API Reference

Complete reference for all ForecastAPI endpoints, parameters, and response formats.

Base URL

https://forecastapi.com/v1

Authentication

Bearer YOUR_API_KEY

Endpoints

Generate Forecast

POST /forecast

Generate forecasts for your time series data with automatic model selection.

Request Body

{
  "data": [
    {"date": "2024-01", "value": 120},
    {"date": "2024-02", "value": 135},
    {"date": "2024-03", "value": 155}
  ],
  "periods": 6,
  "frequency": "M",
  "data_type": "sales",
  "confidence_level": 0.95
}

Parameters

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
data	array	Yes	Array of time series data points with date and value
periods	integer	Yes	Number of forecast periods to generate (1-24)
frequency	string	Yes	Data frequency: D, W, M, Q, Y, H
data_type	string	No	Data type for optimized model selection. Default: "sales"
confidence_level	float	No	Confidence level for intervals (0.8-0.99). Default: 0.95

Data Types

Specialized Types

Support intermittent demand patterns:

"sales" - Sales data
"demand" - Demand forecasting
"inventory" - Inventory levels

Generic Types

Use standard forecasting methods:

"web_traffic" - Website analytics
"cpu_usage" - System metrics
"revenue" - Financial data

Response

{
  "forecast": [
    {
      "date": "2024-04",
      "value": 168.5,
      "lower": 162.3,
      "upper": 174.7
    },
    {
      "date": "2024-05",
      "value": 175.2,
      "lower": 168.1,
      "upper": 182.3
    }
  ],
  "method": "exponential_smoothing",
  "confidence": 0.95,
  "analysis": {
    "pattern_type": "regular",
    "trend": "increasing",
    "seasonality": "none_detected",
    "characteristics": {
      "total_periods": 12,
      "non_zero_events": 12,
      "mean_value": 142.5,
      "coefficient_of_variation": 0.23
    }
  },
  "performance": {
    "response_time_ms": 287,
    "model_selection_time_ms": 45
  }
}

Response Fields

Field	Type	Description
forecast	array	Array of forecast periods with values and confidence intervals
method	string	Forecasting method that was automatically selected
confidence	float	Confidence level used for prediction intervals
analysis	object	Data pattern analysis and characteristics
performance	object	API performance metrics

Error Responses

HTTP Status Codes

400

Bad Request

Invalid request parameters or malformed JSON

401

Unauthorized

Invalid or missing API key

429

Too Many Requests

Rate limit exceeded

500

Internal Server Error

Server error during forecast generation

Error Response Format

{
  "error": {
    "code": "invalid_data_format",
    "message": "Data array must contain at least 3 data points",
    "details": {
      "received_points": 2,
      "minimum_required": 3
    }
  }
}