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Create an API namespace for organizing keys by environment, service, or product. Use this to separate production from development keys, isolate different services, or manage multiple products. Each API gets a unique identifier and dedicated infrastructure for secure key operations. Important: API names must be unique within your workspace and cannot be changed after creation. Required permissions:
  • api.*.create_api (to create APIs in any workspace)
See the API reference for the full HTTP endpoint documentation.

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Usage

unkey api apis create-api [flags]

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Flags

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--name
string
required
Unique identifier for this API namespace within your workspace. Use descriptive names like payment-service-prod or user-api-dev to clearly identify purpose and environment. Must be 3-255 characters, start with a letter, and contain only letters, numbers, dots, hyphens, and underscores.

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Global Flags

FlagTypeDescription
--root-keystringOverride root key ($UNKEY_ROOT_KEY)
--api-urlstringOverride API base URL (default: https://api.unkey.com)
--configstringPath to config file (default: ~/.unkey/config.toml)
--outputstringOutput format — use json for raw JSON

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Examples

unkey api apis create-api --name=payment-service-prod

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Output

Default output shows the request ID with latency, followed by the created API: 
req_2c9a0jf23l4k567 (took 45ms)

{
  "id": "api_1234abcd",
  "name": "payment-service-prod"
}
With --output=json, the full response envelope is returned: 
{
  "meta": {
    "requestId": "req_2c9a0jf23l4k567"
  },
  "data": {
    "id": "api_1234abcd",
    "name": "payment-service-prod"
  }
}
Last modified on March 26, 2026