> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://unkey.com/docs/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# create-api

> Create an API namespace in Unkey using the CLI. Organize your keys by environment, service, or product with a single terminal command.

Create an API namespace for organizing keys by environment, service, or product.

Use this to separate production from development keys, isolate different services, or manage multiple products. Each API gets a unique identifier and dedicated infrastructure for secure key operations.

**Important:** API names must be unique within your workspace and cannot be changed after creation.

**Required permissions:**

* `api.*.create_api` (to create APIs in any workspace)

<Note>
  See the [API reference](/api-reference/apis/create-api-namespace) for the full HTTP endpoint documentation.
</Note>

## Usage

```bash theme={"theme":"kanagawa-wave"}
unkey api apis create-api [flags]
```

## Flags

<ParamField body="--name" type="string" required>
  Unique identifier for this API namespace within your workspace. Use descriptive names like `payment-service-prod` or `user-api-dev` to clearly identify purpose and environment. Must be 3-255 characters, start with a letter, and contain only letters, numbers, dots, hyphens, and underscores.
</ParamField>

## Global Flags

| Flag         | Type   | Description                                              |
| ------------ | ------ | -------------------------------------------------------- |
| `--root-key` | string | Override root key (`$UNKEY_ROOT_KEY`)                    |
| `--api-url`  | string | Override API base URL (default: `https://api.unkey.com`) |
| `--config`   | string | Path to config file (default: `~/.unkey/config.toml`)    |
| `--output`   | string | Output format. Use `json` for raw JSON                   |

## Examples

<CodeGroup>
  ```bash Basic theme={"theme":"kanagawa-wave"}
  unkey api apis create-api --name=payment-service-prod
  ```

  ```bash JSON output for scripting theme={"theme":"kanagawa-wave"}
  unkey api apis create-api --name=user-api-dev --output=json
  ```

  ```bash Pipe the API ID to another command theme={"theme":"kanagawa-wave"}
  API_ID=$(unkey api apis create-api --name=my-api --output=json | jq -r '.data.id')
  unkey api keys create-key --api-id=$API_ID
  ```
</CodeGroup>

## Output

Default output shows the request ID with latency, followed by the created API:

```text theme={"theme":"kanagawa-wave"}
req_2c9a0jf23l4k567 (took 45ms)

{
  "id": "api_1234abcd",
  "name": "payment-service-prod"
}
```

With `--output=json`, the full response envelope is returned:

```json theme={"theme":"kanagawa-wave"}
{
  "meta": {
    "requestId": "req_2c9a0jf23l4k567"
  },
  "data": {
    "id": "api_1234abcd",
    "name": "payment-service-prod"
  }
}
```