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Flexible Design Review Automation with Approval Studio’s GraphQL API
Set up Custom Reporting, flexible Dashboards, and DAM integration with Approval Studio GraphQL API
What is GraphQL API?
The Approval Studio GraphQL API gives you a single, flexible endpoint to query exactly the data you need. It returns projects, assets, annotations, tasks, or users in one request, without over-fetching or multiple round-trips. So, if you’re building a custom dashboard, a complex reporting tool, or an integration that needs to read many related resources efficiently, GraphQL is the better choice over the REST API.
API
Build exactly what you need, the way you want it.
Approval workflows
Reliable
Scriptable
Custom integrations
GraphQL
For developers who want efficiency and precision.
Fast queries
No over-fetching
No over-fetching
Flexible
MCP
Automate Approval Studio in plain language, no code.
Easy-to-use
Coding-free
Instant
AI clients of your choice
What can you do with GraphQL API?
The GraphQL API gives you a single, flexible endpoint to query and mutate exactly the data you need across every major resource in Approval Studio
Projects
Create, update, and track every project, all through your own tools.
ERP, and project management tools (Jira, Asana)
Assets
Bring assets from a URL, see their status, and organize your library.
DAM platforms, PIM systems, and cloud storage
Tasks
Set your tasks, then act on feedback instantly and within one platform.
Workflow automation, project management tools
Users & Clients
Look up team members and account access, all with your user data in sync.
HR systems, SSO provisioning, onboarding tools
Reference Documents
Attach specs, briefs, and standards directly to your projects for context.
Doc management, standards, and requirements libraries
Webhooks
Get notified and trigger instant actions in your other tools.
Slack alerts, email triggers, ERP sync
What Should You Choose: REST API vs GraphQL API
In simple terms, if your integration writes data or reacts to events, use REST. If your integration reads and displays data (dashboards, reports, sync), GraphQL will be faster and cleaner.
Fetch only what you need
Plug into any platform
Build custom reports
Keep your stack in sync
GraphQL API Use Cases for Design Review & Reporting Teams
Here are the most common ways teams use the GraphQL API
Solution: A custom internal dashboard queries the GraphQL API every 30 seconds: projects + assets + approvalStatus + assignee in one request. Cards are color-coded by status. Clicking opens the Approval Studio review tool directly. The entire view refreshes without page reloads.
Production Manager
Industry: FMCG/pharma
Problem: Status updates are scattered with no single view of what's approved, what's pending, and what's blocked.
Solution: A scheduled script (cron job) queries the GraphQL API on Friday at 4pm: client projects + asset statuses + annotation counts + proof report links. The script generates a formatted PDF, which the account manager reviews and hits Send.
Account Manager
Industry: Design & Review Team
Problem: Label approvals tracked in spreadsheets leave no audit trail and can lead to missed deadlines.
Solution: A sync script polls the GraphQL API hourly and queries approvalStatus for all active assets. When status changes to 'Approved', it calls the DAM API to update the asset's metadata field. The GraphQL query fetches only the fields needed (id, approvalStatus, updatedAt).
Product Manager
Industry: Retail & Manufacturing
Problem: Artwork is approved in Approval Studio, but the DAM still shows the asset as 'Pending Review' till manual fix.
Solution: A custom internal dashboard polls GET /projects and GET /assets/{id}/annotations to display live status across all projects. Color-coded rows show: green (approved), amber (in review), red (change requested). Clicking a row opens the Approval Studio review tool via direct link.
Quality Manager
Industry: Design & Review Team
Problem: Approval Studio has no built-in annotation analytics, so the manager has to browse projects manually.
Solution: The Shopify store backend creates an Approval Studio project via REST API when artwork is submitted. The GraphQL API is polled every few minutes to check approvalStatus. When the asset is marked Approved, the backend automatically publishes the Shopify product variant.
Shopify Store
Industry: Print-on-demand
Problem: If you don’t manually approve a custom artwork in Approval Studio, your Shopify product stays in draft.
Solution: custom internal dashboard queries the GraphQL API every 30 seconds: projects + assets + approvalStatus + assignee in one request. Cards are color-coded by status. Clicking opens the Approval Studio review tool directly. The entire view refreshes without page reloads.
Industry: FMCG / pharma
Problem: Status updates are scattered with no single view of what's approved, what's pending, and what's blocked.
Solution: A scheduled script (cron job) queries the GraphQL API on Friday at 4pm: client projects + asset statuses + annotation counts + proof report links. The script generates a formatted PDF, which the account manager reviews and hits Send.
Industry: Design & Review Team
Problem: They manually export data, paste it into a report template, and send it out, spending 45min per client.
Solution: A sync script polls the GraphQL API hourly and queries approvalStatus for all active assets. When status changes to 'Approved', it calls the DAM API to update the asset's metadata field. The GraphQL query fetches only the fields needed (id, approvalStatus, updatedAt).
Industry: Retail & Manufacturing
Problem: Artwork is approved in Approval Studio, but the DAM still shows the asset as 'Pending Review' till manual fix.
Solution: A custom report queries the GraphQL API: all annotations across all projects in a date range, grouped by project, asset, and reviewer. The data feeds into a BI tool (Metabase, Power BI) or a custom chart. Here, the REST API would require dozens of sequential calls.
Industry: Design & Review Team
Problem:Approval Studio has no built-in annotation analytics, so the manager has to browse projects manually.
Solution: The Shopify store backend creates an Approval Studio project via REST API when artwork is submitted. The GraphQL API is polled every few minutes to check approvalStatus. When the asset is marked Approved, the backend automatically publishes the Shopify product variant.
Industry: Print-on-demand
Problem: If you don’t manually approve a custom artwork in Approval Studio, your Shopify product stays in draft.
GraphQL API version v.0.30 (12-20-2025)
Click the button below to view the reference document for Approval Studio GraphQL API as HTML or download it as PDF.
GraphQL API version v.0.20 beta (11-25-2025)
Click the button below to view the reference document for Approval Studio GraphQL API as HTML or download it as PDF.
FAQs
Yes. Version 0.20 is production-ready and actively used by integrations in production environments. The v0.x numbering reflects that we are still adding new types and fields — existing queries will not break between minor versions. Breaking changes will be communicated with advance notice.
Basic GraphQL syntax is straightforward. If you know JSON and HTTP, you’ll be writing queries within 30 minutes. The interactive Playground provides full schema documentation and auto-completion.
REST API: stable v1.33, covers all operations including writes and webhooks, standard HTTP methods. GraphQL API: flexible queries, fetch multiple nested resources in one request, no over-fetching. Use REST for writing, GraphQL for reading and reporting.
GraphQL API access is available on Pro, Pro XL, and Enterprise plans. Contact support if you need access on a Starter plan.