What you get#
Onekey exposes Lobsters as 10 endpoints behind one API key: 2 endpoints return one record (data is an object) and 8 endpoints return a list (data is an array). Every answer uses the same envelope (success, data, metadata, error), the cost is reported in metadata.credits_charged, and fields are mapped onto the unified schema so the code you write for Lobsters also works for the rest of the messaging & communities category.
Endpoints#
| Endpoint | What it does | Parameters | Credits | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
active | Lobsters stories with recent discussion. | - | 5 | stable |
hottest | Lobsters front page (hottest stories). | - | 5 | stable |
newest | Newest Lobsters stories. | - | 5 | stable |
newest_page | Lobsters newest stories, paginated. | page | 5 | stable |
story | A Lobsters story by short id. | id* | 1 | stable |
story_comments | Comments of a Lobsters story. | id* | 5 | stable |
tag | Lobsters stories for a tag. | tag* | 5 | stable |
tags | All Lobsters tags. | - | 5 | stable |
user | Fetch a Lobsters user profile. | username* | 1 | stable |
user_stories | Stories submitted by a Lobsters user. | user* | 5 | stable |
A * marks a required parameter. Each endpoint name links to its reference page with the full parameter table, caching window and a recorded response.
Make a request#
This calls lobsters.story (1 credit, stable). Replace YOUR_API_KEY with your key; sign up, no card. 1,000 free credits cover the open-platform endpoints. Hard-to-reach platforms (X, TikTok, Instagram, Reddit, and others marked on their page) need a verified email and a purchased pack.
curl "https://api.onekey.dev/v1/lobsters/story?id=q2rymh" \
-H "x-api-key: YOUR_API_KEY"Fields you get back#
These unified fields come back from Lobsters, with the same names as on every other platform. The count is how many of its 10 mapped endpoints return the field; a field the source lacks is null, never missing. 4 platform-specific fields (ext.<name>) come on top, documented on each endpoint page.
| Field | Type | Endpoints |
|---|---|---|
author.username | string | 9 |
content.createdAt | ISO 8601 date | 9 |
content.text | string | 9 |
content.id | string | 8 |
content.url | URL | 8 |
engagement.likes | integer | 8 |
content.title | string | 7 |
engagement.comments | integer | 7 |
entity.name | string | 2 |
author.id | string | 1 |
entity.category | string | 1 |
entity.description | string | 1 |
The full schema is in Unified schema.
Pricing#
Lobsters calls cost 1 to 5 credits, flat per endpoint. Free when served from cache (0.2 credit for a cached response over 100 KB). Invalid, failed or not-found calls are not charged. See pricing for credit packs.