The API tester

How to try real calls to a published service in the browser under API → Test, read the answer, and copy the exact address for your own code.

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What it is

API → Test (Testen) sends real calls to your published service and shows the answer. It is the quickest way to check a service before you build it into something. The request is on the left, the answer on the right.

The API tab opens once the service is published. For a draft, use the test panel instead; see Test before publishing.

Make a test call

1. Open the service and go to API → Test.
2. Fill in the fields under Input Parameters. They start with the values from your workbook. Required fields are marked.
3. If the service is token-protected, paste a token into the Token field.
4. Choose the Method (Methode): GET or POST.
5. Choose the Domain: spreadapi.io or the short spreadapi.run.
6. Click Run Test (Test starten).

The right side shows 200 OK, the time in milliseconds and the answer as JSON.

The request

• Request URL (Anfrage-URL) shows the address that is called. It changes as you type. Copy copies it for your own tool.
• With POST, Request Body (Anfrage-Body) shows the JSON that is sent. The address then carries no inputs.
• You can edit the address or the body by hand, for example to add _format=csv or flatten=true. Reset URL and Reset bring back the generated version.
• Every test is calculated again: the tester adds nocache=true to its own calls, so you never see a stored result, and a data source is read for the test. The address you copy does not contain it. To see what a caller gets from a stored result, add nocache=false to the address or the body.

With GET, the token is part of the address. With POST, the tester sends it in the body.

The answer

• A green 200 OK with the time means the call worked. The time is the calculation time the service reports.
• The JSON is shown as a tree. service and metadata start folded; click to open them. outputs holds your results.
• A red Error with a message means the call was refused. The message is the reason the service gave, for example a missing required input or a token problem. If values were refused, each input is listed with its reason. The JSON below is the answer of the refused call.
• If a required field is empty, the tester does not send the call and shows Please fill in all required fields (Bitte füll alle Pflichtfelder aus).
• The error disappears when you change the request. After a republish the last answer is cleared.

What each part of the answer means is in The API response.

Full screen

Click Full screen (Vollbild) at the top right to give the tester the whole window. This helps with many inputs or a long answer. Close it to return to the tab.

Good to know

• Test calls are real calls. They count toward the calls of your plan and appear under Usage.
• The tester calls the published version. Changes you have not republished are not in the answer; see Publish, republish and unpublish.
• The tester always asks for a new calculation. Your own callers may get a stored result for identical calls, marked with cached: true in metadata, unless they send nocache=true; see Caching and performance.
• The tester shows JSON. To see the CSV or plain-text format, copy the address and open it in a new browser tab.

Next steps

• Ready-made snippets for your service: Code examples.
• The full contract: OpenAPI and interactive docs.
• Protecting the service: Tokens and access.

For developers and agents

• The address the tester builds for GET is https://spreadapi.io/api/v1/services/{serviceId}/execute?name=value&... plus &token=... for a protected service, or https://spreadapi.run/{serviceId}?... on the short domain.
• The POST body the tester builds is {"inputs": {...}}, plus "token": "..." for a protected service. In your own code, the header Authorization: Bearer <token> is the usual place for the token.
• The tester is a page of the owner's app. An agent tests a service by calling the execute address directly.

FAQ

How do I test my API in the browser?

Open the published service, go to API → Test, enter values and click Run Test. The answer appears on the right as JSON.

Why is the API tab locked?

The API tab opens only for a published service. Click Publish now on the placeholder, or test the draft with the play button at the top right.

Do test calls count toward my monthly calls?

Yes. API → Test sends real calls to the published service, so they are counted like any other call.

Where do I enter my token in the tester?

A Token field appears when the service is token-protected. Paste the token there and the tester adds it to the call.

Can I copy the request URL for my own tool?

Yes. Click Copy above the Request URL; the address contains your current input values.

The tester shows an old result after I changed the workbook. Why?

The tester calls the published version. Save and republish the service; the tester then calculates with the new version, because it never uses a stored result.

Can I switch between GET and POST in the tester?

Yes, under Method. With POST the inputs move from the address into the Request Body.

What is the Domain choice for?

It switches the address between spreadapi.io and the short domain spreadapi.run. Both reach the same service and return the same answer.

I edited the URL by hand and now the fields no longer change it. What do I do?

Click Reset URL below the address. The tester then builds the address from the input fields again.