Skip to main content

Authentication

The Market Data API uses a Bearer Token for authentication. The token is required for each request you make to the API. Your token should have been e-mailed to you when you first signed up for an account. If you do not have a token or have lost your sign-up email, request a new token from the Market Data Dashboard.

There are three ways to set your token when using the JavaScript SDK:

  1. Set it from an environment variable (recommended for production)
  2. Load it from a .env file (recommended for local development)
  3. Pass it directly when creating the client

On startup, the SDK will look for the MARKETDATA_TOKEN environment variable. If found, it will use the token for all requests. The SDK also loads a .env file automatically via dotenv if one is present in the working directory.

tip

When your code is running in a production environment, we recommend using an environment variable to ensure your token is not stored with your code. This is the most secure way to set your token.

How To Set-Up The Environment Variable​

Set the token in the environment variable MARKETDATA_TOKEN. Alternatively, you can pass it directly when creating the client, but please be aware that this is not secure and could pose a risk if your code is shared.

Set The Environment Variable In The Console​

This command should be run in the terminal. It sets the environment variable for the current session only. If you open a new terminal window or restart your computer, the environment variable will not persist.

export MARKETDATA_TOKEN="your_api_token"

Verify the Variable​

To verify that the MARKETDATA_TOKEN environment variable has been set properly, run echo $MARKETDATA_TOKEN. If set correctly, this prints the token value; if unset, the output is blank.

Make The Variable Persistent​

Add the export line to your shell's profile script (~/.bash_profile, ~/.bashrc, ~/.zshrc, etc.), then either restart your terminal or run source ~/.bashrc (adjusting for your shell) to apply.

Using a .env File​

The SDK automatically loads a .env file from your working directory at import time (via dotenv). Create a file named .env in your project root:

.env
MARKETDATA_TOKEN=your_api_token
warning

Add .env to your .gitignore so the token is not committed to source control.

Make A Test Request​

Use the following code to verify that your authentication is working by making a test request to SPY or any other symbol that requires authentication. Do not use AAPL to test your authentication because AAPL is a free test symbol and will return data even if you are not authenticated properly.

import { MarketDataClient } from "marketdata-sdk-js";

// No need to pass a token here — the SDK reads it from
// the MARKETDATA_TOKEN environment variable automatically.
const client = new MarketDataClient();

const result = await client.stocks.quotes("SPY");

result.match(
  (quotes) => console.log(quotes),
  (error) => console.error(`Error: ${error.message}`),
);

If your token is set correctly, you should see the output of the test request. If you see an error, double-check that you have set the token correctly.

How To Create a Client and Assign a Token Directly​

If you decide to pass the token directly when creating the client, you can do so by passing it as a property of the configuration object. This is not recommended for production code.

Example Code​

import { MarketDataClient } from "marketdata-sdk-js";

const token = "your_token_here";

const client = new MarketDataClient({ token });

const result = await client.stocks.quotes("SPY");

result.match(
  (quotes) => console.log(quotes),
  (error) => console.error(`Error: ${error.message}`),
);

Next Steps​

After successful authentication, you will be able to begin making requests to the Market Data API. We recommend reading the brief overview of how the client works, so you can get familiar with interacting with the SDK.

You may also want to configure Settings to customize output format, date format, and other universal parameters.