OAuth Tokens for Grant Types

This API includes the Create Token for Grant Type endpoint which allows you to obtain access tokens for both the authorization code and the refresh token grant types.

For more information, see Authorization code grant flow and Refresh token grant flow in Zendesk help.

If you're not working with grant types, use the Create Token endpoint in the OAuth Tokens API. The two APIs don't share the same path, JSON format, or request parameters. However, both APIs return access tokens that can be used to authenticate API requests.

Authorization code grant type

The authorization code grant flow enables an application to obtain an access token on behalf of a user after the user successfully authenticates and grants permission. To initiate this flow, redirect the user to the authorization server's authorization endpoint, where they log in and authorize the application. After successful authorization, the server redirects the user back to the specified redirect URI with an authorization_code. The application then exchanges this authorization code for an access token by sending a request to the /oauth/tokens endpoint, including the authorization_code, client_id, and, if using PKCE, the code_verifier. This access token allows the application to access protected resources on behalf of the user. When using PKCE, the initial authorization request must also include the code_challenge and code_challenge_method parameters.

Refresh token grant type

The refresh token grant type allows for refreshing an access token that has either expired or is about to expire. To generate a new OAuth access token, pass a refresh_token parameter to the /oauth/tokens endpoint using grant_type: refresh_token. This process returns a new access token and refresh token while invalidating the previous access and refresh tokens. Refresh tokens will be issued for all new OAuth token requests, but existing OAuth tokens cannot be refreshed.

The authorization_code and refresh_token grant types accept the expires_in and refresh_token_expires_in parameters in requests to the /oauth/tokens endpoint, allowing clients to set expiration times.

There is no default expires_in value to preserve current access token behavior. However, you can specify an expires_in value through the API when creating a token to set an expiration. The refresh_token_expires_in has a default value of 30 days, but can be adjusted through the API.

Note: The refresh_token flow does not impact Zendesk Integration Services (ZIS) flows. No mandatory token expirations are enforced that could disrupt ZIS functionality. Although you can set expires_in for testing in non-ZIS OAuth use cases, ZIS does not currently support or require this.

Client credentials grant type

The OAuth client credentials grant type is intended only for confidential clients and enables creating an OAuth token using just the client’s secret. To use this flow, send a request to the /oauth/tokens endpoint with grant_type: client_credentials and a valid client_secret parameter to generate a new access token. Unlike other authorization flows, this grant type does not return a refresh token and does not require user authorization. The token’s user will be the one associated with the client. You can optionally include an expires_in value to set the token’s expiration time in milliseconds. For security reasons, public clients are not allowed to use this grant type.

JSON format

OAuth Tokens for Grant Types are represented as JSON objects with the following properties:

Name	Type	Read-only	Mandatory	Description
access_token	string	true	false	The access token
expires_in	integer	false	false	Number of seconds the access token is valid. Must be more than 300 seconds (5 minutes) and less than 172,800 seconds (2 days), or less than refresh_token_expires_in, whichever is the smallest. Defaults to null
refresh_token	string	true	false	The refresh token
refresh_token_expires_in	integer	false	false	Number of seconds the refresh token is valid. Must be more than 604,800 seconds (7 days) or expires_in (if given), and less than 7,776,000 seconds (90 days). Defaults to 2,592,000 seconds (30 days)
scope	string	true	false	The valid scopes for this token. See Scope below
token_type	string	true	false	Type of the access token, for example "bearer"

Example

{
  "access_token": "gErypPlm4dOVgGRvA1ZzMH5MQ3nLo8bo",
  "expires_in": 86400,
  "refresh_token": "af3t24tfj34h43s...",
  "refresh_token_expires_in": 604800,
  "scope": "read",
  "token_type": "bearer"
}

Create Token for Grant Type

• POST /oauth/tokens

Returns an OAuth access token in exchange for an authorization code valid for 120 seconds.

Using a Zendesk username and password to gain an OAuth access token (password grant type flow) has been deprecated and is highly discouraged.

An access token can be revoked. Use the OAuth Tokens API to list, show, or revoke tokens.

Request parameters

The POST request takes the following parameters, which must be formatted as JSON:

Name	Description
grant_type	"authorization_code", "refresh_token", or "client_credentials"
code	Authorization grant flow only. The authorization code you received from Zendesk after the user granted access. See Handle the user's authorization decision in Help Center
client_id	The Unique Identifier specified in an OAuth client in the Support admin interface (Admin > Channels > API > OAuth Clients). See Registering your application with Zendesk
client_secret	The Secret specified in an OAuth client in the Support admin interface (Admin > Channels > API > OAuth Clients). See Registering your application with Zendesk
redirect_uri	Authorization grant flow only. The redirect URL you specified when you sent the user to the Zendesk authorization page. For ID purposes only. See Send the user to the Zendesk authorization page
scope	Valid scope for this token. A string of space-separated values. See Scope below
expires_in	Number of seconds the access token is valid. Must be more than 300 seconds (5 minutes) and less than 172,800 seconds (2 days), or less than refresh_token_expires_in, whichever is the smallest. Defaults to null
refresh_token_expires_in	Number of seconds the refresh token is valid. Must be more than 604,800 seconds (7 days) or expires_in (if given), and less than 7,776,000 seconds (90 days). Defaults to 2,592,000 seconds (30 days)
refresh_token	The refresh token

Example Node.js authorization code grant flow

const tokenResponse = await axios.post(
  `https://${ZENDESK_SUBDOMAIN}.zendesk.com/oauth/tokens`,
  {
    grant_type: "authorization_code",
    code: req.query.code,
    client_id: ZENDESK_CLIENT_ID,
    redirect_uri: REDIRECT_URI_PKCE,
    scope: "read write",
    code_verifier: CODE_VERIFIER,
    expires_in: 86400,
    refresh_token_expires_in: 604800,
  },
  { headers: { "Content-Type": "application/json" } }
);

Example Node.js refresh token grant flow

const tokenResponse = await axios.post(
  `https://${ZENDESK_SUBDOMAIN}.zendesk.com/oauth/tokens`,
  {
    grant_type: "refresh_token",
    refresh_token: refresh_token,
    client_id: ZENDESK_CLIENT_ID,
    client_secret: ZENDESK_CLIENT_SECRET,
    scopes: "tickets:write",
    expires_in: 86400,
    refresh_token_expires_in: 604800,
  },
  { headers: { "Content-Type": "application/json" } }
);

Scope

You must specify a scope to control the app's access to Zendesk resources. The "read" scope gives access to GET endpoints. It includes permission to sideload related resources. The "write" scope gives access to POST, PUT, and DELETE endpoints for creating, updating, and deleting resources.

Note: Don't confuse the scope parameter (singular) with the scopes parameter (plural) for non-grant-type tokens described in OAuth Tokens.

The "impersonate" scope allows a Zendesk admin to make requests on behalf of end users. See Making API requests on behalf of end users.

For example, the following parameter gives read access to all resources:

"scope": "read"

The following parameter gives read and write access to all resources:

"scope": "read write"

You can fine-tune the scope of the following resources:

• tickets
• users
• auditlogs (read only)
• organizations
• hc
• apps
• triggers
• automations
• targets
• webhooks

The syntax is as follows:

"scope": "resource:scope"

For example, the following parameter restricts the scope to only reading tickets:

"scope": "tickets:read"

To give read and write access to a resource, specify both scopes:

"scope": "users:read users:write"

To give write access only to one resource, such as organizations, and read access to everything else:

"scope": "organizations:write read"

Note: The endpoint returns an access token even if you specify an invalid scope such as "scope": ["read", "write"] (no parentheses). Any request you make with the token will return a "Forbidden" error.

Tokens for Implicit Grant Type

The implicit grant flow has been deprecated. It's considered insecure and its use is highly discouraged.

Code Samples

curl

Authorization code grant

curl https://{subdomain}.zendesk.com/oauth/tokens \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"grant_type": "authorization_code", "code": "7xqwtlf3rrdj8uyeb1yf",
    "client_id": "acme_rockets", "client_secret": "77f9931747b63f720f9fbc6",
    "redirect_uri": "https://www.example.com/app/grant_decision",
    "scope": "organizations:write read" }' \
  -X POST

Go

import (
	"fmt"
	"io"
	"net/http"
)

func main() {
	url := "https://support.zendesk.com/oauth/tokens"
	method := "POST"
	req, err := http.NewRequest(method, url, nil)

	if err != nil {
		fmt.Println(err)
		return
	}
	req.Header.Add("Content-Type", "application/json")
	req.Header.Add("Authorization", "Basic <auth-value>") // Base64 encoded "{email_address}/token:{api_token}"

	client := &http.Client {}
	res, err := client.Do(req)
	if err != nil {
		fmt.Println(err)
		return
	}
	defer res.Body.Close()

	body, err := io.ReadAll(res.Body)
	if err != nil {
		fmt.Println(err)
		return
	}
	fmt.Println(string(body))
}

Java

import com.squareup.okhttp.*;
OkHttpClient client = new OkHttpClient();
HttpUrl.Builder urlBuilder = HttpUrl.parse("https://support.zendesk.com/oauth/tokens")
		.newBuilder();
RequestBody body = RequestBody.create(MediaType.parse("application/json"),
		"""
""");
String userCredentials = "your_email_address" + "/token:" + "your_api_token";
String basicAuth = "Basic " + java.util.Base64.getEncoder().encodeToString(userCredentials.getBytes());

Request request = new Request.Builder()
		.url(urlBuilder.build())
		.method("POST", body)
		.addHeader("Content-Type", "application/json")
		.addHeader("Authorization", basicAuth)
		.build();
Response response = client.newCall(request).execute();

Nodejs

var axios = require('axios');

var config = {
  method: 'POST',
  url: 'https://support.zendesk.com/oauth/tokens',
  headers: {
	'Content-Type': 'application/json',
	'Authorization': 'Basic <auth-value>', // Base64 encoded "{email_address}/token:{api_token}"
  },
};

axios(config)
.then(function (response) {
  console.log(JSON.stringify(response.data));
})
.catch(function (error) {
  console.log(error);
});

Python

import requests
from requests.auth import HTTPBasicAuth

url = "https://support.zendesk.com/oauth/tokens"
headers = {
	"Content-Type": "application/json",
}
email_address = 'your_email_address'
api_token = 'your_api_token'
# Use basic authentication
auth = HTTPBasicAuth(f'{email_address}/token', api_token)

response = requests.request(
	"POST",
	url,
	auth=auth,
	headers=headers
)

print(response.text)

Ruby

require "net/http"
require "base64"
uri = URI("https://support.zendesk.com/oauth/tokens")
request = Net::HTTP::Post.new(uri, "Content-Type": "application/json")
email = "your_email_address"
api_token = "your_api_token"
credentials = "#{email}/token:#{api_token}"
encoded_credentials = Base64.strict_encode64(credentials)
request["Authorization"] = "Basic #{encoded_credentials}"
response = Net::HTTP.start uri.hostname, uri.port, use_ssl: true do |http|
	http.request(request)
end

Example response(s)

201 Created

// Status 201 Created

{
  "access_token": "gErypPlm4dOVgGRvA1ZzMH5MQ3nLo8bo",
  "scope": "organizations:write read",
  "token_type": "bearer"
}