API Reference

REST API for managing GPU instances, machines, templates, volumes, serverless endpoints, and billing on Vast.ai.

The Vast.ai REST API gives you programmatic control over the entire platform. It’s the foundation that the CLI and SDK are built on.

The raw REST API is intended for advanced users only. Most users will have a better experience with the CLI or SDK, which handle authentication, retries, and request shape for you. Reach for the API directly when you need maximum flexibility, are integrating from a non-Python language, or are building tooling on top of Vast.

Quickstart

New to the API? Start with the API Hello World, it walks through the full instance lifecycle (authenticate, search, rent, connect, clean up) using only curl.

Reference sections

Section	What’s covered
Authentication	Bearer-token auth, API key generation and management
Permissions	Scoped API keys, role-based access
Rate limits & errors	Per-endpoint limits, error codes, retry guidance
Creating instances	Search-and-rent flow, configuration options
Templates	Template fields, creation, instance launch
Endpoints	Full OpenAPI reference for every endpoint

Base URL

https://console.vast.ai/api/v0

All endpoints require Authorization: Bearer $VAST_API_KEY. Get your key from the Keys page.