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Get an API key

The Free Unstructured API requires authentication via an API key. Here’s how you can obtain your API key:
  1. Navigate to the Free Unstructured API page on our website.
  2. Fill out the registration form with your details: first name, last name, email, and company. Make sure your contact information is valid.
  3. Check the I agree box if you consent to Unstructured contacting you about our products and services.
  4. Carefully read the Terms and Conditions, and check the appropriate box to agree.
  5. Click “Submit”. You will receive an API key to the provided email.
Make sure to store your API key securely, and do not share publicly.
When using the Free Unstructured API, you only need the API key to authenticate yourself. If you’re using the SaaS Unstructured API, refer to the SaaS Unstructured API for the quick start documentation.

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Free Unstructured API limitations

The free Unstructured API is designed for prototyping purposes, and not for production use:
  • The API usage is limited to 1000 pages per month.
  • Unlike the users of SaaS Unstructured API, users of the free to do not get their own dedicated infrastructure.
  • The data sent over the free Unstructured API can be used for model training purposes, and other service improvements.
If you require a production-ready API, consider using the Saas Unstructured API instead.

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Quick Start Example

Let’s say you want to preprocess an *.eml file using the free Unstructured API. There are several ways you can do this, which all lead to the same result, so pick your preferred method.

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POST request

Supply your API key, and the file to preprocess: 
# The URL is the same for all free Unstructured API users
curl -X 'POST' 'https://api.unstructured.io/general/v0/general' \
     -H 'accept: application/json' \
     -H 'Content-Type: multipart/form-data' \
     -H 'unstructured-api-key: YOUR_API_KEY' \
     -F 'files=@sample-docs/family-day.eml'
The result will look something like this: Sample Output

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Unstructured Python/JavaScript SDK

To work with the free Unstructured API in Python or JavaScript, use the Unstructured Python SDK, or JavaScript SDK. First, install your preferred SDK: 
pip install unstructured-client
Next, use it to call the API: 
from unstructured_client import UnstructuredClient
from unstructured_client.models import shared
from unstructured_client.models.errors import SDKError

client = UnstructuredClient(api_key_auth="YOUR_API_KEY")
filename = "sample-docs/family-day.eml"

with open(filename, "rb") as f:
    files=shared.Files(
        content=f.read(),
        file_name=filename,
    )

req = shared.PartitionParameters(files=files)

try:
    resp = client.general.partition(req)
except SDKError as e:
    print(e)

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Calling the Unstructured API from the Unstructured open source library

Finally, you can call the Unstructured API directly from the Unstructured open source library: 
from unstructured.partition.api import partition_via_api

filename = "sample-docs/family-day.eml"

elements = partition_via_api(
  filename=filename,
  api_key="YOUR API KEY",
)