How to use this documentation

We have provided here some introductory information on APIs available on the Refinitiv Data Platform.

Please note than from here on we will refer to API Families and API Endpoints – families are the grouping of endpoints with the same basepath, for example:

The basepath for an API Family

this.api.com/family/v1

The API Endpoints of the above API Family

GET this.api.com/family/v1/endpoint-1

POST this.api.com/family/v1/endpoint-1

GET this.api.com/family/v1/endpoint-2

Platform

To make it easier to use all of our content and services we are consolidating access into a new platform. Developers will interact with this platform using APIs – all of which are documented here in the API Technical Documentation.

If you need any support, please visit our developer community Q&A for platform APIs.

APIs

Our Application Programing Interfaces are standardised contracts that allow programmatic access to our services and content. Although initial access to all APIs is via REST APIs, we do allow other formats beyond these initial calls, including GraphQL, Bulk/File and Real-time.

REST APIs

Our REST APIs are designed to be simple to use and conform to REST standards.

Within the REST APIs are APIs that allow access to our Real-time feeds, which are provided over web sockets.

GraphQL

Where REST APIs are easy to use, but perhaps limited, GraphQL allows consumers of the API to create complex queries and get only the data back they want. The downside is that you will need to understand the whole data model to realise this power - but developers love learning, don’t you?

Bulk/File

To access our data in files you will need to request the files via REST APIs, but to retrieve them you will need to use our enhanced AWS S3 buckets.

Access

Developer access

Currently with a user account you can try our APIs on the Playground app without further credentials, but if you want to programmatically access the APIs you will need to obtain a machine id & key. We are working on an improved, self-service experience, but currently to obtain the app id you need to get us to do that for you and you need to be a customer.

API Authentication

Your machine id consists of a UUID and a password and you will generally have one of these per environment per customer. The app key is a GUID that identifies the particular application you are using to interact with the API.

Getting started

This assumes you already have credentials.

        1)      On the POST token endpoint:

                        a.       The grant_type parameter should be set to password

                        b.       enter your machine id UUID in the username parameter

                        c.       enter the password for the machine id in the password parameter

        2)      Request the token

        3)      Either get a new token once that one expires or refresh the token – both use the same token endpoint.