This article describes how to quickly get started with the GitHub REST API using GitHub CLI, JavaScript, or curl
. For a more detailed guide, see "Getting started with the REST API."
Getting started using GitHub CLI
Using GitHub CLI in the command line
GitHub CLI is the easiest way to use the GitHub REST API from the command line.
-
Install GitHub CLI if you haven't installed it yet. For installation instructions, see the GitHub CLI repository.
-
Use the
auth login
subcommand to authenticate to GitHub CLI. For more information, see the GitHub CLIauth login
documentation.gh auth login
-
Use the
api
subcommand to make your API request. For more information, see the GitHub CLIapi
documentation.gh api repos/octocat/Spoon-Knife/issues
Using GitHub CLI in GitHub Actions
You can also use GitHub CLI in your GitHub Actions workflows. For more information, see "Using GitHub CLI in workflows."
Instead of using the gh auth login
command, pass an access token as an environment variable called GH_TOKEN
. GitHub recommends that you use the built-in GITHUB_TOKEN
instead of creating a token. If this is not possible, store your token as a secret and replace GITHUB_TOKEN
in the example below with the name of your secret. For more information about GITHUB_TOKEN
, see "Automatic token authentication." For more information about secrets, see "Encrypted secrets."
on:
workflow_dispatch:
jobs:
use_api:
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
permissions:
issues: read
steps:
- env:
GH_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
run: |
gh api repos/octocat/Spoon-Knife/issues
If you are authenticating with a GitHub App, you can create an installation access token within your workflow:
- Store your GitHub App's ID as a secret. In the following example, replace
APP_ID
with the name of the secret. You can find your app ID on the settings page for your app or through the API. For more information, see "Apps" in the REST API documentation. For more information about secrets, see "Encrypted secrets." - Generate a private key for your app. Store the contents of the resulting file as a secret. (Store the entire contents of the file, including
-----BEGIN RSA PRIVATE KEY-----
and-----END RSA PRIVATE KEY-----
.) In the following example, replaceAPP_PEM
with the name of the secret. For more information, see "Authenticating with GitHub Apps." - Add a step to generate a token, and use that token instead of
GITHUB_TOKEN
. Note that this token will expire after 60 minutes. For example:
# This workflow uses actions that are not certified by GitHub.
# They are provided by a third-party and are governed by
# separate terms of service, privacy policy, and support
# documentation.
on:
workflow_dispatch:
jobs:
track_pr:
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
steps:
- name: Generate token
id: generate_token
uses: tibdex/github-app-token@36464acb844fc53b9b8b2401da68844f6b05ebb0
with:
app_id: ${{ secrets.APP_ID }}
private_key: ${{ secrets.APP_PEM }}
- name: Use API
env:
GH_TOKEN: ${{ steps.generate_token.outputs.token }}
run: |
gh api repos/octocat/Spoon-Knife/issues
Getting started using JavaScript
You can use Octokit.js to interact with the GitHub REST API in your JavaScript scripts. For more information, see "Scripting with the REST API and JavaScript."
Using Octokit.js
-
Create an access token. For example, create a personal access token or a GitHub App user-to-server access token. For more information, see "Creating a personal access token" or "Identifying and authorizing users for GitHub Apps."
Warning: Treat your access token like a password.
To keep your token secure, you can store your token as a secret and run your script through GitHub Actions. For more information, see the "Using Octokit.js in GitHub Actions" section.
If these options are not possible, consider using another service such as the 1Password CLI to store your token securely.
-
Install
octokit
. For example,npm install octokit
. For other ways to install or loadoctokit
, see the Octokit.js README. -
Import
octokit
in your script. For example,import { Octokit } from "octokit";
. For other ways to importoctokit
, see the Octokit.js README. -
Create an instance of
Octokit
with your token. ReplaceYOUR-TOKEN
with your token.const octokit = new Octokit({ auth: 'YOUR-TOKEN' });
-
Use
octokit.request
to execute your request. Send the HTTP method and path as the first argument. Specify any path, query, and body parameters in an object as the second argument. For example, in the following request the HTTP method isGET
, the path is/repos/{owner}/{repo}/issues
, and the parameters areowner: "octocat"
andrepo: "Spoon-Knife"
.await octokit.request("GET /repos/{owner}/{repo}/issues", { owner: "octocat", repo: "Spoon-Knife", });
Using Octokit.js in GitHub Actions
You can also execute your JavaScript scripts in your GitHub Actions workflows. For more information, see "Workflow syntax for GitHub Actions."
GitHub recommends that you use the built-in GITHUB_TOKEN
instead of creating a token. If this is not possible, store your token as a secret and replace GITHUB_TOKEN
in the example below with the name of your secret. For more information about GITHUB_TOKEN
, see "Automatic token authentication." For more information about secrets, see "Encrypted secrets."
The following example workflow:
- Checks out the repository content
- Sets up Node.js
- Installs
octokit
- Stores the value of
GITHUB_TOKEN
as an environment variable calledTOKEN
and runs.github/actions-scripts/use-the-api.mjs
, which can access that environment variable asprocess.env.TOKEN
Example workflow:
on:
workflow_dispatch:
jobs:
use_api_via_script:
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
permissions:
issues: read
steps:
- name: Check out repo content
uses: actions/checkout@v2
- name: Setup Node
uses: actions/setup-node@v2
with:
node-version: '16.17.0'
cache: npm
- name: Install dependencies
run: npm install octokit
- name: Run script
run: |
node .github/actions-scripts/use-the-api.mjs
env:
TOKEN: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
Example JavaScript script, with the file path .github/actions-scripts/use-the-api.mjs
:
import { Octokit } from "octokit"
const octokit = new Octokit({
auth: process.env.TOKEN
});
try {
const result = await octokit.request("GET /repos/{owner}/{repo}/issues", {
owner: "octocat",
repo: "Spoon-Knife",
});
const titleAndAuthor = result.data.map(issue => {title: issue.title, authorID: issue.user.id})
console.log(titleAndAuthor)
} catch (error) {
console.log(`Error! Status: ${error.status}. Message: ${error.response.data.message}`)
}
If you are authenticating with a GitHub App, you can create an installation access token within your workflow:
- Store your GitHub App's ID as a secret. In the following example, replace
APP_ID
with the name of the secret. You can find your app ID on the settings page for your app or through the App API. For more information, see "Apps." For more information about secrets, see "Encrypted secrets." - Generate a private key for your app. Store the contents of the resulting file as a secret. (Store the entire contents of the file, including
-----BEGIN RSA PRIVATE KEY-----
and-----END RSA PRIVATE KEY-----
.) In the following example, replaceAPP_PEM
with the name of the secret. For more information, see "Authenticating with GitHub Apps." - Add a step to generate a token, and use that token instead of
GITHUB_TOKEN
. Note that this token will expire after 60 minutes. For example:
# This workflow uses actions that are not certified by GitHub.
# They are provided by a third-party and are governed by
# separate terms of service, privacy policy, and support
# documentation.
on:
workflow_dispatch:
jobs:
use_api_via_script:
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
steps:
- name: Check out repo content
uses: actions/checkout@v2
- name: Setup Node
uses: actions/setup-node@v2
with:
node-version: '16.17.0'
cache: npm
- name: Install dependencies
run: npm install octokit
- name: Generate token
id: generate_token
uses: tibdex/github-app-token@36464acb844fc53b9b8b2401da68844f6b05ebb0
with:
app_id: ${{ secrets.APP_ID }}
private_key: ${{ secrets.APP_PEM }}
- name: Run script
run: |
node .github/actions-scripts/use-the-api.mjs
env:
TOKEN: ${{ steps.generate_token.outputs.token }}
Getting started using curl
Using curl
in the command line
Note: If you want to make API requests from the command line, GitHub recommends that you use GitHub CLI, which simplifies authentication and requests. For more information about getting started with the REST API using GitHub CLI, see the GitHub CLI version of this article.
-
Install
curl
if it isn't already installed on your machine. To check ifcurl
is installed, executecurl --version
in the command line. If the output is information about the version ofcurl
, it is installed. If you get a message similar tocommand not found: curl
, you need to download and installcurl
. For more information, see the curl project download page. -
Create an access token. For example, create a personal access token or a GitHub App user-to-server access token. For more information, see "Creating a personal access token" or "Identifying and authorizing users for GitHub Apps."
Warning: Treat your access token like a password.
You can also use GitHub CLI instead of
curl
. GitHub CLI will take care of authentication for you. For more information, see the GitHub CLI version of this page.If these options are not possible, consider using another service such as the 1Password CLI to store your token securely.
-
Use the
curl
command to make your request. Pass your token in anAuthorization
header. ReplaceYOUR-TOKEN
with your token.curl --request GET \ --url "https://api.github.com/repos/octocat/Spoon-Knife/issues" \ --header "Accept: application/vnd.github+json" \ --header "Authorization: Bearer YOUR-TOKEN"
Note: In most cases, you can use
Authorization: Bearer
orAuthorization: token
to pass a token. However, if you are passing a JSON web token (JWT), you must useAuthorization: Bearer
.
Using curl
commands in GitHub Actions
You can also use curl
commands in your GitHub Actions workflows.
GitHub recommends that you use the built-in GITHUB_TOKEN
instead of creating a token. If this is not possible, store your token as a secret and replace GITHUB_TOKEN
in the example below with the name of your secret. For more information about GITHUB_TOKEN
, see "Automatic token authentication." For more information about secrets, see "Encrypted secrets."
on:
workflow_dispatch:
jobs:
use_api:
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
permissions:
issues: read
steps:
- env:
GH_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
run: |
curl --request GET \
--url "https://api.github.com/repos/octocat/Spoon-Knife/issues" \
--header "Accept: application/vnd.github+json" \
--header "Authorization: Bearer $GH_TOKEN"
If you are authenticating with a GitHub App, you can create an installation access token within your workflow:
- Store your GitHub App's ID as a secret. In the following example, replace
APP_ID
with the name of the secret. You can find your app ID on the settings page for your app or through the App API. For more information, see "Apps." For more information about secrets, see "Encrypted secrets." - Generate a private key for your app. Store the contents of the resulting file as a secret. (Store the entire contents of the file, including
-----BEGIN RSA PRIVATE KEY-----
and-----END RSA PRIVATE KEY-----
.) In the following example, replaceAPP_PEM
with the name of the secret. For more information, see "Authenticating with GitHub Apps." - Add a step to generate a token, and use that token instead of
GITHUB_TOKEN
. Note that this token will expire after 60 minutes. For example:
# This workflow uses actions that are not certified by GitHub.
# They are provided by a third-party and are governed by
# separate terms of service, privacy policy, and support
# documentation.
on:
workflow_dispatch:
jobs:
use_api:
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
steps:
- name: Generate token
id: generate_token
uses: tibdex/github-app-token@36464acb844fc53b9b8b2401da68844f6b05ebb0
with:
app_id: ${{ secrets.APP_ID }}
private_key: ${{ secrets.APP_PEM }}
- name: Use API
env:
GH_TOKEN: ${{ steps.generate_token.outputs.token }}
run: |
curl --request GET \
--url "https://api.github.com/repos/octocat/Spoon-Knife/issues" \
--header "Accept: application/vnd.github+json" \
--header "Authorization: Bearer $GH_TOKEN"
Next steps
For a more detailed guide, see "Getting started with the REST API."