Getting Started

This guide will detail how you can set up your computer to test the Apollo API. Previous experience with APIs is recommended, but not required. If you are a developer who is looking to use the Apollo API, then we recommend reading through our technical documentation here first to see if it has what you need to get started.

To get started with setup, the first step is making sure that your Apollo plan comes with API access. If you aren't sure whether it does, be sure to check the Settings > Integrations page in Apollo. Plans that offer API access will show a Connect button next the the API option at the bottom of the page:

Click the Connect button so you are brought to a page that shows your API credentials:

The team-specific API key shown on this page will be needed in order for you to access the API, so be sure to copy it for later use during the setup process. 

• Important Note: Be sure to keep this key in a safe place, as it can be used by whoever has it to take actions through your Apollo account.

Download and Set Up Postman

There are many different ways that you can access and use the Apollo API, but one of the simplest is through an application called Postman (Download from here).

Postman is a free desktop application that is built for people who want to work with APIs in an environment that is specifically tailored for them. Alternatives include things like the Terminal application that comes on a Mac computer, but for the purposes of this guide we will be leveraging Postman due to its ease of setup and use.

Log in to the Apollo API (i.e. Authentication)

Once Postman has been downloaded and installed on your computer, start the application and open a "Postman Window" (usually the default view). If you are seeing something different than what's shown below, then you can manually open this by pressing Shift + Command + N (on Mac), or by clicking these buttons:

Next, paste the following URL into the "Enter request URL" field (highlighted in the next screenshot):

https://api.apollo.io/v1/auth/health?api_key=YOUR_API_KEY_HERE

• Note: This is the same URL that's found in the Authentication code from our API documentation (on the right-hand side).

After the authentication URL has been inserted, copy your API key (found in Settings > Integrations > API Settings) and paste it in place of the "YOUR_API_KEY_HERE" parameter:

Once complete (be sure to double check that it's correct), click on the Authorization tab (highlight), open the Type dropdown, and select "No Auth":

Now open the Headers tab so you can add the following keys and values (also shown in the screenshot below - highlight):

• Notes:
  • For "x-api-key", be sure to paste your API key in the value column (mine is blurred in the example).
  • These are the same keys and values found in the code from our API documentation.

From there, open up the request type dropdown (shown below - highlight) and select GET, as specified in the API documentation for authenticating (here):

curl -X GET -H "Content-Type: application/json" -H "Cache-Control: no-cache" "https://api.apollo.io/v1/auth/health?api_key=YOUR_API_KEY_HERE"

After all of that has been configured, click the blue Send button on the right-hand side of the application:

This will send a request to our server for logging in to the API. If everything is set up properly and authentication is successful, then you should see a response that says {"healthy": true, “is_logged_in”: true} in the Body section of the response window:

You're all set! You can now begin making test calls through the Apollo API. To see our technical documentation for which calls are possible, go here. If you're new to APIs and are just looking to test things out, however, check out this article this article next.