Create app

Create an app within a project. The app is created with default production and preview environments.

Set exactly one source. Use git to create a GitHub-sourced app and connect its repository. Use oci to create an app from a prebuilt OCI image.

The slug you provide is the stable, caller-defined handle used to reference this app. It must be unique within the project.

Important: The slug cannot collide with an existing app in the same project. A duplicate slug returns a 409 conflict.

Required Permissions

Your root key must have one of the following permissions:

project.*.create_app (to create apps in any project)
project.<project_id>.create_app (to create apps in a specific project)

POST

apps.createApp

Go (SDK)

package main

import(
	"context"
	"os"
	unkey "github.com/unkeyed/sdks/api/go/v3"
	"github.com/unkeyed/sdks/api/go/v3/models/components"
	"log"
)

func main() {
    ctx := context.Background()

    s := unkey.New(
        unkey.WithSecurity(os.Getenv("UNKEY_ROOT_KEY")),
    )

    res, err := s.Apps.CreateApp(ctx, components.CreateV2AppsCreateAppRequestBodyUnionV2AppsCreateAppRequestBody1(
        components.V2AppsCreateAppRequestBody1{
            Project: "payments",
            Name: "Payments API",
            Slug: "payments-api",
            Git: components.AppGitCreateInput{
                Repository: unkey.Pointer("unkeyed/unkey"),
            },
        },
    ))
    if err != nil {
        log.Fatal(err)
    }
    if res.V2AppsCreateAppResponseBody != nil {
        // handle response
    }
}

from unkey.py import Unkey


with Unkey(
    root_key="<YOUR_BEARER_TOKEN_HERE>",
) as unkey:

    res = unkey.apps.create_app(project="payments", name="Payments API", slug="payments-api")

    # Handle response
    print(res)

import { Unkey } from "@unkey/api";

const unkey = new Unkey({
  rootKey: process.env["UNKEY_ROOT_KEY"] ?? "",
});

async function run() {
  const result = await unkey.apps.createApp({
    project: "payments",
    name: "Payments API",
    slug: "payments-api",
  });

  console.log(result);
}

run();

curl --request POST \
  --url https://api.unkey.com/v2/apps.createApp \
  --header 'Authorization: Bearer <token>' \
  --header 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  --data '
{
  "git": {
    "repository": "unkeyed/unkey"
  },
  "name": "Payments API",
  "project": "payments",
  "slug": "payments-api"
}
'

const options = {
  method: 'POST',
  headers: {Authorization: 'Bearer <token>', 'Content-Type': 'application/json'},
  body: JSON.stringify({
    git: {repository: 'unkeyed/unkey'},
    name: 'Payments API',
    project: 'payments',
    slug: 'payments-api'
  })
};

fetch('https://api.unkey.com/v2/apps.createApp', options)
  .then(res => res.json())
  .then(res => console.log(res))
  .catch(err => console.error(err));

<?php

$curl = curl_init();

curl_setopt_array($curl, [
  CURLOPT_URL => "https://api.unkey.com/v2/apps.createApp",
  CURLOPT_RETURNTRANSFER => true,
  CURLOPT_ENCODING => "",
  CURLOPT_MAXREDIRS => 10,
  CURLOPT_TIMEOUT => 30,
  CURLOPT_HTTP_VERSION => CURL_HTTP_VERSION_1_1,
  CURLOPT_CUSTOMREQUEST => "POST",
  CURLOPT_POSTFIELDS => json_encode([
    'git' => [
        'repository' => 'unkeyed/unkey'
    ],
    'name' => 'Payments API',
    'project' => 'payments',
    'slug' => 'payments-api'
  ]),
  CURLOPT_HTTPHEADER => [
    "Authorization: Bearer <token>",
    "Content-Type: application/json"
  ],
]);

$response = curl_exec($curl);
$err = curl_error($curl);

curl_close($curl);

if ($err) {
  echo "cURL Error #:" . $err;
} else {
  echo $response;
}

HttpResponse<String> response = Unirest.post("https://api.unkey.com/v2/apps.createApp")
  .header("Authorization", "Bearer <token>")
  .header("Content-Type", "application/json")
  .body("{\n  \"git\": {\n    \"repository\": \"unkeyed/unkey\"\n  },\n  \"name\": \"Payments API\",\n  \"project\": \"payments\",\n  \"slug\": \"payments-api\"\n}")
  .asString();

require 'uri'
require 'net/http'

url = URI("https://api.unkey.com/v2/apps.createApp")

http = Net::HTTP.new(url.host, url.port)
http.use_ssl = true

request = Net::HTTP::Post.new(url)
request["Authorization"] = 'Bearer <token>'
request["Content-Type"] = 'application/json'
request.body = "{\n  \"git\": {\n    \"repository\": \"unkeyed/unkey\"\n  },\n  \"name\": \"Payments API\",\n  \"project\": \"payments\",\n  \"slug\": \"payments-api\"\n}"

response = http.request(request)
puts response.read_body

{
  "data": {
    "appId": "app_1234abcd"
  },
  "meta": {
    "requestId": "req_1234abcd"
  }
}

{
  "error": {
    "detail": "The slug must match the pattern ^[a-z0-9]+(-[a-z0-9]+)*$.",
    "errors": [
      {
        "fix": "Use lowercase letters, numbers, and hyphens, starting and ending with a letter or number (no leading, trailing, or consecutive hyphens)",
        "location": "body.slug",
        "message": "must match ^[a-z0-9]+(-[a-z0-9]+)*$"
      }
    ],
    "status": 400,
    "title": "Bad Request",
    "type": "validation-error"
  },
  "meta": {
    "requestId": "req_1234abcd"
  }
}

{
  "meta": {
    "requestId": "req_123"
  },
  "error": {
    "detail": "Property foo is required but is missing.",
    "status": 404,
    "title": "Not Found",
    "type": "https://unkey.com/docs/errors/unkey/resource/not_found"
  }
}

{
  "error": {
    "detail": "Your root key requires the 'project.*.create_app' permission to perform this operation",
    "status": 403,
    "title": "Forbidden",
    "type": "forbidden"
  },
  "meta": {
    "requestId": "req_1234abcd"
  }
}

{
  "error": {
    "detail": "The requested project does not exist.",
    "status": 404,
    "title": "Not Found",
    "type": "not-found"
  },
  "meta": {
    "requestId": "req_1234abcd"
  }
}

{
  "error": {
    "detail": "An app with slug 'payments-api' already exists in this project.",
    "status": 409,
    "title": "Conflict",
    "type": "conflict"
  },
  "meta": {
    "requestId": "req_1234abcd"
  }
}

{
  "meta": {
    "requestId": "req_123"
  },
  "error": {
    "detail": "Property foo is required but is missing.",
    "status": 404,
    "title": "Not Found",
    "type": "https://unkey.com/docs/errors/unkey/resource/not_found"
  }
}

{
  "meta": {
    "requestId": "req_123"
  },
  "error": {
    "detail": "Property foo is required but is missing.",
    "status": 404,
    "title": "Not Found",
    "type": "https://unkey.com/docs/errors/unkey/resource/not_found"
  }
}

Authorizations

Authorization

string

header

required

Unkey uses bearer tokens for authentication. Public integrations use root keys, while the dashboard proxy uses short-lived JWTs. To authenticate, include the token in the Authorization header of each request:

Authorization: Bearer unkey_123

Root keys have specific permissions attached to them, controlling what operations they can perform. Legacy permissions use tuple strings like api.*.create_key; resource permissions use Unkey Resource Names plus actions, like unkey:v1:ws_123:keyspaces/*#create_key. Security best practices:

Keep root keys secure and never expose them in client-side code
Use different root keys for different environments
Rotate keys periodically, especially after team member departures
Create keys with minimal necessary permissions following least privilege principle
Monitor key usage with audit logs.

Body

application/json

Option 1
Option 2

Create an app with exactly one source: git or oci. Requests that omit a source or provide both sources are rejected.

project

string

required

Identifies a resource by either its unique ID or its slug. Accepts a prefixed ID (such as 'proj_' or 'app_') or a slug.

Required string length: 3 - 255

Pattern: ^[a-zA-Z0-9_-]+$

Example:

"proj_1234abcd"

name

string

required

Human-readable name for this app.

Required string length: 1 - 256

Example:

"Payments API"

slug

string

required

Identifies a resource by either its unique ID or its slug. Accepts a prefixed ID (such as 'proj_' or 'app_') or a slug.

Required string length: 3 - 255

Pattern: ^[a-zA-Z0-9_-]+$

Example:

"proj_1234abcd"

git

object

required

Configure Git as the app source. Provide repository to connect it during creation, or use an empty object to connect a repository later.

Show child attributes

oci

object

An app's OCI image source.

Show child attributes

Response

App created successfully. The response contains the app id used to reference it in subsequent operations.

meta

object

required

Metadata object included in every API response. This provides context about the request and is essential for debugging, audit trails, and support inquiries. The requestId is particularly important when troubleshooting issues with the Unkey support team.

Show child attributes

data

object

required

Show child attributes

Last modified on September 18, 2026

⌘I

Go (SDK)

package main

import(
	"context"
	"os"
	unkey "github.com/unkeyed/sdks/api/go/v3"
	"github.com/unkeyed/sdks/api/go/v3/models/components"
	"log"
)

func main() {
    ctx := context.Background()

    s := unkey.New(
        unkey.WithSecurity(os.Getenv("UNKEY_ROOT_KEY")),
    )

    res, err := s.Apps.CreateApp(ctx, components.CreateV2AppsCreateAppRequestBodyUnionV2AppsCreateAppRequestBody1(
        components.V2AppsCreateAppRequestBody1{
            Project: "payments",
            Name: "Payments API",
            Slug: "payments-api",
            Git: components.AppGitCreateInput{
                Repository: unkey.Pointer("unkeyed/unkey"),
            },
        },
    ))
    if err != nil {
        log.Fatal(err)
    }
    if res.V2AppsCreateAppResponseBody != nil {
        // handle response
    }
}

from unkey.py import Unkey


with Unkey(
    root_key="<YOUR_BEARER_TOKEN_HERE>",
) as unkey:

    res = unkey.apps.create_app(project="payments", name="Payments API", slug="payments-api")

    # Handle response
    print(res)

import { Unkey } from "@unkey/api";

const unkey = new Unkey({
  rootKey: process.env["UNKEY_ROOT_KEY"] ?? "",
});

async function run() {
  const result = await unkey.apps.createApp({
    project: "payments",
    name: "Payments API",
    slug: "payments-api",
  });

  console.log(result);
}

run();

curl --request POST \
  --url https://api.unkey.com/v2/apps.createApp \
  --header 'Authorization: Bearer <token>' \
  --header 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  --data '
{
  "git": {
    "repository": "unkeyed/unkey"
  },
  "name": "Payments API",
  "project": "payments",
  "slug": "payments-api"
}
'

const options = {
  method: 'POST',
  headers: {Authorization: 'Bearer <token>', 'Content-Type': 'application/json'},
  body: JSON.stringify({
    git: {repository: 'unkeyed/unkey'},
    name: 'Payments API',
    project: 'payments',
    slug: 'payments-api'
  })
};

fetch('https://api.unkey.com/v2/apps.createApp', options)
  .then(res => res.json())
  .then(res => console.log(res))
  .catch(err => console.error(err));

<?php

$curl = curl_init();

curl_setopt_array($curl, [
  CURLOPT_URL => "https://api.unkey.com/v2/apps.createApp",
  CURLOPT_RETURNTRANSFER => true,
  CURLOPT_ENCODING => "",
  CURLOPT_MAXREDIRS => 10,
  CURLOPT_TIMEOUT => 30,
  CURLOPT_HTTP_VERSION => CURL_HTTP_VERSION_1_1,
  CURLOPT_CUSTOMREQUEST => "POST",
  CURLOPT_POSTFIELDS => json_encode([
    'git' => [
        'repository' => 'unkeyed/unkey'
    ],
    'name' => 'Payments API',
    'project' => 'payments',
    'slug' => 'payments-api'
  ]),
  CURLOPT_HTTPHEADER => [
    "Authorization: Bearer <token>",
    "Content-Type: application/json"
  ],
]);

$response = curl_exec($curl);
$err = curl_error($curl);

curl_close($curl);

if ($err) {
  echo "cURL Error #:" . $err;
} else {
  echo $response;
}

HttpResponse<String> response = Unirest.post("https://api.unkey.com/v2/apps.createApp")
  .header("Authorization", "Bearer <token>")
  .header("Content-Type", "application/json")
  .body("{\n  \"git\": {\n    \"repository\": \"unkeyed/unkey\"\n  },\n  \"name\": \"Payments API\",\n  \"project\": \"payments\",\n  \"slug\": \"payments-api\"\n}")
  .asString();

require 'uri'
require 'net/http'

url = URI("https://api.unkey.com/v2/apps.createApp")

http = Net::HTTP.new(url.host, url.port)
http.use_ssl = true

request = Net::HTTP::Post.new(url)
request["Authorization"] = 'Bearer <token>'
request["Content-Type"] = 'application/json'
request.body = "{\n  \"git\": {\n    \"repository\": \"unkeyed/unkey\"\n  },\n  \"name\": \"Payments API\",\n  \"project\": \"payments\",\n  \"slug\": \"payments-api\"\n}"

response = http.request(request)
puts response.read_body

{
  "data": {
    "appId": "app_1234abcd"
  },
  "meta": {
    "requestId": "req_1234abcd"
  }
}

{
  "error": {
    "detail": "The slug must match the pattern ^[a-z0-9]+(-[a-z0-9]+)*$.",
    "errors": [
      {
        "fix": "Use lowercase letters, numbers, and hyphens, starting and ending with a letter or number (no leading, trailing, or consecutive hyphens)",
        "location": "body.slug",
        "message": "must match ^[a-z0-9]+(-[a-z0-9]+)*$"
      }
    ],
    "status": 400,
    "title": "Bad Request",
    "type": "validation-error"
  },
  "meta": {
    "requestId": "req_1234abcd"
  }
}

{
  "meta": {
    "requestId": "req_123"
  },
  "error": {
    "detail": "Property foo is required but is missing.",
    "status": 404,
    "title": "Not Found",
    "type": "https://unkey.com/docs/errors/unkey/resource/not_found"
  }
}

{
  "error": {
    "detail": "Your root key requires the 'project.*.create_app' permission to perform this operation",
    "status": 403,
    "title": "Forbidden",
    "type": "forbidden"
  },
  "meta": {
    "requestId": "req_1234abcd"
  }
}

{
  "error": {
    "detail": "The requested project does not exist.",
    "status": 404,
    "title": "Not Found",
    "type": "not-found"
  },
  "meta": {
    "requestId": "req_1234abcd"
  }
}

{
  "error": {
    "detail": "An app with slug 'payments-api' already exists in this project.",
    "status": 409,
    "title": "Conflict",
    "type": "conflict"
  },
  "meta": {
    "requestId": "req_1234abcd"
  }
}

{
  "meta": {
    "requestId": "req_123"
  },
  "error": {
    "detail": "Property foo is required but is missing.",
    "status": 404,
    "title": "Not Found",
    "type": "https://unkey.com/docs/errors/unkey/resource/not_found"
  }
}

{
  "meta": {
    "requestId": "req_123"
  },
  "error": {
    "detail": "Property foo is required but is missing.",
    "status": 404,
    "title": "Not Found",
    "type": "https://unkey.com/docs/errors/unkey/resource/not_found"
  }
}