Hootsuite Install & Auth

Overview

Configure Hootsuite REST API OAuth 2.0 authentication. Hootsuite uses OAuth 2.0 with Bearer tokens. You register an app in the Hootsuite Developer Portal, get client credentials, and exchange authorization codes for access tokens.

Prerequisites

• Hootsuite account (Business plan or higher for API access)
• Registered app at https://developer.hootsuite.com
• Client ID and Client Secret from your app

Instructions

Step 1: Register Your App

1. Go to https://developer.hootsuite.com
2. Create a new app
3. Note your Client ID and Client Secret
4. Set redirect URI to https://your-app.com/callback

Step 2: Configure Environment

# .env (NEVER commit)
HOOTSUITE_CLIENT_ID=your_client_id
HOOTSUITE_CLIENT_SECRET=your_client_secret
HOOTSUITE_REDIRECT_URI=https://your-app.com/callback
HOOTSUITE_ACCESS_TOKEN=  # Populated after OAuth flow

# .gitignore
.env
.env.local

Step 3: OAuth 2.0 Authorization Flow

// auth.ts — OAuth 2.0 authorization code flow
import 'dotenv/config';

const { HOOTSUITE_CLIENT_ID, HOOTSUITE_CLIENT_SECRET, HOOTSUITE_REDIRECT_URI } = process.env;

// Step 1: Redirect user to authorize
function getAuthUrl(): string {
  const params = new URLSearchParams({
    response_type: 'code',
    client_id: HOOTSUITE_CLIENT_ID!,
    redirect_uri: HOOTSUITE_REDIRECT_URI!,
    scope: 'offline',
  });
  return `https://platform.hootsuite.com/oauth2/auth?${params}`;
}

// Step 2: Exchange authorization code for tokens
async function exchangeCode(code: string) {
  const response = await fetch('https://platform.hootsuite.com/oauth2/token', {
    method: 'POST',
    headers: {
      'Content-Type': 'application/x-www-form-urlencoded',
      'Authorization': `Basic ${Buffer.from(`${HOOTSUITE_CLIENT_ID}:${HOOTSUITE_CLIENT_SECRET}`).toString('base64')}`,
    },
    body: new URLSearchParams({
      grant_type: 'authorization_code',
      code,
      redirect_uri: HOOTSUITE_REDIRECT_URI!,
    }),
  });

  const tokens = await response.json();
  console.log('Access Token:', tokens.access_token);
  console.log('Refresh Token:', tokens.refresh_token);
  console.log('Expires In:', tokens.expires_in, 'seconds');
  return tokens;
}

// Step 3: Refresh expired token
async function refreshToken(refreshToken: string) {
  const response = await fetch('https://platform.hootsuite.com/oauth2/token', {
    method: 'POST',
    headers: {
      'Content-Type': 'application/x-www-form-urlencoded',
      'Authorization': `Basic ${Buffer.from(`${HOOTSUITE_CLIENT_ID}:${HOOTSUITE_CLIENT_SECRET}`).toString('base64')}`,
    },
    body: new URLSearchParams({
      grant_type: 'refresh_token',
      refresh_token: refreshToken,
    }),
  });
  return response.json();
}

Step 4: Verify Connection

async function verifyConnection(accessToken: string) {
  const response = await fetch('https://platform.hootsuite.com/v1/me', {
    headers: { 'Authorization': `Bearer ${accessToken}` },
  });
  const user = await response.json();
  console.log('Connected as:', user.data.fullName);
  console.log('Organization:', user.data.organizationName);
  return user;
}

Output

• OAuth 2.0 app credentials configured
• Access token obtained via authorization code flow
• Token refresh mechanism for long-lived access
• Connection verified with user profile

Error Handling

Error	Cause	Solution
401 Unauthorized	Invalid or expired token	Refresh token or re-authorize
invalid_client	Wrong client ID/secret	Check app credentials
invalid_grant	Authorization code expired	Codes expire in 30s; re-authorize
redirect_uri_mismatch	URI doesn't match	Must exactly match app registration

Resources

• Hootsuite Developer Portal
• OAuth 2.0 Guide
• API Overview

Next Steps

After auth, proceed to hootsuite-hello-world for your first API call.