An API key lets a tool that runs on its own, with no one signed in, work with your Ignition data. Use one to connect automation tools like n8n, Make or Power Automate, or a script your team runs on a schedule.

Available on every plan, in Early access. API keys are part of the Ignition API. Any Admin can turn on the Ignition API from Labs, and there's nothing to request.

API key or OAuth app?

The Developer hub offers two ways to connect a tool. Both reach the same Ignition API data. Only the way in differs.

	API key	OAuth app
Best for	Your own firm's tools and automations, like n8n, Make or a scheduled script	A product other people sign in to, or anything that needs webhooks
What you need	Nothing from anyone else. You create the key and paste it into your tool.	A redirect URL from whoever is building the integration
Choose what it can reach	Yes, area by area	No, it gets the whole Ignition API
Webhooks	Not available	Available on Ignition API apps
Reporting API data	Not available	With a Reporting API app

If you're not sure, select Not sure which you need? at the top of the Developer hub for the same comparison.

Note: Want your tool to hear about changes as they happen, like a proposal being accepted? API keys can't receive webhooks. Create an Ignition API app and add a webhook instead. See Webhooks.

Before you begin

You need to be an Admin to create or regenerate a key.

Turn on the Ignition API. Select Labs in the sidebar, open Ignition API and switch it on. Until it's on, the API keys section in the Developer hub shows Try it out instead of Create key.

Keys belong to the person who creates them. The key acts as you, and can never do more than your own role allows. If you leave the practice, the key stops working. For a long-running integration, consider creating the key from a dedicated Admin user rather than a team member's account.

What a key can reach

When you create a key, you choose what it can Read and Write, area by area:

Resource (as shown in Ignition)	Read	Write
`clients` (clients and their contacts)	Yes	Yes
`proposals`	Yes	Yes
`invoices`	Yes	Yes
`services` (your service library)	Yes	Yes
`practice` (your practice details)	Yes	No
`tax_rates`	Yes	No
`agreed_services` (services clients have agreed to)	Yes	No

A key can't reach payment records, billing items, deals, forms, templates or Reporting API data.

Please note: You can't change what a key can reach after it's created. To change it, create a new key with the access you need, update your tool, then delete the old key.

Grant only what the integration needs. A key that only reads data is the safest choice when your tool doesn't need to make changes.

How to create an API key

1. In Ignition, go to Settings → Developer hub.

2. In the API keys section, select Create key.

3. Give the key a Name you'll recognize, for example "n8n: new client onboarding". Add a Description if it helps.

4. Under What can this key reach?, tick Read or Write for each area your tool needs.

5. Optionally, set an Expiration date. The key works until the end of the day you pick. Leave it empty and the key stays valid until you delete it.

Tip: Use Read everything to tick every Read box at once, or Clear all to start again.

Select Create key.
Copy the key and paste it into your tool straight away. It's only shown once.

Please note: Treat the key like a password. Anyone who has it can do whatever the key allows, as you. Don't email it or paste it into chat.

Use the key in n8n, Make or another tool

Your tool sends the key with every request, as a bearer token:

Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY

In most automation tools:

Add an HTTP request step (in n8n, the HTTP Request node; in Make, the HTTP › Make a request module).
Set the URL to an Ignition API address, for example https://api.ignitionapp.com/rest/v1/clients to list your clients.
Add a header named Authorization with the value Bearer followed by your key.
Run the step. If you see your clients, the key works.

For every available request, see the Ignition API developer documentation.

Manage, regenerate or delete a key

Your keys are listed in the API keys section with what each Can reach, when it was Last used and when it Expires. Select a key's ⋮ menu to manage it.

Manage shows the key's details and exactly what it can reach.

Regenerate key gives you a new key with the same access and expiration. The old key stops working straight away, so update your tool with the new one. This option doesn't appear for a key that has expired or whose owner has left the practice. Create a new key instead.

Delete key removes the key for good. Anything using it stops working straight away, and you can't undo this.

Tip: Last used shows Never until the key makes its first request. It's a quick way to spot keys nobody uses anymore, so you can delete them.

Important information

A practice can have up to 10 API keys, including expired ones. Delete keys you no longer need to make room.
The key's access and your role both apply. A key can't do more than the person who created it can.
A key stops working if its owner leaves the practice. Create a replacement from an active Admin.
Expired keys stop working at the end of their expiration day and can't be renewed. Create a new key.
API key requests aren't counted toward your Ignition API usage during Early access.
Ignition support can't create or regenerate keys for you. A key always belongs to the person who creates it, so an Admin in your practice needs to do it.

Still have questions? Reach out to our support team via the chat bubble or at help@ignitionapp.com and we'll be happy to help.

API keys: Connect n8n, Make and other automation tools to Ignition