v2.4
All systems operational

The carbon market
data API

One API for independent carbon ratings, real-time market pricing, earth intelligence satellite data, and trading execution. REST and WebSocket. Built for developers who need institutional-grade carbon data.

https://api.syne.com/v2
Base URL
REST + WSS
Protocols
JSON
Format
Bearer token
Auth
Quick example — fetch a carbon ratingBASH
# Fetch SYNE rating for a project by registry ID
curl -X GET \
  "https://api.syne.com/v2/ratings/VCS-1360" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer <YOUR_API_KEY>" \
  -H "Accept: application/json"

# Response
{
  "project_id": "VCS-1360",
  "name": "REDD+ Madre de Dios, Peru",
  "rating": "AAA",
  "score": 94.2,
  "factors": {
    "additionality": 96,
    "permanence": 91,
    "mrvQuality": 95,
    "cobenefits": 93
  },
  "lastUpdated": "2026-03-04T09:15:00Z"
}

Quick Start

Get your first carbon rating response in under two minutes. All you need is an API key — request one via the button above and you'll receive sandbox credentials immediately.

1
Request an API key

Create an account at syne.com/request-access. Sandbox keys are issued instantly. Production keys are enabled after identity verification, typically within one business day.

2
Set your base URL and auth header

All requests go to https://api.syne.com/v2. Authenticate by including your API key in the Authorization: Bearer <key> header on every request.

Authentication headerHTTP
Authorization: Bearer sk_live_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Content-Type: application/json
Accept: application/json
3
Make your first request

Fetch a carbon rating using the project's registry ID. SYNE supports Verra VCS (prefix VCS-), Gold Standard (GS-), ACR (ACR-), CAR (CAR-), and Teravent (TVT-) project IDs natively.

curl
curl https://api.syne.com/v2/ratings/VCS-1360 \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer sk_sandbox_xxxx"
4
Explore the full API

Use the sidebar to explore all available endpoints. The sandbox environment includes a full dataset of 200 projects across all registries and project types — safe to test against without rate limit concerns.

Authentication

SYNE Carbon uses Bearer token authentication. Every request must include a valid API key in the Authorization header. Keys are scoped by access level and tied to a single account.

Sandbox
Sandbox keys (sk_sandbox_...)

Full API access against a static 200-project dataset. No rate limits. Issues instantly on registration. Use for development and integration testing.

Live
Production keys (sk_live_...)

Live access to the full 3,200+ project database and real-time market data. Rate limits apply per plan. Requires identity verification before activation.

Restricted
Scoped keys (sk_restricted_...)

Production keys limited to specific API namespaces (e.g., ratings-only, earth-only). Use for embedding partial API access in third-party products or microservices.

Unauthenticated request responseJSON
{
  "error": "unauthorized",
  "message": "Missing or invalid API key. Include Authorization: Bearer <key>",
  "status": 401
}

Carbon Ratings API

Access SYNE Carbon's independent quality ratings for 3,200+ carbon projects across all major registries. Each rating includes a composite score (0–100), individual factor scores across 10 dimensions, and a full rating history.

GET /ratings/{project_id} Fetch rating for a single project
Path Parameters
project_id requiredstringRegistry project ID. Supports VCS-, GS-, ACR-, CAR-, TVT- prefixes.
Query Parameters
factorsbooleanInclude all 10 factor scores in response. Default: true
earthbooleanInclude earth intelligence summary (canopy, biomass, alerts). Default: false
Response 200JSON
{
  "project_id": "VCS-1360",
  "registry": "Verra VCS",
  "name": "REDD+ Madre de Dios, Peru",
  "type": "REDD+",
  "rating": "AAA",
  "score": 94.2,
  "factors": {
    "additionality":   96,
    "permanence":       91,
    "mrvQuality":       95,
    "baselineIntegrity":93,
    "cobenefits":       93,
    "leakage":          92,
    "politicalRisk":    88,
    "projectIntegrity": 97,
    "sdgAlignment":     94,
    "corsiaEligible":   "yes"
  },
  "lastUpdated": "2026-03-04T09:15:00Z",
  "nextReview":  "2026-03-20T00:00:00Z"
}
GET /ratings/{project_id}/history Full rating change history for a project

Returns the complete rating history for a project — every rating tier change, factor score update, and review event since SYNE first covered the project. Useful for monitoring rating trajectory and identifying quality trends.

Query Parameters
fromISO8601Start of history window. Default: project first coverage date.
toISO8601End of history window. Default: current date.

Market Intelligence API

Real-time and historical pricing for 40+ compliance and voluntary carbon markets. Registry flow data, forward curves, and project pipeline intelligence.

GET /prices Live and historical carbon market prices
Query Parameters
marketstringMarket identifier: EU_ETS, UK_ETS, CCA, RGGI, CORSIA, SYNE_NATURE_AAA, etc.
intervalstringData interval: tick, 1m, 15m, 1h, 1d
from / toISO8601Historical range. Tick data available last 30 days; daily data available 10+ years.
Response — EU ETS spotJSON
{
  "market": "EU_ETS",
  "instrument": "EUA_DEC25",
  "price": 63.40,
  "currency": "EUR",
  "change_pct": 0.9,
  "volume_lots": 48200,
  "timestamp": "2026-03-04T14:30:00Z"
}
GET /registry/flows Registry issuance, retirement, and transfer events

Returns registry flow events — credit issuances, retirements, transfers, and cancellations — across all integrated registries. Filter by registry, project type, vintage, or event type. Updated within 15 minutes of registry events being published.

Earth Intelligence API

Query satellite-derived vegetation, biomass, and land-use change data at project-polygon resolution. Submit a GeoJSON polygon and receive the complete Earth Intelligence data package for that area.

POST /earth/vegetation Vegetation metrics for a custom polygon

Submit a GeoJSON polygon boundary. Returns NDVI, EVI, canopy cover, land-use classification, and change detection metrics from the most recent available Sentinel-2 pass. Historical time series available via the from / to parameters.

Request Body
polygon requiredGeoJSONProject boundary as GeoJSON Polygon or MultiPolygon. Max area: 500,000 ha.
fromISO8601Start of time series. Archive available from January 2015.
toISO8601End of time series. Defaults to latest available scene.
metricsstring[]Subset of metrics: ndvi, evi, canopy_cover, land_class, change_detection
Request bodyJSON
{
  "polygon": {
    "type": "Polygon",
    "coordinates": [[
      [-71.2, -12.4],
      [-70.8, -12.4],
      [-70.8, -12.8],
      [-71.2, -12.8],
      [-71.2, -12.4]
    ]]
  },
  "from": "2020-01-01",
  "to": "2026-03-01",
  "metrics": ["ndvi", "canopy_cover"]
}
GET /earth/biomass/{project_id} Above-ground biomass estimates for a rated project

Returns SAR-derived above-ground biomass (AGB) estimates in tCO₂e/ha for a rated project area — including current AGB, baseline AGB (at project start), and annual change. Fuses Sentinel-1 C-Band and ALOS-2 PALSAR L-Band data for high-biomass tropical projects.

GET /earth/alerts Deforestation, fire, and carbon stock change alerts

Returns active deforestation and fire alerts across all monitored carbon projects. Filter by project ID, alert type, or date range. Alerts are generated within 24 hours of satellite confirmation. Each alert includes affected area (ha), estimated carbon stock impact (tCO₂e), and confidence level.

WebSocket Streams

Real-time data streams via WebSocket for live market prices, rating updates, and earth intelligence alerts. Connect to wss://stream.syne.com/v2 with your API key as a query parameter.

WSS
/prices/{market}
Live Market Prices

Tick-by-tick price updates for any monitored carbon market. Messages published on every trade event, typically every 15–30 seconds during active trading hours.

WSS
/ratings/updates
Rating Change Events

Real-time stream of rating tier changes and significant factor score updates. Filter by registry, project type, or rating tier. Subscribe to specific project IDs for targeted monitoring.

WSS
/earth/alerts
Earth Intelligence Alerts

Real-time deforestation detection, fire alerts, and carbon stock change events. Messages include affected project ID, alert type, area affected, estimated tCO₂e impact, and confidence score.

WebSocket connection exampleJAVASCRIPT
const ws = new WebSocket(
  'wss://stream.syne.com/v2/earth/alerts?apiKey=sk_live_xxxx'
);

ws.onmessage = (event) => {
  const alert = JSON.parse(event.data);
  console.log(`Alert: ${alert.type} on ${alert.project_id}`);
  console.log(`Area: ${alert.area_ha} ha — ${alert.carbon_impact_tco2e} tCO₂e`);
};

SDKs & Libraries

Official client libraries for the most common languages and environments. All SDKs are open source, MIT licensed, and maintained by the SYNE Carbon developer team.

Py
Python
pip install syne-carbon

Full API coverage including async/await support, automatic pagination, and pandas DataFrame export for market data and rating time series.

JS
JavaScript / TypeScript
npm install @syne/carbon-api

Typed TypeScript client with promise-based requests, WebSocket stream helpers, and Node.js and browser compatibility. Full type definitions included.

R
R Package
install.packages("synecarbon")

R client optimised for research workflows — tidy data outputs, ggplot2-compatible time series data, and vignettes for carbon ratings analysis and Earth Intelligence queries.

OA
OpenAPI Spec
Download OpenAPI 3.1 YAML

Complete OpenAPI 3.1 specification for generating client code in any language. Use with Swagger Codegen, OpenAPI Generator, or Postman import.

Rate Limits & Plans

Rate limits are applied per API key at the endpoint level. All limits use a sliding 60-second window. Responses include X-RateLimit-Remaining and X-RateLimit-Reset headers.

Endpoint Group
Sandbox
Pro
Business
Enterprise
Carbon Ratings
200/min
500/min
2,000/min
Unlimited
Market Prices (REST)
60/min
300/min
1,000/min
Unlimited
Earth Intelligence
10/min
50/min
200/min
Custom
WebSocket streams
2 concurrent
10 concurrent
Unlimited
Bulk data export
GeoTIFF rasters

Error Codes

SYNE Carbon API uses standard HTTP status codes. All error responses include a JSON body with an error code string and a human-readable message.

Code
Meaning
200
Success. Response body contains requested data.
400
Bad request. Missing required parameters or invalid values. Check the message field for details.
401
Unauthorized. Missing or invalid API key. Include Authorization: Bearer <key> header.
403
Forbidden. Your key does not have access to this endpoint. Check your plan or use a less restricted key scope.
404
Not found. The requested project ID, market, or resource does not exist in SYNE Carbon's database.
422
Unprocessable entity. Request was valid but could not be processed — e.g., polygon too large or unsupported date range.
429
Rate limit exceeded. Retry after the number of seconds specified in the Retry-After header.
500
Server error. Unexpected internal error. Report to [email protected] with the request_id from the response.
SYNE Carbon Developer Platform

Start building with
carbon market data

Sandbox access is free and instant. Production keys with live ratings, market data, and earth intelligence are available on all plans. Questions? Our developer support team responds within one business day.