This tutorial will help you get started with an overview of the eCommerce API web applications.
Please note: in this guide we will be using visual references from Rainforest API. The interface is the same for our other eCommerce APIs (ASIN Data API, Backyard API, BIGBOX API, BlueCart API, Countdown API, RedCircle API).
At the end of this tutorial, you’ll know how to:
- Make calls via the API Playground
- Use Collections to run requests in bulk
- Send results to Destinations
- View and manage Account Settings
- Plan and Payment
- Usage
- Error Logs
- Profile
- Access our in-depth API Documentation
API Playground
After creating your free API trial account, head to the app’s primary screen, the Playground, to explore.
Rainforest API | ASIN Data API | Backyard API | BIGBOX API | BlueCart API
You can build and send real-time API requests in the API Playground. This is a great space to learn to use the API and will allow you to input the request type, parameters and delivery methods.
The playground will display Code Samples in URL, Curl, Node.JS, Python and PHP format, which will automatically update as you build your request. (Please note, it is easiest for our support team to troubleshoot using the URL sample – if you reach out for assistance regarding a specific API call, please send examples using the URL format.)
If you’re already comfortable writing and sending code, you’ll just need the API documentation and your API key – located in the top right corner of the dashboard – to get started in your preferred application.
Note: when writing your own code, you must follow the parameters and details laid out in our extensive API documentation. Adjusting parameter fields, adding parameters that do not exist in our documentation, or leaving non-optional parameters out of your requests will result in failed API calls. We encourage you to test things in the API playground to see how to build your requests before moving out of the application.
Once you’re comfortable with building and sending individual API requests, head to the next section on the left navigation: Collections.
Collections
Collections are useful for running multiple API requests at once. You can include up to 15,000 searches per Collection. Please note: limited to 100 per collection if you’re using the “include_html=true” setting. You can have up to 10,000 Collections on your account at one time.
To create a new Collection, start by pressing “Add New” and filling out the Collection Details, including the name, the request type, schedule, and any notifications you’d like to include.
On the Collections screen, you can also run a set on demand, edit your Collection, or download a result set.
Destinations
The Destinations feature controls where result sets from your Collections are sent. You can send these to Amazon S3, Google Cloud storage, Microsoft Azure Blob, or S3 compatible buckets.
- You can have up to 50 Destinations set up on your account at any one time.
- You can set each Collection on your account to upload its Result Sets to one or more Destinations.
Destinations are useful for when you want data obtained by running Collections to be automatically pushed to a storage provider you already use, rather than downloading the Results Sets directly from the API.
Recommendation: We highly recommend creating new credentials just for use by our API on your destination provider.
- In your Destination provider's IAM system, create a dedicated IAM User or Role that will be used solely for writing to the S3 bucket (or equivalent).
- Assign necessary IAM policies; set appropriate permissions to interact with your S3 bucket (or equivalent), such as write and list
- Generate new Access Keys for the newly created IAM User or Role
Read full instructions here.
Account
The next section on the left navigation shows Account details. Open the dropdown menu to see more details on Plan & Payment, Usage, Error Logs, and your Profile.
- Plan & Payment: View and update your subscription, billing information, and API key.
- Usage: View credits used on your account. App provides current month’s and previous 3 months’ usage.
Note: we do not keep logs of requests run. If you need to track your requests via logging, this will need to be set up in your own system.
- Error Logs: The Error Logs page shows all real-time API requests that resulted in an API error (i.e. an HTTP 500 status code). Error Logs are provided to give you complete transparency and help you understand what is causing requests to fail.
Profile: View and update system email settings and webhook details, and change your password.
Documentation
Our extensive API documentation provides details on request types, parameters and results, and provides visual references and code samples. You can search the docs by keyword so getting answers is fast. Be sure to bookmark the docs for the API you’re using – for easy access!
The links below will take you to the detailed API documentation for each of our eCommerce APIs:
Rainforest API | ASIN Data API | Backyard API | BIGBOX API | BlueCart API
Status
Curious about health trends or want to check if the API is experiencing any active incidents? Navigate to the Status page to get an overview of what’s happening behind the scenes on the API.
- Health Trends tab: provides health state metrics and help you plan your data collection around low data processing times
- Incidents & Maintenance tab: provides the latest information on any incidents or maintenance that may affect API service
Product Updates
View product updates (i.e. feature releases and enhancements) and change your product update email notification preference.