documentation/content/en/methods/apps.md

title	description	menu	aliases
apps API methods	Register client applications that can be used to obtain OAuth tokens.	docs weight name parent identifier 10 apps methods methods-apps	/methods/apps /api/methods/apps

Create an application

POST /api/v1/apps HTTP/1.1

Create a new application to obtain OAuth2 credentials.

{{< hint style="danger" >}} In Mastodon prior to 4.3, OAuth Applications could be "vacuumed" and removed from the database under certain conditions, meaning your Application's client_id and client_secret would not be recognised by the Mastodon server.
This automated removal of applications was removed in Mastodon 4.3

A workaround for Mastodon versions older than 4.3 was to register your application, and then immediately request a [Client Credential]({{< relref "client/Token#flow" >}}) token, which would permanently ensure your application always had an active access token and would not be removed. {{< /hint >}}

{{< hint style="info" >}} At present, Mastodon only supports provisioning confidential clients, i.e., you will always receive a client_secret and client_secret_expires_at attributes in the [CredentialApplication]({{< relref "entities/Application#CredentialApplication" >}}) entity.

For more information see: [OAuth 2 client types]({{< relref "spec/oauth#client-types" >}}) {{< /hint >}}

Returns: [CredentialApplication]({{< relref "entities/Application#CredentialApplication" >}})
OAuth: Public
Version history:
0.0.0 - added
2.7.2 - now returns vapid_key
4.3.0 - deprecated vapid_key, please see [api/v2/instance]({{< relref "methods/Instance#v2">}})
4.3.0 - added support for multiple redirect_uris in Form data parameters
4.3.0 - added redirect_uris response property
4.3.0 - deprecated redirect_uri response property, since this can be a non-URI if multiple redirect_uris are registered, use redirect_uris instead
4.3.0 - changed entity type from [Application]({{< relref "entities/Application">}}) to [CredentialApplication]({{< relref "entities/Application#CredentialApplication">}})

Request

Example request:

POST /api/v1/apps HTTP/1.1
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "client_name": "Test Application",
  "redirect_uris": ["https://app.example/callback", "https://app.example/register"],
  "scopes": "read write push",
  "website": "https://app.example"
}

Form data parameters

client_name

{{}} String. A name for your application

redirect_uris

{{}} String or Array of Strings. Where the user should be redirected after authorization. To display the authorization code to the user instead of redirecting to a web page, use urn:ietf:wg:oauth:2.0:oob in this parameter.

scopes

String. Space separated list of scopes. If none is provided, defaults to read. See [OAuth Scopes]({{< relref "api/oauth-scopes" >}}) for a list of possible scopes.

website

String. A URL to the homepage of your app

Response

200: OK

Store the client_id and client_secret in your cache, as these will be used to obtain OAuth tokens.

{{< hint style="warning" >}} Treat the client_id and client_secret properties as if they are passwords. We recommend you encrypt these when storing in your cache, to prevent credential exposure. {{< /hint >}}

{
  "id": "563419",
  "name": "Test Application",
  "website": "https://app.example",
  "scopes": ["read", "write", "push"],
  "redirect_uri": "urn:ietf:wg:oauth:2.0:oob",
  "redirect_uris": ["urn:ietf:wg:oauth:2.0:oob"],
  "client_id": "TWhM-tNSuncnqN7DBJmoyeLnk6K3iJJ71KKXxgL1hPM",
  "client_secret": "ZEaFUFmF0umgBX1qKJDjaU99Q31lDkOU8NutzTOoliw"
}

Or with multiple redirect URIs:

{
  "id": "563419",
  "name": "Test Application",
  "website": "https://app.example",
  "scopes": ["read", "write", "push"],
  "redirect_uri": "https://app.example/callback\nhttps://app.example/register",
  "redirect_uris": [
    "https://app.example/callback",
    "https://app.example/register"
  ],
  "client_id": "TWhM-tNSuncnqN7DBJmoyeLnk6K3iJJ71KKXxgL1hPM",
  "client_secret": "ZEaFUFmF0umgBX1qKJDjaU99Q31lDkOU8NutzTOoliw"
}

{{< hint style="info" >}} The redirect_uri property in the above examples is considered deprecated as of 4.3.0 and should not be used, instead use the redirect_uris property. {{< /hint >}}

422: Unprocessable entity

If a required parameter is missing or improperly formatted, the request will fail.

{
  "error": "Validation failed: Redirect URI must be an absolute URI."
}

---

Verify your app works

GET /api/v1/apps/verify_credentials HTTP/1.1

Confirm that the app's OAuth2 credentials work.

Returns: [Application]({{< relref "entities/application" >}})
OAuth: App token
Version history:
2.0.0 - added
2.7.2 - now returns vapid_key
4.3.0 - deprecated vapid_key, please see [api/v2/instance]({{< relref "methods/Instance#v2">}})
4.3.0 - removed needing read scope to access this API, now any valid App token can be used
4.3.0 - added scopes and redirect_uris properties

Request

Headers

Authorization

{{}} Provide this header with Bearer <app_token> to gain authorized access to this API method. <app_token> may be either a client_credential or access_token returned from [/oauth/token]({{< relref "methods/oauth#token" >}})

Response

200: OK

If the Authorization header was provided with a valid token, you should see your app returned as an Application entity.

{
  "name": "Test Application",
  "website": "https://app.example",
  "scopes": ["read", "write", "push"],
  "redirect_uris": [
    "https://app.example/callback",
    "https://app.example/register"
  ]
}

401: Unauthorized

If the Authorization header contains an invalid token, is malformed, or is not present, an error will be returned indicating an authorization failure.

{
  "error": "The access token is invalid"
}

---

See also

{{< caption-link url="https://github.com/mastodon/mastodon/blob/main/app/controllers/api/v1/apps_controller.rb" caption="app/controllers/api/v1/apps_controller.rb" >}}

{{< caption-link url="https://github.com/mastodon/mastodon/blob/main/app/controllers/api/v1/apps/credentials_controller.rb" caption="app/controllers/api/v1/apps/credentials_controller.rb" >}}