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Self-Service API Subscription

Let developers discover, try, and subscribe to your APIs without waiting for email threads and meetings.

What You'll Accomplish​

By the end of this tutorial:

  • A developer finds your API in the Portal
  • They subscribe in 2 clicks
  • They get an API key instantly
  • They make their first call — all self-service

Prerequisites​

  • A STOA instance with at least one API published
  • The Developer Portal accessible at your portal URL

Step 1: Discover the API​

Open the Developer Portal and browse the API catalog.

Each API shows:

  • Description and version
  • Available plans (Free, Standard, Premium) with rate limits
  • OpenAPI documentation with try-it-out
  • MCP tools (if MCP exposure is enabled)

Step 2: Subscribe​

Click Subscribe on the API you want. Choose a plan:

PlanRate LimitApproval
Free100 req/minAutomatic
Standard1,000 req/minAutomatic
Premium10,000 req/minManual approval

For Free and Standard plans, your subscription is instantly active. No waiting.

Step 3: Get Your API Key​

After subscribing, the Portal shows your API key:

Your API Key: sk-stoa-xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Use this key in the Authorization header:
Authorization: Bearer sk-stoa-xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

You can also retrieve it from the My Subscriptions page at any time.

Step 4: Make Your First Call​

# REST call
curl ${STOA_GATEWAY_URL}/weather/paris \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer sk-stoa-xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx"

# Or via MCP (if enabled)
curl -X POST ${STOA_GATEWAY_URL}/mcp/tools/call \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer sk-stoa-xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"name": "get-weather", "arguments": {"city": "Paris"}}'

What the Admin Sees​

In the Console, the API owner sees:

  • New subscription with developer details
  • Usage metrics per subscriber
  • The ability to revoke or upgrade plans

No email was sent. No meeting was scheduled. The developer went from discovery to first call in under 2 minutes.

Next Steps​