Answer
Authentication Methods in Postman
Postman supports all major authentication types via the Authorization tab in any request.
Available Auth Types
1. No Auth
No authentication. Used for public APIs.
2. API Key
Pass an API key as a header or query parameter:
CODE
Header: X-API-Key: your-api-key-here
▸or
CODE
Query: ?api_key=your-key
3. Bearer Token (Most Common)
Used for JWT and OAuth 2.0 token-based auth:
CODE
Authorization: Bearer eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9...
4. Basic Auth
Username and password encoded in Base64:
CODE
Authorization: Basic dXNlcm5hbWU6cGFzc3dvcmQ=
5. Digest Auth
Sends a hashed version of credentials. More secure than Basic Auth.
6. OAuth 1.0
Legacy OAuth using consumer key, consumer secret, access token, and token secret.
7. OAuth 2.0
Modern OAuth flow supporting:
- ✓Authorization Code — server-side apps
- ✓Client Credentials — machine-to-machine
- ✓Implicit — deprecated browser flows
- ✓Password — direct credentials
JavaScript
// Postman fetches token automatically
// Click "Get New Access Token" in the Authorization tab
8. AWS Signature
For AWS API Gateway requests — automatically signs with Access Key, Secret Key, and Region.
9. NTLM Authentication
Windows NT LAN Manager auth for corporate/intranet APIs.
10. Hawk Authentication
HMAC-based auth with time-limited credentials.
How to Set Auth in Postman
- ✓Open a request
- ✓Go to Authorization tab
- ✓Select type from Type dropdown
- ✓Fill in credentials
- ✓Postman automatically adds the correct header/param
Inheritance
Set auth at the Collection level and all requests inherit it. Override per-request as needed.