Get started

Find the ideal solution for your business

Browse our APIs and review their functional and technical descriptions. Then choose the right APIs for your website or ecommerce platform.

Set up a free account (or sign in if you already have an account)

If you already have a Canada Post account, sign in with your existing credentials to start integrating with your preferred APIs.

If you don’t have an existing Canada Post account, register now. It only takes a few minutes, and it’s free!

To create a new account:

Set up a Canada Post business profile. If you have an existing customer number, register with that number and your postal code. If you don’t have an existing customer number, register online to get one.
Add your contact details along with your username, password, and business information.
Create a security question.
Accept the Canada Post Profile Terms and Conditions.
Select Sign up.
Check for a confirmation email.
Accept the Developer Portal Terms and Conditions.
Please note: You must accept these terms and conditions before you’re allowed to sign in with your new account.

If you have multiple customer numbers in your account

If your account is associated with multiple customer numbers, the Developer Portal provides an easy way to manage which organization you’re acting on behalf of at any given time.

Initial sign-in and billing

When you sign in to the Developer Portal for the first time with an account linked to multiple customer numbers, you’ll be prompted to select a single customer number to proceed.

It’s important to choose carefully. The customer number you select becomes the active organization for your session. This selection dictates billing. Any API calls that trigger charges, such as Create Shipment, are billed to the customer number associated with the API Key used for the request, regardless of your current portal session.

Registering additional organizations

If you have multiple customer numbers and want to use one that hasn't been set up in the portal yet, you don't need to create a new account.

To register additional organizations:

Select Register an organization in the organization dropdown list.
Choose the additional customer number you want to add from the available list in your account.
Follow the prompts to complete the registration for that specific customer number.

Switching between organizations

Once you’ve registered multiple customer numbers, you can toggle between them easily.

To switch, choose Select organization in the top navigation bar. You’ll be presented with a list of all registered organizations you have access to.

Missing an organization? If you expect to see a specific customer number in this list but it isn't appearing, it likely hasn't been registered in the portal yet. Please refer back to the Registering additional organizations steps above to add it.

Create an app and get your API credentials

Developers can create apps inside the portal. These apps allow you to request credentials to the available APIs. An app can have one or more APIs, depending on the use case.

First-time users should visit the Apps page to create their first app.

Existing users can go directly to the Apps section to use an existing app or to create a new app. You can add as many apps as needed.

After creating an app, you’ll get new credentials consisting of a unique API Key and an API Secret.

Please note: The API Secret will only be displayed once. Make sure you take note of it and keep it for your records.

Please note: You must be logged in to see the Apps menu option in the top navigation.

To create a new app:

Select Apps in the top navigation menu.
Choose Create new app.
Select an app type: Test or Production.
Please note: You can’t change the app type after creation.
Enter a meaningful app name.
Add a description explaining the app's purpose (optional).
Select Create.

Tip: You can customize your app by adding an image or icon after the initial setup.

Test apps use static/stubbed data and don’t trigger billing, making them ideal for integration testing.
Production apps use live data and generate real-world keys.

When you’re finished creating your app, you’ll be brought to the app’s API product section to begin adding APIs.

Please note: You can edit or delete an app at any time if it’s not in use.

Notes about API credentials

To edit or reset your credentials or API Secret, select the three dots under Credentials in the API products section and make your changes.
Any app can have multiple credentials.

For more information about the types of credentials supported by Canada Post, consult the Authentication guide.

Add API products

Your newly created app’s API products section is where you can add API products into your app. Select the Add API product button to add an API.

You can also get access to API products while browsing API documentation by selecting “Get access” on any overview or API reference page.

To add API products from an app:

Select Add API product from the API products section.
Choose an API product.
Select Get access.
Confirm the addition of the API product to the app.
Repeat the steps to add more API products inside the app.

To add API products from a documentation page:

Browse the API catalog to learn more about individual API products.
Visit the API’s overview page or the API references page.
Select Get access.
Confirm the addition of the API product to the app.
Repeat the steps to add more API products inside the app.

Try the API

Once you have access to an API product, you can try it out in your browser without any additional setup. All you have to do is select the endpoint you want, and then select Try it.

To try an API:

Under the Try it tab, select the API credential you generated for an app in the dropdown. This will automatically populate the API Key field (only one credential will be displayed if you didn’t create multiple credentials). You can also enter your API Key manually in the API Key field.
Please note: The portal won’t give you an API Secret. You must have saved it when creating an app. You can reset your API Key and API Secret in the Apps settings, if necessary.
Enter the associated API Secret.
Under Scopes, check the Merchant box.
Press Get token to ensure correct access.
Select and modify your parameters.
Press Send and see the response given by the server.

Explore documentation

Ready to integrate? Our in-depth documentation will help you quickly understand and use our API products.

New to APIs or need a refresher? Get up to speed with API fundamentals
Learn how to securely connect to our APIs with our Authentication guide
Make sure your integration is robust and safe by understanding our Security guidelines