Hostinger VPS API — 20-Minute Resource Guide

🔐

Authentication & Getting Started

Tokens, headers, and rate limits — 2 min

⏱ 2 min

🧠 What this is for

Think of the API token as a password that identifies your script or app to Hostinger instead of you logging in by hand. You generate it once in hPanel, then attach it to every request so Hostinger knows the request is authorized — without you typing a username and password each time.

🗝️ Where to Generate

hPanel → Account Settings → API

📄 Full Docs

developers.hostinger.com

⚠️ Rate Limiting

A 429 response means you've exceeded the limit — your IP may be temporarily blocked.

💻 Example — listing your VPS with curl

# Every request needs the token in the Authorization header
curl -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_TOKEN" \
  https://developers.hostinger.com/api/vps/v1/virtual-machines

ℹ️

New to the API? Start with "What is Hostinger API" for the token generation walkthrough: read the guide.

🖥️

Server Lifecycle — Key Endpoints

Base path: /api/vps/v1/virtual-machines/{id} — 3 min

⏱ 3 min

🧠 What this is for

These endpoints do the same things you'd do by clicking buttons in hPanel — see your servers, turn them on/off, restart them, or check how much CPU/RAM they're using — except you trigger them from code. That's what makes automation possible: a script can restart a hung server or check load without a human clicking anything.

Method	Endpoint	Purpose
GET	`/virtual-machines`	List all VPS
GET	`/virtual-machines/{id}`	Get VPS details
POST	`/virtual-machines`	Create VPS
POST	`/virtual-machines/{id}/start`	Power on
POST	`/virtual-machines/{id}/stop`	Graceful shutdown
POST	`/virtual-machines/{id}/restart`	Restart
POST	`/virtual-machines/{id}/recreate`	Recreate
GET	`/virtual-machines/{id}/metrics`	CPU / RAM / traffic

💻 Example — restart a VPS that's stopped responding

curl -X POST -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_TOKEN" \
  https://developers.hostinger.com/api/vps/v1/virtual-machines/12345/restart

💡

Tip Poll GET /virtual-machines/{id} to build your own uptime monitor — check the state field against running.

📸

Snapshot Management

Backups via API, and their limits — 3 min

⏱ 3 min

🧠 What this is for

A snapshot is a quick "save point" for your entire VPS — like a video game checkpoint. You take one right before doing something risky (a big config change, a package upgrade), and if it breaks something, you restore it and you're back to exactly how things were. It's not a full backup system though: only one snapshot exists at a time, and it disappears after a day — so it's for short-term safety nets, not long-term storage.

Method	Endpoint	Purpose
GET	`/virtual-machines/{id}/snapshot`	Get snapshot
POST	`/virtual-machines/{id}/snapshot`	Create snapshot
DELETE	`/virtual-machines/{id}/snapshot`	Delete snapshot
POST	`/virtual-machines/{id}/snapshot/restore`	Restore from snapshot

💻 Example — snapshot before a risky update, restore if it fails

# 1. Take a snapshot right before the change
curl -X POST -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_TOKEN" \
  https://developers.hostinger.com/api/vps/v1/virtual-machines/12345/snapshot

# 2. Something broke? Roll it back
curl -X POST -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_TOKEN" \
  https://developers.hostinger.com/api/vps/v1/virtual-machines/12345/snapshot/restore

⚠️

Snapshot Limits Only 1 snapshot is stored at a time. It auto-deletes after 1 day. An OS reinstall wipes the existing snapshot.

📖 Source: Backup & Snapshot Guide

⚙️

Configuration & Post-Install Scripts

Set up the server, then automate provisioning — 3 min

⏱ 3 min

🧠 What this is for

Configuration endpoints change server-level settings you'd otherwise set manually in hPanel — the hostname, root password, nameservers, panel password, or SSH keys. Post-install scripts go a step further: you write a setup script once (e.g. "install nginx and lock down SSH") and Hostinger runs it automatically every time a matching VPS is provisioned — so you never configure a fresh server by hand twice.

Configuration endpoints:

Method	Endpoint	Purpose
PUT	`/virtual-machines/{id}/hostname`	Set hostname
DELETE	`/virtual-machines/{id}/hostname`	Remove hostname
PUT	`/virtual-machines/{id}/root-password`	Reset root password
PUT	`/virtual-machines/{id}/nameservers`	Update nameservers
PUT	`/virtual-machines/{id}/panel-password`	Set panel password
GET	`/virtual-machines/{id}/public-keys`	List SSH keys
POST	`/virtual-machines/{id}/setup`	Run setup

Post-install scripts — automate configuration at provisioning time:

Method	Endpoint	Purpose
POST	`/post-install-scripts`	Create script
GET	`/post-install-scripts`	List scripts
GET	`/post-install-scripts/{id}`	Get specific script
PUT	`/post-install-scripts/{id}`	Update script
DELETE	`/post-install-scripts/{id}`	Delete script

💻 Example — a post-install script that installs NGINX and hardens SSH

POST /api/vps/v1/post-install-scripts
{
  "name": "Install NGINX + harden SSH",
  "content": "#!/bin/bash\napt update && apt install -y nginx\nsed -i 's/PermitRootLogin yes/PermitRootLogin no/' /etc/ssh/sshd_config\nsystemctl restart sshd"
}

📖 Source: Post-Install Scripts Guide

🛠️

SDKs & CLI

Skip raw REST calls — 3 min

⏱ 3 min

🧠 What this is for

SDKs let you call the API using normal code in your language of choice — you call a function like list() instead of manually building an HTTP request, and you get typed, predictable responses back. The CLI (hapi) is for quick one-off actions straight from your terminal, no code required at all — handy for scripts, cron jobs, or just checking on a server fast.

🙋

In Everyday Terms Think of the raw API as reaching into a car's engine and connecting the wires yourself — it works, but it's fiddly and easy to get wrong. An SDK is like the car's dashboard: familiar buttons and dials that do the same job, just easier and safer to use. The CLI is like a remote control — you press one button (type one line) and the action happens, no engineering knowledge needed. None of these require understanding how the "engine" (the API) actually works underneath.

These are all different ways to control your VPS from outside hPanel — same actions (start, stop, snapshot, etc.), different tool depending on how you like to work. Tap a card to see what each one is actually for:

Tool

PHP SDK

Tool

Python SDK

Tool

TypeScript/Node SDK

Tool

CLI (hapi)

Tool

Ansible Collection

Tool

Terraform Provider

Tool

n8n Node

Tool

MCP Server

💻 Example — listing VPS with the Python SDK

# pip install hostinger-api-sdk
from hostinger import Client

client = Client(api_token="YOUR_API_TOKEN")
vms = client.vps.virtual_machines.list()
print(vms)

💻 Example — same thing with the CLI

# Install
apt install golang-go
git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/hostinger/api-cli /tmp/api-cli
cd /tmp/api-cli && go build -o /usr/local/bin/hapi

# Auth
export HAPI_API_TOKEN=<your_token>

# VPS commands
hapi vps vm list               # List all VPS
hapi vps vm get <vm_id>        # VPS details
hapi vps vm start <vm_id>      # Power on
hapi vps vm stop <vm_id>       # Shutdown
hapi vps vm list --format json # Machine-readable output

📖 Source: API CLI Guide

🤖

AI & Workflow Automation

MCP, n8n, and practical recipes — 2 min

⏱ 2 min

🧠 What this is for

MCP (Model Context Protocol) is a standard that lets AI assistants like Claude or Cursor call real tools and APIs on your behalf. Instead of writing a script, you type a plain-English request — "restart my VPS named prod-01" — and the AI translates that into the correct API call. n8n does the no-code equivalent for scheduled or triggered workflows: drag together API calls, conditions, and alerts without writing code.

🙋

In Everyday Terms Instead of paying someone to sit and watch a server 24/7, these tools act like a smoke detector — they watch quietly in the background and only speak up the moment something's actually wrong. With MCP, you get to "talk" to your server the way you'd ask a helpful assistant to do something — no code, just a sentence. With n8n, you build a simple "if this happens, then do that" flow chart on screen, like a flowchart on a whiteboard, and it runs itself from then on.

Click a recipe to see how it's built:

n8n Recipe

Server status monitoring with Slack alerts

▼

How It Works

Poll GET /virtual-machines/{id} on a schedule
Check the returned state against running
If it doesn't match, trigger a Slack alert node

n8n Recipe

Usage spike detection → auto-created Jira ticket

▼

How It Works

Fetch GET /virtual-machines/{id}/metrics
Run the result through an OpenAI analysis step
Auto-create a Jira ticket when a spike is confirmed

n8n Recipe

Pre-maintenance snapshots

▼

How It Works

Auto-trigger POST /snapshot before a scheduled maintenance window
Remember: only 1 snapshot is retained, and it auto-deletes after 1 day

🔌

MCP Server Connects Claude, Cursor, JetBrains, Devin, and OpenAI Codex to your VPS via natural language — supports both API Token and OAuth. No-install option: Hostinger Connector.

📖 Full tutorial: Automate VPS with n8n

🧞

Meet Kodee — Hostinger's AI VPS Assistant

MCP in action, and how to build your own — 2 min

⏱ 2 min

🧠 What this is for

Kodee is Hostinger's built-in AI assistant, and it now runs on the same MCP foundation covered in the previous section. Instead of clicking through hPanel or calling the API yourself, you just chat with Kodee in plain language — in over 50 languages — and it carries out the request for you, 24/7.

🙋

In Everyday Terms Think of Kodee as an on-call system administrator who never sleeps. You don't need to know any commands — just describe the problem or the task in your own words, the same way you'd ask a coworker for help, and Kodee handles the technical part behind the scenes.

✅ What Kodee Can Do

Change the hostname, enable/manage a firewall, create a snapshot, reset a password, manage SSH access, enable the malware scanner, monitor resource usage, and control installed panels like cPanel or Plesk.

⚠️ Safety Net

For destructive actions — reinstalling the VPS, changing the OS template, restoring a backup — Kodee will always ask you to confirm first before making the change.

💬 Example — just ask, in plain language

"What's the uptime of my newest VPS?"
"Check the hardware usage of my newest VPS."
"Create a snapshot before I update the server."

Want to build your own version of this? The same MCP foundation is available to anyone via the Hostinger API. Click to see the setup at a glance:

DIY Setup

Run your own Hostinger API MCP server

▼

How It Works

Install Node.js (v20+) and the MCP server CLI: npm install -g hostinger-api-mcp
Generate a Hostinger API token in hPanel → Account Information → API
Add the MCP server to your AI tool's config (e.g. Claude Desktop) with your token
Test it by asking your AI agent something like "What's the uptime of my newest VPS?"

No Advanced Skills Needed

Setting this up only requires installing Node.js and the CLI, then pointing your AI tool at your token — no coding required beyond following the setup steps.

📖 Manage your VPS by chatting with AI · How to run your own Hostinger API MCP server

☑️

Before You Ship an Integration

Pre-flight checklist — 1 min

⏱ 1 min

Click each item to check it off.

API token generated in hPanel → Account Settings → API
Every request sends Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_TOKEN
Handling of 429 rate-limit responses is in place (backoff/retry)
Snapshot workflows account for the 1-snapshot, 1-day auto-delete limit
Post-install scripts tested against a non-production VPS first
Chosen an SDK/CLI/MCP path instead of hand-rolled REST calls where possible
Pagination handled for list endpoints (default 50 items/page)

0 / 7 items checked

🧠

Knowledge Check

5 questions, one per topic — 1 min

⏱ 1 min

Q1. What HTTP status code indicates you've hit the rate limit?

500

401

429

Q2. Which endpoint gives you CPU, RAM, and traffic data for a VPS?

GET /virtual-machines/{id}

GET /virtual-machines/{id}/metrics

POST /virtual-machines/{id}/restart

Q3. When does a snapshot auto-delete?

After 7 days

After 1 day

Never — it must be deleted manually

Q4. What are post-install scripts used for?

Automating server configuration during provisioning

Restoring a VPS from a snapshot

Rotating SSH keys automatically

Q5. What does the MCP Server enable?

Only Python-based automation

Natural-language VPS management from tools like Claude, Cursor, and Devin

Direct SSH access with no authentication

Score: 0 / 5

Hostinger VPS APIFull Resource Guide

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