Query Parameters

The RIPE Atlas API supports several query parameters that control what data is returned and how it is formatted. These parameters work across most endpoints.

fields

Limit the fields included in the response. Pass a comma-separated list of field names:

?fields=first_connected,status_since

This is useful for reducing response size when you only need specific data.

If you pass an empty fields= parameter (with no value), the response returns only the id and type fields for each object.

GET /api/v2/probes/143/?fields=first_connected,status_since

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optional_fields

Some fields are not included in responses by default because they are expensive to compute or are only needed in specific use cases. Use optional_fields to request them:

?optional_fields=participation_requests,probes

The available optional fields vary by object type and are documented in each resource's endpoint reference.

GET /api/v2/measurements/2000000/?optional_fields=participation_requests,probes

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include

Related objects are normally represented as a compact reference containing only type and id. Use include to expand them into full objects inline:

?include=probe

This saves you from making additional API calls to fetch related object details.

GET /api/v2/anchors/?include=probe

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format

Control the response format:

Value	Description
json	Standard JSON. Default for programmatic clients.
api	HTML rendering. Default when accessed from a browser.
txt	Line-delimited JSON (JSONL). One JSON object per line, useful for streaming large responses.

?format=json

format[datetime]

Control how datetime values are formatted in the response:

Value	Aliases	Description
unix	timestamp	UNIX timestamps — seconds since the epoch (1 January 1970 00:00:00 UTC)
iso-8601	json	ECMA-262 format: YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:ss in UTC

?format[datetime]=iso-8601

sort

Order results by a specific field. Prefix with - for descending order:

?sort=id        # ascending by ID
?sort=-id       # descending by ID

The available sort fields depend on the resource type.

mine

When authenticated, use mine=true to return only objects you own:

?mine=true

This requires a valid API key. It filters measurements to those you created, probes to those you host, and so on.

key (Deprecated)

An alternative way to pass your API key as a query parameter:

?key=YOUR-API-KEY-UUID

Deprecated

The key query parameter is deprecated. Use the Authorization header instead, as described in the API Keys documentation. Passing keys in URLs risks exposing them in server logs and browser history.

Unknown Parameters

The API silently ignores unknown query parameters. This is by design to accommodate HTTP clients (such as jQuery's Ajax methods) that may add cache-busting or other extra parameters to requests.

TIP

Because unknown parameters are silently ignored, a typo in a parameter name will not produce an error. If your results look unexpected, double-check your parameter names.