How to Create a Telegram Mini App: A Step-by-Step Guide
Telegram Mini Apps really are a powerful feature in the Telegram platform that allow developers to construct seamless, interactive web applications that run within the Telegram interface. These apps provide a smooth buyer experience and can cover anything from games and productivity tools to e-commerce storefronts and booking systems. In this informative article, we’ll walk you through the entire process of build telegram mini app on your own. 🧠 What Is a Telegram Mini App? Telegram Mini Apps are lightweight web apps launched inside Telegram chats via inline buttons or through bot commands. They are built using internet technologies (HTML, CSS, JavaScript) and connect to Telegram’s Bot API and Web Apps API. These apps: Run in Telegram's built-in browser Can access user data (with permission) Integrate seamlessly with Telegram bots Support payment and authorization flows 🛠️ Tools & Prerequisites Before getting started, you’ll need: A Telegram account A Telegram bot (via BotFather) Basic web development knowledge (HTML, CSS, JS) Hosting for your web app (e.g., Vercel, Netlify, or your own server) Optional tools: Node.js (for backend logic) Web frameworks like React or Vue 📝 Step 1: Create a Telegram Bot Open @BotFather on Telegram. Use /newbot to generate a new bot. Choose an identity and a username for the bot. Copy the API token provided — you’ll want it to communicate with Telegram’s servers. 🌐 Step 2: Build the Web App You can use plain HTML/CSS/JS or perhaps a frontend framework. Here’s an easy example using plain HTML: html Копировать Редактировать
My Mini App body font-family: sans-serif; padding: 20px; button padding: 10px;
Hello from Telegram Mini App!
Send Data const tg = window.Telegram.WebApp; tg.expand(); // Makes the app take full screen function sendData() tg.sendData(“Hello Telegram!”);
Host this file using any static hosting provider. ⚙️ Step 3: Set Up Web App in Bot Go returning to BotFather. Use /setdomain to register your web app domain. Use /setcommands to provide a command like /start or /open. In your bot code, you’ll send a keyboard button which has a web_app object: Example in Node.js (using node-telegram-bot-api): js Копировать Редактировать const TelegramBot = require('node-telegram-bot-api'); const token = 'YOUR_BOT_TOKEN'; const bot = new TelegramBot(token, polling: true ); bot.onText(/\/start/, (msg) => bot.sendMessage(msg.chat.id, “Open the mini app:“, reply_markup: keyboard: [[ text: “Open App”, web_app: url: “//yourdomain.com/app” ]], resize_keyboard: true, one_time_keyboard: true, ); ); ✅ Optional: Get User Data In your frontend, you can access Telegram user info via Telegram.WebApp.initDataUnsafe. js Копировать Редактировать console.log(Telegram.WebApp.initDataUnsafe.user); Make sure to validate this data on your backend using Telegram’s Web App Authorization. 💳 Bonus: Accept Payments Telegram Mini Apps support payments via Telegram’s payment system. Set up a payment provider via BotFather (/setpaymentoptions). Use the Bot API’s sendInvoice strategy to create payment flows. Payments are processed securely via Telegram with support for services like Stripe. 🧪 Testing Your Mini App Use Telegram on mobile or desktop (not the net app). Make sure your domain uses Hyper Text Transfer Protocol Secure. Ensure your bot has access to web app features and commands. 🧩 Use Cases Telegram Mini Apps can be used as: E-commerce (stores, carts, checkouts) Booking and reservations Games and entertainment Form submissions Personal dashboards Telegram Mini Apps bridge the gap between messaging and fully interactive applications. By combining the reach of Telegram bots while using flexibility of web technologies, developers can build powerful experiences within the chat interface.