Welcome to the WorkAxle API Start here
The WorkAxle API gives you programmatic access to the workforce-management data and operations behind the WorkAxle platform — employees, schedules, shifts, time entries, leave, payroll, and the integrations that move that data in and out of customer systems.
This portal is the single entry point for everything a developer needs to build against WorkAxle: a quick start, the authentication model, and pointers into the live reference for each of our three API surfaces.
What you can build
- HR & people sync — keep employee records in lockstep with an HRIS, IDP, or payroll system.
- Scheduling & operations — read schedules, push shifts, manage availability and time-off.
- Time & attendance — ingest punches, export approved hours, drive payroll exports.
- Reporting & analytics — pull operational data into a warehouse, BI tool, or dashboard.
- Custom integrations — wire WorkAxle into anything we don't ship a connector for, on either side of the request.
The API surface at a glance
WorkAxle exposes three reference surfaces. Most use cases live in GraphQL; REST exists for legacy reasons and is being migrated.
| Surface | Endpoint | What it's for |
|---|---|---|
| GraphQL — App schema | /v2/graphql | The same API that powers the WorkAxle web and mobile apps. Use this for interactive, user-facing operations. |
| GraphQL — Integration schema | /v2/integration/graphql | Bulk import/export, integration-kind operations, machine-to-machine flows. Built for partner and connector workloads. |
| REST | /doc | Legacy JSON:API v1 surface. Still in production for endpoints that haven't been migrated to GraphQL. |
A query that works on the App schema may not exist on the Integration schema, and vice versa. The two are intentionally separated — see Reference for guidance on which to pick.
Audience
This documentation assumes you're a developer integrating WorkAxle with another system. You're comfortable with HTTP, JSON, and either GraphQL or REST. You don't need prior knowledge of WorkAxle's internal architecture — every concept that affects the API surface is explained where it's used.
If you're an end-user looking for help with the WorkAxle product, this isn't the right place — please reach out to your WorkAxle account team.
Where to start
- Make your first call — the Quick Start walks you from zero to a working GraphQL response against staging in about five minutes.
- Understand authentication — every request needs a token. The Authentication page covers how to get one and which scope you need.
- Browse the reference — the Reference index links into the live, executable GraphQL explorers for both schemas and the full REST documentation.
Environments
| Environment | Base URL | When to use |
|---|---|---|
| Staging | https://api.staging.workaxle.com | Development, integration testing, demos. Safe to call freely. |
| Production | Per-tenant. See your account team. | Live customer data. Requires production credentials. |
The Quick Start, examples in this portal, and the interactive GraphQL explorers all target staging by default. You can switch hosts without changing query shape — the schemas are identical across environments.
Versioning
The current major version is v2, reflected in the URL path (/v2/graphql, /v2/integration/graphql). Breaking changes within a major version are avoided; additive changes (new fields, new mutations) are made continuously.
Schema changes that affect existing consumers are communicated through your account team — a public changelog is not currently published.
Conventions used in this portal
- Code samples default to cURL for portability. WorkAxle does not ship official SDKs today; use any standard HTTP or GraphQL client in your language of choice.
- Field names use camelCase in GraphQL and snake_case in JSON:API REST. The same logical field may appear under both spellings.
- Times are ISO 8601 with a timezone offset, unless otherwise noted.
- IDs are opaque strings — never compute or pattern-match them.
- All requests and responses are JSON.