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Ninja Forms API Essential Guide

Aug 12, 20246 minute read

What type of API does Ninja Forms provide?

Based on the search results, Ninja Forms does not appear to have a native REST or GraphQL API. Here are the key points about Ninja Forms' API capabilities:

REST API

  • Ninja Forms does not have a built-in REST API for submitting forms or accessing form data.
  • There is a third-party plugin called "Ninja Forms Submissions REST endpoint" that adds a REST API for submissions, but this is not an official Ninja Forms API.
  • The Ninja Forms developer documentation does not mention any official REST API.

Webhooks

  • Ninja Forms does have a Webhooks add-on that allows sending form data via POST or GET requests when a form is submitted.
  • This allows integrating Ninja Forms with external services, but is not a full API.

Other API Capabilities

  • Ninja Forms has some developer hooks and functions that can be used to extend functionality, but these are not a public API.
  • There is no mention of GraphQL or SOAP APIs for Ninja Forms.

Summary

In summary, Ninja Forms does not have a native REST, GraphQL or SOAP API. The closest thing to an API is the Webhooks add-on for sending form submission data to external services. For more robust API capabilities, other form plugins like Gravity Forms (which has a REST API) may be better options.

Does the Ninja Forms API have webhooks?

Webhooks Support

Yes, the official Ninja Forms API does have webhooks support. However, it requires the Webhooks add-on to be installed and activated to access this functionality.

Webhook Events

The main event you can subscribe to with Ninja Forms webhooks is form submission. Specifically:

  • Webhooks can be triggered when a form is submitted.
  • You can configure a webhook action to send form data to a specified URL when the form is submitted.

Key Features

  1. You can add a Webhooks action to any form from the Emails & Actions tab.

  2. The webhook can be configured with:

    • A remote URL to send data to
    • Choice of GET or POST method
    • Key/value pairs to map form fields to data sent in the webhook
  3. Options for data formatting:

    • Can encode arguments as a JSON string
    • Debug mode available for troubleshooting
  4. Supports sending form field data, including things like:

    • Name
    • Email
    • Message content
    • Any custom form fields

Implementation

To implement a webhook:

  1. Install and activate the Webhooks add-on
  2. Add a Webhooks action to your form
  3. Configure the remote URL, method, and field mappings
  4. Optionally set advanced options like JSON encoding

While Ninja Forms provides the webhook functionality, the actual integration with specific services would need to be handled on the receiving end of the webhook.

Rate Limits and other limitations

Based on the search results provided, there is no specific information about API rate limits for the Ninja Forms API. The search results do not contain any details about rate limiting for Ninja Forms' API. However, I can provide some general information about Ninja Forms based on the available results:

Key Points:

  1. Ninja Forms is a WordPress form builder plugin that offers both free and paid features.

  2. The core Ninja Forms plugin is free and includes many features like unlimited form creation, submissions, email notifications, etc.

  3. Ninja Forms offers over 40 different integrations as paid add-ons.

  4. There are no limits on the number of forms you can create or submissions you can receive with Ninja Forms.

  5. Ninja Forms stores form data on your own server by default.

API and Integration Information:

  • Ninja Forms offers a Webhooks extension, which allows integrating form submissions with external services.

  • The plugin provides integrations with email marketing software like Mailchimp.

  • There is mention of a Ninja Forms API, but no specific details about its functionality or rate limits are provided in the search results.

Best Practices:

While there's no information on API rate limits, it's generally good practice to:

  1. Check the official Ninja Forms documentation for the most up-to-date information on APIs and integrations.

  2. Contact Ninja Forms support if you need specific details about API usage or limitations.

  3. Implement proper error handling and retry logic when working with any API to handle potential rate limiting or other issues.

In summary, while Ninja Forms does offer API and integration capabilities, the search results do not provide specific information about API rate limits. For accurate and current information about Ninja Forms API rate limits, it would be best to consult the official Ninja Forms documentation or contact their support team directly.

Latest API Version

Based on the search results, there does not appear to be a definitive answer about the most recent version of the Ninja Forms API. However, I can provide some relevant information:

Latest Plugin Version

The most recent version of the Ninja Forms plugin mentioned in the search results is 3.8.8, released on July 22, 2024 [1][3]. This version included bug fixes and updates to ensure compatibility with WordPress 6.6.

API Information

While there isn't specific information about the latest API version, there are a few points to consider:

  1. Ninja Forms does have a developer reference available at [https://developer.ninjaforms.com/codex/].

  2. The search results indicate that as of 2 years ago, there were limited API capabilities for Ninja Forms, particularly for form submission [5].

  3. A third-party plugin called "Ninja Forms Submissions REST endpoint" was mentioned as a potential solution for REST API submissions [5].

  4. The Webhooks extension for Ninja Forms had its last mentioned version as 3.0.3, released on December 7, 2016 [2]. However, this may not reflect the current state of the API.

Key Points

  • The core Ninja Forms plugin is regularly updated, with the latest version being 3.8.8 as of July 2024.
  • API capabilities may have expanded since the search results were published, but there's no definitive information provided.
  • For the most up-to-date and accurate information about the Ninja Forms API, it would be best to check the official Ninja Forms documentation or contact their support directly.

Best Practices

If you're looking to integrate with Ninja Forms using an API:

  1. Check the official Ninja Forms documentation for the latest API information.
  2. Consider using the developer reference provided by Ninja Forms.
  3. If the built-in API capabilities don't meet your needs, explore third-party solutions or extensions that might provide the functionality you require.
  4. Keep your Ninja Forms plugin and any related extensions up to date to ensure compatibility and access to the latest features.

How to get a Ninja Forms developer account and API Keys?

Here are the key points on how to get a developer account for Ninja Forms to create an API integration:

  1. Ninja Forms does not have a specific "developer account" system. Instead, they provide developer documentation and resources for working with their API and extending the plugin.

  2. To access the Ninja Forms API and create integrations, you'll need to:

    • Install the Ninja Forms plugin on your WordPress site
    • Purchase any necessary add-ons (like Webhooks) that you may need for your integration
    • Refer to the Ninja Forms developer documentation at developer.ninjaforms.com
  3. Key resources for developers:

    • Ninja Forms Developer Documentation: https://developer.ninjaforms.com/codex/
    • Webhooks Add-on Documentation: https://ninjaforms.com/docs/webhooks/
  4. For submitting form data via API:

    • There is no built-in REST API for form submissions in the core Ninja Forms plugin
    • A third-party plugin called "Ninja Forms Submissions REST endpoint" is available on GitHub that adds this functionality: https://github.com/haet/ninja-forms-submissions-rest-endpoint
  5. To work with the Ninja Forms API:

    • Enable Developer Mode in the Ninja Forms settings
    • Use the provided hooks, filters, and functions documented in the developer codex
    • For custom integrations, you may need to create your own endpoints or use the Webhooks add-on
  6. Best practices:

    • Review the full developer documentation before starting your integration
    • Test your integration thoroughly in a development environment
    • Reach out to Ninja Forms support if you encounter issues specific to their API

What can you do with the Ninja Forms API?

Based on the search results provided, here is a list of data models that can be interacted with using the Ninja Forms API, along with what is possible for each:

Forms

  • Create new forms
  • Import/export forms
  • Customize form settings and display options
  • Add fields to forms
  • Configure form actions (e.g. emails, success messages)
  • Set form restrictions
  • Enable calculations
  • Publish forms to posts/pages
  • Share forms via public links

Fields

  • Add various field types (24+ available)
  • Customize field settings (default values, labels, etc.)
  • Mark fields as favorites for reuse
  • Configure field calculations
  • Set field validation rules
  • Mark fields as personally identifiable information (PII)

Submissions

  • View and manage form submissions
  • Search/filter submissions
  • Edit submitted values
  • Export submissions to CSV
  • Bulk export submissions
  • Configure submission storage settings
  • Mark submissions as spam

Emails

  • Configure email notifications on form submission
  • Customize email content and recipients
  • Attach files to emails

Actions

  • Configure form actions like success messages, redirects, etc.
  • Register custom actions

Settings

  • Configure global plugin settings
  • Set up developer mode
  • Manage import/export of forms and fields

Users

  • Create user registration forms
  • Manage user permissions for submissions

Payments

  • Set up payment integrations (PayPal, Stripe, etc.)
  • Create payment forms

Integrations

  • Connect to CRMs, email marketing services, etc.
  • Set up webhooks
  • Configure Zapier integration

This covers the main data models and capabilities exposed through the Ninja Forms API based on the provided search results. The API allows extensive customization and interaction with forms, fields, submissions, and various form-related settings and actions.