Mastering App Store Connect API: How to Get All Customer Reviews Without Hitting the Rate Limit

Are you tired of dealing with the App Store Connect API rate limit exception when trying to fetch customer reviews for your app? You’re not alone! Many developers face this frustrating issue, but fear not, dear reader, for we’ve got the solution right here. In this comprehensive guide, we’ll show you how to get all customer reviews from App Store Connect API without getting rate-limited.

Understanding the App Store Connect API

Before we dive into the meat of the matter, let’s take a quick look at what the App Store Connect API is and how it works. The App Store Connect API is a RESTful API provided by Apple that allows developers to access and manage their app’s data, including customer reviews. The API uses HTTP requests to interact with the App Store Connect platform, and it’s essential for automating tasks, such as fetching reviews, updating metadata, and managing subscriptions.

Rate Limiting: The Bane of API Enthusiasts

The App Store Connect API, like many other APIs, has rate limiting in place to prevent abuse and ensure fair usage. The API rate limit is typically measured in requests per minute (RPM), and it varies depending on the endpoint and the type of request. For example, the API allows 20 requests per minute for the Reviews endpoint, which is a crucial one for getting customer reviews.

When you exceed the rate limit, the API returns a 429 “Too Many Requests” status code, accompanied by a helpful error message. This is where the frustration begins, as you’re forced to wait for a certain period before making another request. But don’t worry, we’ve got a plan to avoid this rate limit exception and fetch all those juicy customer reviews.

Step 1: Set Up Your App Store Connect API Credentials

Before we start fetching reviews, you need to set up your App Store Connect API credentials. To do this, follow these steps:

• Log in to your App Store Connect account and navigate to the “API Keys” section.
• Click on “Generate API Key” and follow the prompts to create a new key.
• Save the API key and the associated private key securely (e.g., in a password manager).

Keep your API key and private key handy, as you’ll need them to authenticate your API requests.

Step 2: Choose the Right API Endpoint and Parameters

The App Store Connect API provides several endpoints for fetching customer reviews. The most relevant one for our purpose is the “Get Reviews” endpoint, which is accessible via the following URL:

https://api.appstoreconnect.apple.com/v1/apps/{id}/reviews

In this URL, `{id}` represents the ID of your app. You can find this ID in the App Store Connect dashboard or by using the “Get App” endpoint.

To fetch all customer reviews, you’ll need to pass the following parameters:

• `sort`: Set to “MOST_RECENT” to get the latest reviews.
• `filter[platform]`: Set to “IOS” or “MAC_OS” depending on your app’s platform.
• `limit`: Set to a value between 1 and 100 (inclusive) to specify the number of reviews per page.
• `platform`: Set to “ios” or “macOs” depending on your app’s platform.

A sample API request with these parameters would look like this:

https://api.appstoreconnect.apple.com/v1/apps/{id}/reviews?sort=MOST_RECENT&filter[platform]=IOS&limit=100&platform=ios

Step 3: Handle Pagination and Rate Limiting

The “Get Reviews” endpoint returns a paginated response, which means you’ll need to handle pagination to fetch all customer reviews. Apple’s API uses a cursor-based pagination system, where each response includes a `next` cursor that points to the next page of reviews.

To fetch all reviews without hitting the rate limit, you’ll need to:

1. Make an initial request to the “Get Reviews” endpoint with the desired parameters.
2. Extract the `next` cursor from the response.
3. Use the `next` cursor to make subsequent requests until there are no more reviews to fetch.
4. Implement a delay between requests to avoid exceeding the rate limit (more on this later).

Here’s an example of how you can handle pagination using a programming language like Python:

import requests

api_key = "YOUR_API_KEY"
private_key = "YOUR_PRIVATE_KEY"
app_id = "YOUR_APP_ID"

headers = {
    "Authorization": f"Bearer {api_key}",
    "Content-Type": "application/json"
}

params = {
    "sort": "MOST_RECENT",
    "filter[platform]": "IOS",
    "limit": 100,
    "platform": "ios"
}

response = requests.get(f"https://api.appstoreconnect.apple.com/v1/apps/{app_id}/reviews", headers=headers, params=params)

reviews = response.json()["data"]

next_cursor = response.json()["links"]["next"]

while next_cursor:
    response = requests.get(next_cursor, headers=headers)
    reviews.extend(response.json()["data"])
    next_cursor = response.json()["links"]["next"]

    # Implement a delay to avoid rate limiting
    time.sleep(1)  # Wait for 1 second before making the next request

Step 4: Implement Delay and Exponential Backoff

To avoid hitting the rate limit, it’s essential to implement a delay between requests. A simple approach is to use a fixed delay, such as 1 second, between requests. However, this can lead to unnecessary delays when the API is not under heavy load.

A more sophisticated approach is to use exponential backoff, which increases the delay between requests upon receiving a 429 status code. This strategy allows you to adapt to changing API load conditions and avoid getting rate-limited.

Here’s an example of how you can implement exponential backoff using Python:

import time
import random

def fetch_reviews(app_id, api_key, private_key):
    headers = {
        "Authorization": f"Bearer {api_key}",
        "Content-Type": "application/json"
    }

    params = {
        "sort": "MOST_RECENT",
        "filter[platform]": "IOS",
        "limit": 100,
        "platform": "ios"
    }

    backoff_delay = 1  # Initial delay in seconds

    while True:
        try:
            response = requests.get(f"https://api.appstoreconnect.apple.com/v1/apps/{app_id}/reviews", headers=headers, params=params)
            reviews = response.json()["data"]

            # Process reviews...

            next_cursor = response.json()["links"]["next"]
            if next_cursor:
                params["cursor"] = next_cursor
            else:
                break

        except requests.exceptions.HTTPError as e:
            if e.response.status_code == 429:
                # Exponential backoff
                backoff_delay *= 2
                backoff_delay += random.uniform(0, 1)  # Add some randomness to avoid thundering herd problem
                time.sleep(backoff_delay)
            else:
                raise e

fetch_reviews("YOUR_APP_ID", "YOUR_API_KEY", "YOUR_PRIVATE_KEY")

Conclusion

Fetching all customer reviews from the App Store Connect API without hitting the rate limit exception requires careful planning and implementation. By following the steps outlined in this guide, you can successfully fetch all reviews while respecting Apple’s API usage guidelines.

Remember to:

• Set up your App Store Connect API credentials.
• Choose the right API endpoint and parameters.
• Handle pagination and rate limiting using a combination of cursor-based pagination and exponential backoff.

By implementing these strategies, you’ll be able to fetch all customer reviews for your app without worrying about the rate limit exception. Happy coding!

API Endpoint	Parameters	Description
GET /v1/apps/{id}/reviews	sort, filter[platform], limit, platform	Fetches customer reviews for the specified app ID.

Additional resources:

• App Store Connect API Documentation
• App Store Connect API Support

Frequently Asked Question

Want to know the secret to fetching all customer reviews from App Store Connect API without hitting the rate limit wall? Look no further!