API Key Management

API keys authenticate your applications with the Pictify API. This guide covers creating, managing, and securing your keys.

Creating an API Key

Go to Settings > API Keys
Click Create Key
Enter a descriptive name (e.g., “Production Server”, “CI/CD Pipeline”)
Click Create
Copy the key immediately - it’s only shown once

Store your API key securely. You won’t be able to see it again after leaving this page.

Key Types

Live Keys

Prefix: pk_live_
Full API access
Usage counts against your plan
Use in production

Test Keys

Prefix: pk_test_
Limited to 100 renders/day
Renders are watermarked
Use for development and testing

Viewing Keys

The API Keys page shows:

Column	Description
Name	Your key description
Key ID	Public identifier (e.g., `key_abc123`)
Type	Live or Test
Created	Creation date
Last Used	Most recent API call
Status	Active or Revoked

For security, only the Key ID is displayed. The full key value is only shown at creation.

Managing Keys

Rename a Key

Click the … menu on a key
Select Rename
Enter the new name
Click Save

Revoke a Key

Revoking a key immediately invalidates it:

Click the … menu on a key
Select Revoke
Confirm the action

Revoking a key is immediate and permanent. Any applications using this key will stop working.

Delete a Key

Remove a key from your account:

Click the … menu on a key
Select Delete
Confirm deletion

Only revoked keys can be deleted.

Key Limits

Plan	Live Keys	Test Keys
Free	2	5
Pro	10	10
Business	50	50
Enterprise	Unlimited	Unlimited

Usage Tracking

Per-Key Usage

View usage for each key:

Click a key to expand details
See requests in the last 24h, 7d, 30d
View error rates and latency

Usage Alerts

Set up alerts for unusual activity:

Go to Settings > Alerts
Click Add Alert
Configure conditions:
- Requests exceed threshold
- Error rate above percentage
- Latency above threshold
Choose notification method (email, Slack, webhook)

Security Best Practices

Use Descriptive Names

Name keys by their purpose:

✅ "Production API Server"
✅ "Staging Environment"
✅ "GitHub Actions CI"
❌ "Key 1"
❌ "Test"

Rotate Keys Regularly

Schedule regular key rotation:

Create a new key
Update your application
Verify the new key works
Revoke the old key

Use Test Keys for Development

Never use live keys in development:

# Development
PICTIFY_API_KEY=pk_test_...

# Production
PICTIFY_API_KEY=pk_live_...

Monitor for Misuse

Watch for signs of compromised keys:

Unexpected usage spikes
Requests from unknown IPs
Unusual error patterns

Principle of Least Privilege

Create separate keys for different services:

Service	Key	Access
Web App	`prod-webapp`	Full access
Mobile App	`prod-mobile`	Full access
Analytics	`prod-analytics`	Read-only
CI/CD	`ci-pipeline`	Test key

Environment-Specific Keys

Development

Use test keys with a local .env:

# .env.local
PICTIFY_API_KEY=pk_test_development_key

Staging

Use test keys for staging environments:

# staging.env
PICTIFY_API_KEY=pk_test_staging_key

Production

Use live keys, stored securely:

# Set via secrets manager, not in files
PICTIFY_API_KEY=pk_live_production_key

Troubleshooting

”Invalid API Key” Error

Verify the key is correct (no extra spaces)
Check the key hasn’t been revoked
Ensure you’re using the right key type (live vs test)

Key Not Working After Creation

Wait a few seconds - propagation takes up to 30 seconds
Verify you copied the full key
Check for encoding issues if copying from another source

Usage Not Updating

Usage statistics may have up to 5 minutes delay. Real-time usage is available in the API response headers.

API Key API

Manage keys programmatically with the API Keys API:

# List keys
curl https://api.pictify.io/api-keys \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $ADMIN_KEY"

# Create key
curl -X POST https://api.pictify.io/api-keys \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $ADMIN_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"name": "New Production Key", "type": "live"}'

API key management requires an admin-level key with key management permissions.

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Tutorials

AI Integration

API Key Management

API Key Management

Creating an API Key

Key Types

Live Keys

Test Keys

Viewing Keys

Managing Keys

Rename a Key

Revoke a Key

Delete a Key

Key Limits

Usage Tracking

Per-Key Usage

Usage Alerts

Security Best Practices

Use Descriptive Names

Rotate Keys Regularly

Use Test Keys for Development

Monitor for Misuse

Principle of Least Privilege

Environment-Specific Keys

Development

Staging

Production

Troubleshooting

”Invalid API Key” Error

Key Not Working After Creation

Usage Not Updating

API Key API

​API Key Management

​Creating an API Key

​Key Types

​Live Keys

​Test Keys

​Viewing Keys

​Managing Keys

​Rename a Key

​Revoke a Key

​Delete a Key

​Key Limits

​Usage Tracking

​Per-Key Usage

​Usage Alerts

​Security Best Practices

​Use Descriptive Names

​Rotate Keys Regularly

​Use Test Keys for Development

​Monitor for Misuse

​Principle of Least Privilege

​Environment-Specific Keys

​Development

​Staging

​Production

​Troubleshooting

​”Invalid API Key” Error

​Key Not Working After Creation

​Usage Not Updating

​API Key API

API Key Management

Creating an API Key

Key Types

Live Keys

Test Keys

Viewing Keys

Managing Keys

Rename a Key

Revoke a Key

Delete a Key

Key Limits

Usage Tracking

Per-Key Usage

Usage Alerts

Security Best Practices

Use Descriptive Names

Rotate Keys Regularly

Use Test Keys for Development

Monitor for Misuse

Principle of Least Privilege

Environment-Specific Keys

Development

Staging

Production

Troubleshooting

”Invalid API Key” Error

Key Not Working After Creation

Usage Not Updating

API Key API