How to get a Teachable API key

If we are building your dashboard and one of your data sources is Teachable, we will ask you for your "Teachable API key". If you have never fetched one before, do not worry. This guide explains what it is, why we need it, and then walks you through getting one, one click at a time. No technical knowledge is assumed.

What is an API key, and why do we need it?

Your Teachable account is protected by your password, and normally that is exactly what you want. But your dashboard needs to fetch data on its own, on a schedule, and nobody is available to type your password each time.

An API key is a long random string of letters and numbers. It acts like a password for software. When your dashboard asks Teachable for data, it presents this key, and Teachable trusts it just like a logged-in school owner.

Three important things about the key:

• It is created inside your Teachable admin. Only a school owner can make one, which is why we have to ask you.
• It is secret. Anyone who has it can read your school's data, just like they were logged in as you. Treat it like your banking password, not like your wifi password.
• It can be revoked and replaced at any time. If a key is ever lost or exposed, you simply create a new one and revoke the old one from the same screen. Your teaching, your pricing, and your students are untouched.

Check your plan first

One thing to know before you start: Teachable's own documentation says the API is available on the Growth plan and up. If you are on the Starter or Builder plan, you will not be able to create an API key, and we would need to talk about either upgrading or connecting a different kind of data source. If you are unsure which plan you are on, it is shown in your Teachable admin.

What you need before you start

• Your Teachable school admin address, usually https://yourschool.teachable.com/admin or a custom domain ending in /admin.
• A school-owner login for that admin. Creating a key requires the school owner role.

You do not need any special software. Everything happens in your normal web browser.

Step-by-step: creating your Teachable API key

These steps come straight from Teachable's official developer documentation and are current as of September 2026.

Step 1: Log in to your Teachable school admin

Open your browser, go to your admin address, and log in as usual. You will land on your admin dashboard.

Step 2: Open Settings, then the API tab

In the left-hand menu of the admin, find and click Settings. Then click the API tab at the top of the settings area. If you cannot see an API tab, you are either not on the Growth plan or not logged in as the school owner.

Step 3: Click Create API Key

You will see a button that says Create API Key. Click it, and a small popup window appears.

Step 4: Give the key a name

In the popup, type a short name for the key, something like Xenium Designs Dashboard. This is just a label that will remind you later what this key is connected to. If you ever have several keys, the names are how you tell them apart, so a descriptive name is worth the extra two seconds.

Step 5: Click Create, then copy the key

Click Create. Teachable now shows your API key, a long random string. Copy it right away (click it or highlight the text and copy), and paste it somewhere safe: a password manager such as Bitwarden or 1Password is ideal, or a private note only you keep. Then send it to us securely, or paste it wherever we have asked you to send it.

Step-by-step in short form

For reference, once you are familiar:

1. Log in to your Teachable school admin.
2. Go to: Settings → API.
3. Click: Create API Key.
4. Name it, e.g. Xenium Designs Dashboard.
5. Click: Create.
6. Copy the key immediately into a password manager and send it to us.

Troubleshooting

"There is no API tab in Settings"

Two likely reasons: your plan is below Growth (the API requires Growth and up), or the account you are logged in with is not the school owner (this page is owner-only). Check both before anything else.

"I created a key but the dashboard is not picking up data"

The most common cause is a stray space before or after the key when it was copied. Delete the key from wherever it was pasted, copy it again using a double-click to highlight, and re-enter it. If that does not fix it, create a fresh key and send the new one only.

"I think my key has been exposed somewhere"

Do not panic. On the same Settings → API page, find the key in your list, click the More Actions icon (the three dots) next to it, and choose Revoke Key. Anything holding the old key loses access the instant it is revoked. Then create a replacement and send the new one to us. Nothing else about your school is affected.

What we do with your key

Once we have it, the key lives in the configuration of your dashboard on the server, where only our scheduled data-fetching script can reach it. That script quietly asks Teachable for your numbers and files them into your dashboard's database, so every chart you see is up to date. You will never see the key used anywhere, and we will never display it or paste it into any file you might later share.

Why this matters

That key is what lets your dashboard show live Teachable revenue, sales, refunds, and student numbers without anyone logging in or copying anything. Setup takes under two minutes, and it is the only step we need from your side.

Frequently asked questions