The Ads Lighthouse API gives your own scripts, dashboards and data tools the same saved data you see in the app. It is included in the Scale, Business and Enterprise plans, including trials of those plans. On other plans, you can still connect an AI assistant with MCP by signing in. The full reference is on the API page.
Create an API key
- Open Settings and select API and MCP. You need to be the account owner or an account admin.
- Enter a name that says where the key will be used, such as Reporting dashboard.
- Choose Read only, or Read and write if the key needs to add keywords, create projects or start on-demand checks.
- Select Create key and copy the key. It is shown once; store it in a secret manager.
Make your first request
Send the key in the Authorization header as Bearer followed by the key, for example to https://adslighthouse.com/api/v1/projects. Project endpoints accept the project id, the brand domain or the exact project name.
What the numbers mean
- An observation is one saved check: one search result page for a keyword, search engine, device and location at one moment.
- Visibility is the share of saved observations where a domain showed at least one ad. It is not impression share.
- An observation shows that an ad was displayed. It does not prove a purchased keyword, spend or an infringement.
Checks, limits and errors
- Reading data never runs a search. Creating a project and starting an on-demand check use your plan's allowance, like in the app, and need an Idempotency-Key header so a retry never runs the checks twice.
- Each key may make 120 requests per minute. A 429 response says how many seconds to wait.
- Errors return a code, a message and a request id. Include the request id when you contact us.
A key acts for the whole account. Revoke it in Settings > API and MCP as soon as it is no longer needed. It also stops working if the person who created it leaves the account or is no longer an admin.