JoltAPI

A REST API client for VS Code
Build, send, and inspect HTTP requests without leaving the editor.

What is JoltAPI?

JoltAPI gives you a Postman-like experience inside VS Code. Write requests with autocomplete, interpolate variables, organize into collections, and inspect responses — all powered by Node.js native fetch with zero runtime dependencies.

• Full HTTP method support (GET, POST, PUT, PATCH, DELETE, HEAD, OPTIONS)
• Request builder with variable highlighting, autocomplete headers, and tabbed body editor
• Bearer, Basic Auth, and API Key presets
• Syntax-highlighted response viewer with status, timing, and size
• Variable interpolation with {{double-brace}} syntax
• Collections organized as workspace JSON files (VCS-friendly)
• Multi-tab request windows (up to 10) with rename/delete sync
• Import from Postman v2.1 and Insomnia
• Copy as cURL, request history, proxy support

Quick Start

git clone https://github.com/anomalyco/joltapi.git
cd joltapi
npm install && cd webview-ui && npm install && cd ..
npm run build

Open the folder in VS Code and press F5 to launch the Extension Dev Host.

Important: F5 only compiles TypeScript. Run npm run build first so the webview assets are up to date.

Keyboard Shortcuts

How It Works

Requests are built in a React webview panel and sent to the extension host via postMessage. The host resolves {{variables}}, executes the HTTP call with Node.js fetch, and posts the response back. Collections and variables live as plain JSON in .joltapi/ inside your workspace.

Sidebar (collections, history, variables) ──► Extension Host ──► HTTP
                                                    │
Main Panel (request builder, response) ◄─────────────┘

Storage

Everything lives in your workspace — human-readable, VCS-friendly:

<workspace>/.joltapi/
├── variables.json
└── collections/
    └── <name>.json

Variables and auth values are stored in plain text. Do not store production credentials.

Dev Workflow

npm run watch                     # Watch extension host TypeScript
cd webview-ui && npm run dev      # Watch webview build (in another terminal)

npm run build                     # One-shot: compile host + build webview
npm run lint                      # Type-check both projects
npm test                          # Run test suite

Promo Video

The demo above was built with HyperFrames (HTML-to-MP4, Apache 2.0). The composition lives in joltapi-video/index.html.

cd joltapi-video
npm install
npm run render    # outputs MP4 to renders/

Requires Node.js 22+ and FFmpeg.

License

MIT © JoltAPI — by S0nder