Getting started

Generate a token and make your first API request in under 5 minutes.

Updated October 29, 2026

What you need: A Tooling Metrics account with access to at least one organization.

The Tooling Metrics API is a JSON REST API over HTTPS. Every request requires a Bearer token.

Step 1: Generate an API token

In Tooling Metrics, click your avatar at the bottom of the sidebar → Setting → API Tokens tab.
Click New API Token.
Enter a name for this token (e.g., erp-integration, cam-plugin).
Click Create — the token is shown once. Copy it immediately; it will not be shown again.

Step 2: Find your organization ID

Most API endpoints require an organization_id path parameter. Retrieve yours:

curl https://api.toolingmetrics.com/v1/organizations \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_TOKEN"

Response — a map of organization name to numeric ID:

{
  "Acme Manufacturing": 12,
  "Acme Tooling": 15
}

Use the numeric ID in all subsequent requests.

Step 3: Make your first request

List machines in your organization:

curl https://api.toolingmetrics.com/v1/organizations/12/machines \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_TOKEN"

A 200 OK with a JSON array means authentication and scoping are working correctly.

Step 4: Handle errors

All API errors return JSON. Most use an errors array:

{ "errors": ["Description of what went wrong"] }

Status	Cause	Action
`401`	Token missing/invalid, or token valid but not authorized for this resource, or for an `organization_id` that doesn’t exist	Check the message: a missing token asks you to authenticate; an authorization failure says “You are not authorized to perform this action”
`404`	Record not found or belongs to a different organization	Verify the ID, and that the record belongs to the `organization_id` in the URL; an `organization_id` that doesn’t exist answers `401`. Note: this error’s body uses a singular `error` key, not `errors`
`422`	Validation failed	Read the `errors` array in the response
`429`	Rate limit exceeded	Wait `Retry-After` seconds and retry

There is no 403 status in this API — both missing/invalid tokens and valid-but-unauthorized tokens return 401, distinguished only by the error message. See Errors for the full picture, including the error/errors key inconsistency.

See Errors for the complete reference.

Next steps

Concepts — organization scoping, pagination, date formats, and read-only resources
Guides (coming soon) — step-by-step patterns for CAM integration, ERP sync, and production automation. Until then, see Concepts for what the API covers today.
Reference — complete endpoint documentation