistics) give you a pre-built starting point.
- Go live
Qualify the requirements and go live on the ONDC network. Formally joining involves submitting the Network Participants (NP) form.
How the tech is shaped
- Built on the Beckn protocol: the ONDC protocol is a Beckn base layer plus an ONDC-specific 'network extension' layer that carries the network's API contracts and policies.
- Everything is API-driven: participants integrate against published API specifications per domain (retail, logistics, mobility, finance), with a step-by-step developer guide covering onboarding through advanced integration on the production registry.
- Test before you launch: solutions are exercised in Staging and Pre-Production environments before going live on Production.
- You don't have to build from scratch: ONDC ships white-label code frameworks for buyer and seller apps in retail and logistics, kept updated to the latest network specification (v1.2) — adapt them to your branding and needs.
Open these repos first
All 141 reposdeveloper-docs
ONDC's flagship developer documentation: protocol overview, domain guides, and onboarding steps across staging, pre-prod, and prod — read this first.
ONDC-Protocol-Specs
The original API specifications, schemas, and taxonomy for retail, logistics, and other domains, built on the Beckn protocol core.
protocol-network-extension
The ONDC-specific layer on top of Beckn — API contracts, developer/integration guides, and policy material that define the full ONDC protocol.
ondc-sdk
The umbrella reference buyer-app starter: a full microservice template you can build a buyer app from or strip for parts.
seller-app-sdk
The matching umbrella for the seller (BPP) side — documents the reference seller stack and how to stand it up with Docker.
reference-implementations
The reference-applications monorepo linking the protocol layer, Node.js client libraries, frontend UI, and utilities — building blocks for your own integration.
ondc-mock-server
Mock and sandbox services for testing ONDC APIs, so you can run flows against a simulated counterparty before certification.
pramaan
ONDC's integration test bench and certification tool — it validates buyer apps, seller apps, and service providers for protocol compliance across staging, pre-prod, and production.