Short Code Generator API

About the Short Code Generator API

Short Code Generator creates random short codes for voucher codes, promo code and coupon code campaigns, referral tokens, invite links and redirect slugs. Set how long each code should be, how many you need in one batch and which character set to draw from: mixed-case alphanumeric, letters only, digits only, lowercase hex, or Base58, which leaves out characters that are easy to misread.

Marketing teams use it to issue promo codes, apps use it to mint invite and referral codes, and URL shortener services use it for slugs. Codes are drawn from a cryptographic random source, so they are hard to guess even when they are short.

Every field is available on the Free plan. Each response returns the codes as an array along with the length, character set and count used, and a flag confirming the codes are URL safe, so they can go straight into a link without encoding. Store issued codes on your side and check new ones against them if a campaign needs strict uniqueness.

How it works

Each character of each code is picked independently with Node's crypto.randomInt, a cryptographically secure source, from the set named by charset. The sets are fixed: alphanumeric (the default) uses A-Z, a-z and 0-9, 62 characters; alpha uses A-Z and a-z, 52; numeric uses 0-9; hex uses 0-9 and lowercase a-f; and base58 uses 58 characters that omit 0, O, uppercase I and lowercase l, so codes can be read aloud or typed from print with fewer mistakes. charset is case-insensitive.

length sets characters per code, from 4 to 32 with a default of 8. count sets how many codes are returned, from 1 to 100 with a default of 1.

The number of possible codes is the size of the set raised to the power of the length. An 8-character alphanumeric code has 62^8 possibilities while a 6-digit numeric code has only 10^6, so choose the set and length with the size of your campaign in mind. Codes within a batch are not deduplicated against each other or against earlier requests; collisions are unlikely at reasonable lengths but possible, especially with short numeric codes, so check new codes against the ones you have already issued.

The response echoes length, charset and count, the actual number of entries in codes. url_safe is true for all five sets, because none of them contains a character that needs escaping in a URL path or query string.

What people use it for

URL Shortening

Generate short codes for URL shortening services and link tracking

Voucher Systems

Create unique voucher and coupon codes for e-commerce and promotions

Temporary Access

Generate temporary access codes and one-time passwords for authentication

Referral Programs

Create short referral codes for marketing and referral tracking systems

Ways to call it

One endpoint, many ways in — REST with JSON, XML, YAML and CSV, plus GraphQL and an MCP interface for AI agents.

JSON

Default REST response

XML

Markup format

YAML

Human-readable

CSV

Tabular export

Beta

GraphQL

Query language

New

MCP

For AI agents

Request parameters — GET /v1/shortcodegenerator

Sent in the query string. Premium parameters are accepted on every plan but only take effect on plans that include them. Anything not listed here is dropped rather than passed through.

Optional

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curl "https://api.apiverve.com/v1/shortcodegenerator?count=5&length=8&charset=alphanumeric" \
  -H "x-api-key: YOUR_API_KEY"

Authentication

Send your key in the x-api-key header. That is the only auth step — no token exchange, and no per-endpoint scope to configure.

Response — GET /v1/shortcodegenerator

Every APIVerve endpoint returns the same three top-level keys, so one response handler covers your whole integration: status, error and data. Only data changes shape.

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{
  "status": "ok",
  "error": null,
  "data": {
    "codes": [
      "bgiFznFh",
      "jr84hHsG",
      "Q77qABwn",
      "gvMjXxXs",
      "WDPJzCsi"
    ],
    "count": 5,
    "length": 8,
    "charset": "alphanumeric",
    "url_safe": true
  }
}

Response fields

Paths are relative to data. Premium fields are absent rather than zeroed on plans that do not include them, so check for presence instead of comparing to 0.

Response headers

Every response carries your balance, so your own code always knows where it stands without polling anything. All four are exposed to browsers through CORS.

Errors

Read the HTTP status first, then error for the specific reason. The body names the parameter that has to change.

What a call costs — 1 credits per call

Credits are shared across every APIVerve API — one balance, one key, one bill. Failed requests never count against it, so a rejected input costs nothing.

Calls are what the credits buy at this API's rate — spend them here, on any of the other APIs, or across both. Nothing is reserved per endpoint.

Zero-code embed — one snippet, no backend

Drop an interactive Short Code Generator form onto any page. The widget calls the API for you, so no key ever appears in your markup and there is nothing to deploy.

Changelog — Short Code Generator API

Every change to this endpoint, newest first. Breaking changes ship as a new version and the previous one keeps serving — response fields are added, never removed or retyped in place, so an integration written against v1 keeps working.

Currently v1