Original: https://bitkarrot.substack.com/p/three-lnbits-wasm-extensions-forms
LNBits makes it possible to operate Lightning wallets and payment applications without building every part of the stack from scratch. Its extension system lets operators add focused features for events, merchants, communities, and Bitcoin projects.
With WASM extensions, LNBits can become an even more practical application layer: a place to run lightweight tools directly alongside the Lightning infrastructure already under your control. Instead of deploying a separate website, form provider, payment integration, and automation layer for every small idea, operators can add utilities to the LNBits environment they already run.
I created three LNBits WASM extensions around that goal:
- Forms — self-hosted forms with Lightning-native payment workflows.
- Zapgoals — visible Lightning funding goals.
- Unlimited Bulk Gift Cards — high-volume distribution of sats.
Together, they help LNBits operators do three recurring things: collect information, coordinate funding, and distribute value.
For background on the WASM extension model, read LNBits’ Introducing WASM Extensions.
What WASM extensions unlocks#
A simple Lightning workflow can become surprisingly fragmented.
Consider a paid event registration. An organizer may need a landing page, a Google Form or Typeform form, a Lightning invoice, a spreadsheet, webhooks or automation, and a way to reconcile responses with payments. Each tool can be useful, but connecting them means more accounts, credentials, subscription costs, dependencies, and failure points.
WASM extensions offer a more consolidated approach. Operators can add narrowly scoped applications to their LNBits instance instead of repeatedly building external integrations around it.
This can mean:
- Faster deployment for small projects and events.
- Fewer external services and recurring subscriptions.
- Less custom glue code between data collection and payment flows.
- More control over the workflow and participant data.
- A more coherent, Lightning-native user experience.
The goal is not to replace every specialized SaaS product or dedicated web application. Complex public products, high-traffic applications, and deeply custom interfaces may still benefit from independent infrastructure. But for focused workflows, an all-in-one LNBits deployment can be simpler, cheaper, and faster to operate.
Forms: goodbye Google Forms and Typeform#
Forms is a self-hosted LNBits form builder designed for Lightning-adjacent workflows.
For many operators, it is a goodbye to Google Forms, Typeform, and the extra integration work required to connect generic form software to Lightning payments. Rather than collecting information in one tool and accepting payment in another, Forms keeps the process closer to the LNBits wallet and payment infrastructure.
Before Forms, even a basic paid registration could involve:
- A third-party form provider or custom web application.
- A separate landing page or website.
- A Lightning invoice or payment page.
- Webhooks, APIs, spreadsheets, or automation to connect submissions and payments.
- Manual follow-up for people who submit the form but never pay—or pay without a clear identifier.
That setup works, but it creates unnecessary operational work for many use cases. The organizer must not only collect registrations and payments, but also make sure every system agrees on who did what.
Forms makes the workflow more direct: create the form, collect the necessary information, and integrate Lightning payment into the same LNBits-based experience.
It is useful for:
- Paid events, meetups, workshops, and conferences.
- Applications for grants, volunteer roles, communities, or beta programs.
- Merchant order and intake forms.
- Membership registrations.
- Surveys, feedback, and giveaway claims.
An event organizer, for example, can collect a name, email, dietary requirements, and ticket choice, then route the attendee into a Lightning payment flow—without sending them through a separate form provider and standalone payment page.
Host the page, form, and payment flow together#
Forms is especially useful alongside LNBits’ webpage-hosting capability. For a simple project, an operator can host a landing page, create a form, and run the Lightning payment flow inside one LNBits deployment.
That means less need to deploy a standalone frontend simply to wrap a form and a payment button.
substackcdn.comForms does not eliminate every integration problem, but it changes the default starting point. Instead of asking, “How do I connect Typeform to Lightning?” an operator can begin with, “What information do I need, and how should payment fit into this workflow?”
That is the real value: a registration, application, or event flow can be built in one shot.
Watch the Forms extension walkthrough.
Zapgoals: make funding progress visible#
Zapgoals lets an operator publish a Lightning funding goal and show progress toward it.
A Lightning invoice can receive money, but it does not necessarily explain the purpose of a campaign or show supporters how close it is to reaching its target. Zapgoals adds that missing context: a goal, a target, and visible progress.
It is useful for:
- Open-source maintenance or feature funding.
- Community projects and shared expenses.
- Meetup, conference, or event crowdfunding.
- Creator, media, or equipment funding.
- Charitable, mutual-aid, and local Bitcoin initiatives.
- Product roadmap or public-good milestones.
Lightning is well suited to this model because people can contribute quickly and in small amounts. A clear goal also makes the campaign more engaging. Rather than presenting a generic payment request, an operator can show what the money unlocks:
“At 250,000 sats, we cover the venue. At 500,000 sats, we provide food and drinks. At 1,000,000 sats, we record and publish the talks.”
Zapgoals turns individual payments into a shared, visible effort.
Watch the Zapgoals extension walkthrough.
Unlimited Bulk Gift Cards: sats at scale#
Unlimited Bulk Gift Cards helps LNBits operators create and distribute large batches of Lightning gift cards.
Gift cards are a simple onboarding mechanism: someone can receive sats before they have selected a wallet, created an account, or learned the details of Lightning. That makes them useful for events, educational programs, promotions, and community incentives.
The bulk capability is important because distribution is often a group operation. Instead of creating cards one at a time, an operator can prepare many in advance and distribute them when needed.
Common uses include:
- Bitcoin meetups, conferences, workshops, and hackathons.
- New-user onboarding and classroom demonstrations.
- Customer promotions and merchant rewards.
- Giveaways, contests, and prizes.
- Attendance rewards and participant incentives.
- Team bonuses, reimbursements, and micro-payouts.
For example, a meetup organizer can prepare gift cards before an event, hand them out to attendees, and let each recipient redeem sats independently. That avoids individual payout administration during the event and creates an immediate Lightning experience for newcomers.
As with any payout tool, operators should secure their LNBits instance, protect wallet access, and fund only the amounts they intend to distribute.
Watch the Unlimited Bulk Gift Cards walkthrough.
One workflow, one deployment#
The extensions are useful on their own, but they can also form a compact operational stack:
- Use Forms to collect event registrations, applications, or participant details.
- Use Zapgoals to fund the event, project, or shared objective.
- Use Unlimited Bulk Gift Cards to distribute onboarding sats, prizes, incentives, or refunds.
This is the broader promise of LNBits WASM extensions: practical, composable tools that reduce the need to stitch together third-party forms, websites, automation services, and payment integrations.
Forms, Zapgoals, and Unlimited Bulk Gift Cards are built for operators who want to run useful Lightning workflows with less infrastructure, less overhead, and fewer external dependencies.
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