What’s an API?
An API is a tool that "connects" two programs and allows them to exchange information, even though they were built separately and don’t “know” each other. For example, if you log work hours in Toggl Track and want them to show in another program, you can use the Toggl Track API to connect the programs instead of manually exporting your data.
The second program (the "connected” program to Toggl Track) sends a request to our API saying, “Give me all the time entries for this user for the past week.” Our API instantly replies with the data—things like the project name, how long you worked, and when. Tl;dr: You store lots of data in Toggl Track, and our API lets you use it in lots of ways depending on your workflow and needs.
And how am I using this API?
People can use our API through a few different methods: most will directly utilize our API documentation to self-build solutions to “call” our API for the needed data. If you’ve never built anything with an API, you may be using an integration or third-party service that uses our API. This includes services like Zapier and Make, third-party apps like Timery, and integration solutions like Atlassian Marketplace integrations between Toggl and JIRA. If you use any of these, they will count towards your API limit.
This is great, but how can I track how much of my API limit I’ve used?
We are introducing options for users to better monitor their API use:
Users will be able to see a “meter” in their My Profile Page that will show how many requests they have left.
Usage amounts will also be displayed within response headers; when using an API call, the response header will show the amount of requests left for the account.
You can also use an endpoint to get the API quote, as described here.
And what if I go over the limit?
If you primarily use API calls, any call that would put you over our limit will simply not go through. If you use a third-party service or app/integration, how they display the failure information will vary depending on how the service chooses to deal with the limits.