Managing OAuth token access to the API

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<p id="docs-hc-snippet" style="display: none;">You can use OAuth access tokens to authenticate API requests. OAuth provides a secure way for applications to access Zendesk data without having to store and use API tokens, which are sensitive information.</p>
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<p id="docs-ai-summary-content">Manage OAuth tokens for API access. This approach ensures secure API authentication without needing to store and use API tokens. Create OAuth clients to generate tokens, view and delete them when needed, and edit client details. On Enterprise plans, view audit logs to track OAuth client activities.</p>
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<div class="note fastpath">
<span class="fastpathtitle">Location: </span> <span class="ph">Admin Center &gt; Apps and integrations &gt; APIs &gt; Oauth
clients</span>
</div>
<p class="p" dir="ltr">You can use OAuth access tokens to authenticate API requests. OAuth
provides a secure way for applications to access Zendesk data without having to
store and use API tokens, which are sensitive information.</p>
<p class="p" dir="ltr">You can't create OAuth access tokens directly in Admin Center like API
tokens. You must first create an OAuth client in Admin Center, then use the OAuth
client in a defined OAuth authorization flow to create an OAuth access token.</p>
<p class="p">OAuth access tokens are not the same as API tokens. See <a class="xref" href="https://developer.zendesk.com/documentation/ticketing/working-with-oauth/creating-and-using-oauth-tokens-with-the-api/?_ga=2.214289438.884313364.1732553118-1588798520.1709745026&amp;_gl=1*4wobg9*_ga*MTU4ODc5ODUyMC4xNzA5NzQ1MDI2*_ga_0G6FC9CS2V*MTczMjY2MDY5NS4yMTIuMS4xNzMyNjYyMzIyLjYwLjAuMA..#differences-between-api-tokens-and-access-tokens" target="_blank">Differences between API tokens and access
tokens</a> in the <a class="xref" href="http://developer.zendesk.com" target="_blank">Zendesk Developer Docs</a>.</p>
<p class="p">This article includes these sections:</p>
<ul class="ul" id="topic_b43_pc2_vj__ul_oy4_fhp_hvb">
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_eyp_xnb_2dc">Creating OAuth clients</a></li>
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_uyh_zmv_g2c">Creating access tokens with an OAuth client</a></li>
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_mz5_5wc_j2c">Viewing OAuth client tokens</a></li>
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_mm2_hmw_nfc">Viewing scopes for OAuth client tokens</a></li>
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_apn_yzc_j2c">Deleting OAuth client tokens</a></li>
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_sth_frc_j2c">Editing OAuth clients</a></li>
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_uxw_mfd_j2c">Deleting OAuth clients</a></li>
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_n4k_ngd_j2c">Viewing audit logs for an OAuth client (Enterprise)</a></li>
</ul>
<p class="p">To authenticate API requests with OAuth access tokens, see <a class="xref" href="https://developer.zendesk.com/api-reference/introduction/security-and-auth/?_ga=2.84763408.884313364.1732553118-1588798520.1709745026&amp;_gl=1*144h6p*_ga*MTU4ODc5ODUyMC4xNzA5NzQ1MDI2*_ga_0G6FC9CS2V*MTczMjY2MDY5NS4yMTIuMS4xNzMyNjYyMzIyLjYwLjAuMA..#oauth-access-token" target="_blank">OAuth access token</a> on
developer.zendesk.com.</p>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title2" class="topic nested1" id="topic_eyp_xnb_2dc">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title2">Creating OAuth clients</h2>
<div class="body">
<p class="p" dir="ltr">OAuth clients let you create OAuth access tokens that can be used to
authenticate API requests. OAuth access tokens differ from API tokens. OAuth
access tokens provides a secure way for applications to access the Zendesk
API without having to store and use the API tokens of your Zendesk
users.</p>
<div class="note">
<span class="notetitle">Note:</span> This section describes how to create OAuth clients for a single Zendesk
instance. To create a <em class="ph i">global</em> OAuth client, see <a class="xref" href="https://developer.zendesk.com/documentation/marketplace/building-a-marketplace-app/set-up-a-global-oauth-client/" target="_blank">Set up a global OAuth client</a>. </div>
<p class="p">These local (non-global) OAuth clients automatically have default access-token
and refresh-token expiration times when created on or after April 30, 2026.
For the expiration limits, see <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408845965210#topic_jkc_dcm_dcc" target="_blank">Using OAuth authentication with your
application</a>.</p>
<p class="p"><strong class="ph b">To create OAuth clients</strong></p>
<ol class="ol" id="topic_eyp_xnb_2dc__ol_sbp_g2c_j2c">
<li class="li">
<span class="ph">In <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4581766374554#topic_hfg_dyz_1hb" target="_blank">Admin Center</a>, click <img class="image" id="topic_eyp_xnb_2dc__image_zk3_bj4_g2c" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/ac_apps_integrations_icon.png">
<strong class="ph b">Apps and integrations</strong> in the sidebar, then select <strong class="ph b">APIs &gt; OAuth
clients</strong>.</span><p class="p">A list of OAuth clients added to the account by admins
appears. </p>
<p class="p"><img class="image img-screenshot" id="topic_eyp_xnb_2dc__image_c4g_s4b_2dc" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/ac_oauth_client_list2.png" width="600"></p>
</li>
<li class="li">To create a client, click <strong class="ph b">Add OAuth client</strong> and follow the
instructions in <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408845965210#topic_s21_lfs_qk" target="_blank">Registering your application with
Zendesk</a>.</li>
</ol>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title3" class="topic nested1" id="topic_uyh_zmv_g2c">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title3">Creating access tokens with an OAuth client </h2>
<div class="body">
<p class="p" dir="ltr">After creating an OAuth client in Admin Center, you can use it with a
defined authorization flow to create OAuth access tokens. You can also use
the OAuth client with the API to create access tokens without an
authorization flow. You can use an API token to authenticate these API
requests. See <a class="xref" href="https://developer.zendesk.com/documentation/ticketing/working-with-oauth/creating-and-using-oauth-tokens-with-the-api/?_ga=2.213123741.884313364.1732553118-1588798520.1709745026&amp;_gl=1*hveksv*_ga*MTU4ODc5ODUyMC4xNzA5NzQ1MDI2*_ga_0G6FC9CS2V*MTczMjY2NjQ3My4yMTMuMC4xNzMyNjY2NDczLjYwLjAuMA.." target="_blank">Creating and using OAuth access tokens
with the API</a> in the developer docs.</p>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title4" class="topic nested1" id="topic_mz5_5wc_j2c">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title4">Viewing OAuth client tokens</h2>
<div class="body">
<p class="p" dir="ltr">You can view the access tokens you’ve created for an OAuth client. </p>
<p class="p" dir="ltr"><strong class="ph b">To view access tokens for an OAuth client</strong></p>
<ol class="ol" id="topic_mz5_5wc_j2c__ol_ill_4yc_j2c">
<li class="li">
<span class="ph">In <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4581766374554#topic_hfg_dyz_1hb" target="_blank">Admin Center</a>, click <img class="image" id="topic_mz5_5wc_j2c__image_zk3_bj4_g2c" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/ac_apps_integrations_icon.png">
<strong class="ph b">Apps and integrations</strong> in the sidebar, then select <strong class="ph b">APIs &gt; OAuth
clients</strong>.</span><p class="p">A list of OAuth clients appears. It shows OAuth client
information including the client identifier, name, creation
date, number of tokens, and status. </p>
</li>
<li class="li">Find the client in the list to see the tokens.</li>
<li class="li">Click the options menu icon (<img class="image" id="topic_mz5_5wc_j2c__image_at3_5yc_j2c" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/sell_icon_menu_vertical.png" width="16">) next to the client and
select <strong class="ph b">View tokens</strong>. <p class="p"><img class="image img-screenshot" id="topic_mz5_5wc_j2c__image_bt3_5yc_j2c" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/ac_oauth_client_edit_etc3.png" width="600"></p>
<p class="p">A list of access tokens for
the OAuth client appears. </p>
<p class="p"><img class="image img-screenshot" id="topic_mz5_5wc_j2c__image_gpk_bzc_j2c" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/ac_oauth_clients_tokens2.png" width="600"></p>
<p class="p">Clients without tokens will
not see a View tokens option. </p>
</li>
</ol>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title5" class="topic nested1" id="topic_mm2_hmw_nfc">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title5">Viewing scopes for OAuth client tokens </h2>
<div class="body">
<p class="p" dir="ltr"><a class="xref" href="https://developer.zendesk.com/api-reference/ticketing/oauth/oauth_tokens/#scopes" target="_blank">Scopes</a> define whether requests
authenticated with the token can post, put, and delete data, or only get
data.</p>
<p class="p"><strong class="ph b">To view the scopes for an OAuth client token</strong></p>
<ol class="ol" id="topic_mm2_hmw_nfc__ol_u3z_tmw_nfc">
<li class="li"><span class="ph">In <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4581766374554#topic_hfg_dyz_1hb" target="_blank">Admin Center</a>, click <img class="image" id="topic_mm2_hmw_nfc__image_zk3_bj4_g2c" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/ac_apps_integrations_icon.png">
<strong class="ph b">Apps and integrations</strong> in the sidebar, then select <strong class="ph b">APIs &gt; OAuth
clients</strong>.</span></li>
<li class="li">Find the client in the list.</li>
<li class="li">Click the options menu icon (<img class="image" id="topic_mm2_hmw_nfc__image_z5k_wmw_nfc" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/sell_icon_menu_vertical.png" width="16">) next to the client and
select <strong class="ph b">View tokens.</strong>
</li>
<li class="li">Find the token you want to view for scopes.</li>
<li class="li">Click the options menu icon (<img class="image" id="topic_mm2_hmw_nfc__image_p51_m4w_nfc" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/sell_icon_menu_vertical.png" width="16">) next to the token and
select <strong class="ph b">View scopes</strong>.</li>
</ol>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title6" class="topic nested1" id="topic_apn_yzc_j2c">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title6">Deleting OAuth client tokens</h2>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">If you suspect a token for an OAuth client is compromised, you should delete
it. You can also delete OAuth clients that are no longer used or shouldn’t
be active.</p>
<p class="p"><strong class="ph b">To delete an OAuth client token</strong></p>
<ol class="ol" id="topic_apn_yzc_j2c__ol_erc_wcd_j2c">
<li class="li"><span class="ph">In <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4581766374554#topic_hfg_dyz_1hb" target="_blank">Admin Center</a>, click <img class="image" id="topic_apn_yzc_j2c__image_zk3_bj4_g2c" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/ac_apps_integrations_icon.png">
<strong class="ph b">Apps and integrations</strong> in the sidebar, then select <strong class="ph b">APIs &gt; OAuth
clients</strong>.</span></li>
<li class="li">Find the client in the list. </li>
<li class="li">Click the options menu icon (<img class="image" id="topic_apn_yzc_j2c__image_mwx_1dd_j2c" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/sell_icon_menu_vertical.png" width="16">) next to the client and
select <strong class="ph b">View tokens.</strong>
</li>
<li class="li">Find the token you want to delete. </li>
<li class="li">Click the options menu icon (<img class="image" id="topic_apn_yzc_j2c__image_tx1_fdd_j2c" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/sell_icon_menu_vertical.png" width="16">) next to the token and
select <strong class="ph b">Delete</strong>.<p class="p"><img class="image img-screenshot" id="topic_apn_yzc_j2c__image_phq_kdd_j2c" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/ac_oauth_client_token_delete3.png" width="600"></p>
</li>
</ol>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title7" class="topic nested1" id="topic_sth_frc_j2c">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title7">Editing OAuth clients</h2>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">You can use Admin Center to edit your OAuth client. You can update the client
name, description, logo, redirect URLs, and so on. </p>
<p class="p"><strong class="ph b">To edit an OAuth client</strong></p>
<ol class="ol" id="topic_sth_frc_j2c__ol_igv_src_j2c">
<li class="li"><span class="ph">In <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4581766374554#topic_hfg_dyz_1hb" target="_blank">Admin Center</a>, click <img class="image" id="topic_sth_frc_j2c__image_zk3_bj4_g2c" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/ac_apps_integrations_icon.png">
<strong class="ph b">Apps and integrations</strong> in the sidebar, then select <strong class="ph b">APIs &gt; OAuth
clients</strong>.</span></li>
<li class="li">Find the client in the list. </li>
<li class="li">Click the options menu icon (<img class="image" id="topic_sth_frc_j2c__image_blk_yvc_j2c" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/sell_icon_menu_vertical.png" width="16">) next to the client and
select <strong class="ph b">Edit</strong>. <p class="p"><img class="image img-screenshot" id="topic_sth_frc_j2c__image_mq4_hsc_j2c" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/ac_oauth_client_edit_etc4.png" width="600"></p>
<p class="p">A description of the client
appears with <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408845965210#topic_s21_lfs_qk" target="_blank">fields you can
edit.</a></p>
</li>
<li class="li">Make changes as needed, then click <strong class="ph b">Save</strong>. </li>
</ol>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title8" class="topic nested1" id="topic_uxw_mfd_j2c">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title8">Deleting OAuth clients</h2>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">Deleting an OAuth client deactivates all the access tokens created with the
client. Deleting an OAuth client is permanent. It can’t be undone. When the
client is removed all tokens (if any) associated with the client are revoked
immediately. </p>
<p class="p">You can also <a class="xref" href="#topic_apn_yzc_j2c">delete individual
access tokens</a>.</p>
<p class="p" dir="ltr"><strong class="ph b">To delete an OAuth client</strong></p>
<ol class="ol" id="topic_uxw_mfd_j2c__ol_fmy_rfd_j2c">
<li class="li"><span class="ph">In <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4581766374554#topic_hfg_dyz_1hb" target="_blank">Admin Center</a>, click <img class="image" id="topic_uxw_mfd_j2c__image_zk3_bj4_g2c" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/ac_apps_integrations_icon.png">
<strong class="ph b">Apps and integrations</strong> in the sidebar, then select <strong class="ph b">APIs &gt; OAuth
clients</strong>.</span></li>
<li class="li">Find the client in the list. Click the options menu icon (<img class="image" id="topic_uxw_mfd_j2c__image_pg5_vfd_j2c" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/sell_icon_menu_vertical.png" width="16">) next to the client and
select <strong class="ph b">Delete</strong>. <p class="p"><img class="image img-screenshot" id="topic_uxw_mfd_j2c__image_jh5_ggd_j2c" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/ac_oauth_client_edit_etc4.png" width="600"></p>
</li>
<li class="li">In the confirmation dialog, click <strong class="ph b">Delete client</strong>.<p class="p"><img class="image img-screenshot" id="topic_uxw_mfd_j2c__image_p43_hgd_j2c" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/ac_oauth_client_delete_final2.png" width="400"></p>
</li>
</ol>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title9" class="topic nested1" id="topic_n4k_ngd_j2c">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title9">Viewing audit logs for an OAuth client (Enterprise)</h2>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">On Enterprise plans, the <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408828001434" target="_blank">audit log</a> records activity
associated with OAuth clients, including when they are created, deactivated,
or reactivated.</p>
<p class="p"><strong class="ph b">To view audit logs for the OAuth client</strong></p>
<ol class="ol" id="topic_n4k_ngd_j2c__ol_v1t_qgd_j2c">
<li class="li"><span class="ph">In <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4581766374554#topic_hfg_dyz_1hb" target="_blank">Admin Center</a>, click <img class="image" id="topic_n4k_ngd_j2c__image_zk3_bj4_g2c" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/ac_apps_integrations_icon.png">
<strong class="ph b">Apps and integrations</strong> in the sidebar, then select <strong class="ph b">APIs &gt; OAuth
clients</strong>.</span></li>
<li class="li">Find the client in the list. </li>
<li class="li">Click the options menu icon (<img class="image" id="topic_n4k_ngd_j2c__image_sbk_xgd_j2c" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/sell_icon_menu_vertical.png" width="16">) next to the client and
select <strong class="ph b">View audit log. </strong><p class="p" dir="ltr">The audit log opens with a
filter applied for the OAuth client you selected. The audit log
shows the activities associated with the client.</p>
<p class="p"><img class="image img-screenshot" id="topic_n4k_ngd_j2c__image_msp_1hd_j2c" src="https://zen-marketing-documentation.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/en/ac_api_oauth_audit_log.png" width="600"></p>
</li>
</ol>
</div>
</div>
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