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X APIs handle enormous amounts of data, and authentication secures that data for developers and users alike. You can choose from several authentication methods, listed below. Most developers don’t need to handle the complexities of authentication directly—client libraries take care of them automatically. You can find a list of available client libraries on our Tools and libraries page.

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Authentication methods

OAuth 1.0a User Context

OAuth 1.0a allows an authorized X developer App to access private account information or perform a X action on behalf of a X account.
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App only

App only Access Token allows a X developer app to access information publicly available on X.
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Basic authentication

Many of X’s enterprise APIs require the use of HTTP Basic Authentication.
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OAuth 2.0 Authorization Code Flow with PKCE

OAuth 2.0 User Context allows you to authenticate on behalf of another account with greater control over an application’s scope, and authorization flows across multiple devices.
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Note: You can get your App’s API Keys, App-only Access Token, personal Access Token, and Access Token Secret from the X developer Apps section in the Developer Console.To make requests on behalf of another user, generate a separate set of Access Tokens for that user using the 3-legged OAuth flow, then pass that user’s tokens with your OAuth 1.0a User Context or OAuth 2.0 user context requests.

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Additional resources

Guides

Learn how to generate tokens and authenticate requests using our integration guides.

API reference

Review our reference guides for our authentication endpoints.

Best practices

Make sure you protect yourself and understand the best practices for storing your keys and tokens.

FAQs

Have a question? Visit our FAQs.