The eBay API in 2026: Developer Account, Keys, and Which API Returns What

By SaleHistory Editorial · Published · 3 min read · eBay APIs & Sold Comps Access
The eBay API is a set of separate APIs. After joining the free eBay Developers Program and creating a keyset, you can use the Browse API for active listings, the Sell APIs for your own listings and orders, and the Taxonomy API for category IDs. Sold prices for other sellers' items are only in the Marketplace Insights API, which is Limited Release and closed to most new apps. The old Finding and Shopping APIs were shut down in February 2025.
Table of eBay APIs showing which return sold data and which are open to new developers, with only SaleHistory checked for both

"The eBay API" sounds like one thing. It's actually a dozen separate APIs with different access rules, and the one most people want (sold prices) is the one they can't get. One developer summed up the experience: "The support agent told me it wasn't restricted… Spent a few days building a database and frontend, only to figure out it was all for nought."

Here's the map we wish existed before we started.

Which eBay API returns what

Table: Browse API returns active listings, no sold prices, open to all; Sell APIs return your own listings and orders; Taxonomy API returns category trees; Marketplace Insights returns sold items for 90 days but isn't open; Finding and Shopping were retired in February 2025
If you need other sellers' sold prices, only one row has them, and it's gated.

APIWhat it's forSold prices?Open to new apps?
BrowseSearch and read active listingsNoYes
Sell (Inventory, Fulfillment, Account, Analytics…)Manage your own listings, orders and performanceOnly your own salesYes
TaxonomyCategory trees, category IDs, item aspectsNoYes
Marketplace InsightsOther sellers' sold items, last 90 daysYesLimited Release
Finding / ShoppingLegacy search (incl. findCompletedItems)—Shut down Feb 5, 2025

Rule of thumb: active data and your own data are open. Market-wide sold data is not.

How to get started

  1. Join the eBay Developers Program at developer.ebay.com. It's free. (Some people report rejections at signup; contesting often works.)
  2. Create an application. You get a Sandbox keyset immediately: App ID (client ID), Cert ID (client secret) and Dev ID.
  3. Request a Production keyset. To activate it you'll need to deal with eBay's marketplace account deletion notifications: either subscribe an endpoint or declare that you don't store eBay user data. A "keyset is disabled" message usually means this step isn't done.
  4. Get an OAuth token. For public data like Browse, use the client-credentials grant (an "application token"). For a seller's own data, use the authorization-code grant so the seller signs in.
  5. Call the API with Authorization: Bearer <token> and the X-EBAY-C-MARKETPLACE-ID header (for example EBAY_US).

Limits

Each API has its own call limits per application. Many default to 5,000 calls per day. You can request more through an Application Growth Check, which reviews how you use the data. The same process is what gates Marketplace Insights.

The sold-data gap

Developers keep hitting the same wall, in their words:

  • "I just want to fetch info for auctions that have been finished and sold. That's all. Can I do this or can I not?"
  • "There are NO APIs… I applied to it and received an email 4 mins after I'd sent my request. It said … 'reviewed and denied'."
  • AI coding assistants and old tutorials still suggest findCompletedItems, which no longer exists. Here's what to use instead.

So if your app needs what things actually sold for, the open eBay APIs won't get you there. Your options are Marketplace Insights if you're approved, scraping (which now runs into a sign-in wall), or a hosted sold-listings API:

curl "https://api.soldcomps.io/v1/sold?q=nintendo+64+console" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $SALEHISTORY_KEY"

No eBay keyset, OAuth or approval. Many apps use both: the Browse API for active listings, and a sold-listings API for prices.

Building an AI assistant or agent? See giving Claude or ChatGPT real eBay sold prices.

Frequently asked questions

Is the eBay API free?

Yes. Joining the eBay Developers Program and calling its public APIs is free, within each API's call limits. Some APIs, such as Marketplace Insights, require approval rather than payment.

How do I get an eBay API key?

Sign up for the eBay Developers Program at developer.ebay.com, create an application to get a Sandbox keyset, then request a Production keyset. Production activation asks you to handle eBay's marketplace account deletion notifications or explain why you don't store user data.

Can the eBay API get sold listings?

Only the Marketplace Insights API returns other sellers' sold items, and it's Limited Release. The Browse API returns active listings only, and the Finding API's findCompletedItems was shut down in February 2025.

What are the eBay API rate limits?

Limits are set per API and per application. eBay's developer program lists a default of 5,000 calls per day for many APIs, and you can request higher limits through an Application Growth Check.

Sources

  1. eBay Developers Program (accessed Oct 22, 2026)
  2. eBay Browse API overview (accessed Oct 22, 2026)
  3. eBay Community: Alert: Finding API and Shopping API to be decommissioned in 2025 (accessed Oct 22, 2026)
  4. r/Ebay: Developer programme account rejected (Feb 2026) (accessed Oct 22, 2026)
  5. r/Ebay: So is it impossible to fetch sold items via eBay API? (Jul 2026) (accessed Oct 22, 2026)

SaleHistory sells an eBay sold-listings API, so we have a commercial interest in this topic. We link primary sources so you can check our work. Spotted something out of date? Email hello@soldcomps.io.