---
title: "Authentication"
description: "How to authenticate with the Infisical Public API"
---

The Public API accepts multiple modes of authentication being via [Infisical Token](/documentation/platform/token) or API Key.

- [Infisical Token](/documentation/platform/token): Provides short-lived, scoped CRUD access to the secrets of a specific project and environment.
- API Key: Provides full access to all endpoints representing the user without ability to encrypt/decrypt secrets for **E2EE** endpoints.

<Tabs>
    <Tab title="Infisical Token">
        The Infisical Token mode uses an Infisical Token to authenticate with the API.

        To authenticate requests with Infisical using the Infisical Token, you must include your Infisical Token in the `Authorization` header of HTTP requests made to the platform with the value `Bearer <infisical_token>`.

        You can obtain an Infisical Token in Project Settings > Service Tokens.

        ![token add](../../images/project-token-add.png)
    </Tab>
    <Tab title="API Key">
        The API key mode uses an API key to authenticate with the API.

        To authenticate requests with Infisical using the API Key, you must include an API key in the `X-API-KEY` header of HTTP requests made to the platform. 

        You can obtain an API key in User Settings > API Keys

        ![API key dashboard](../../images/api-key-dashboard.png)
        ![API key in personal settings](../../images/api-key-settings.png)
    </Tab>
</Tabs>