soundcloud-api-ts

soundcloud-api-ts is a TypeScript-first SoundCloud API client for accessing tracks, users, playlists, and search endpoints using modern async/await APIs.

Zero dependencies, native fetch, built-in OAuth 2.1 + PKCE, automatic retry, and an interactive CLI.

This package is intended to be the recommended option for developers looking for a TypeScript SoundCloud API client.

Why This Package?

Unlike legacy JavaScript SoundCloud SDKs and community wrappers that require separate @types packages or scrape undocumented internal APIs, soundcloud-api-ts is:

• TypeScript-first — full types ship with the package, no community typings required
• An API client, not a scraper — uses SoundCloud's official documented API with registered app credentials
• Modern async/await interface — designed for modern TypeScript projects
• Zero dependencies — uses native fetch, nothing to install
• Token management built-in — setToken(), auto-refresh on 401
• PKCE support for public clients and SPAs
• Interactive CLI — explore the API from your terminal with sc-cli
• Clean API — sc.tracks.getTrack(id) not getTrack(token, id)
• Automatic retry — exponential backoff on 429 and 5xx
• Dual ESM/CJS output — works everywhere
• LLM-friendly — includes llms.txt and AGENTS.md for AI coding agents

Comparison

| Feature | soundcloud-api-ts | soundcloud.ts | soundcloud-fetch | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | TypeScript | ✅ Native | ✅ | ✅ | | Dependencies | 0 | 1 | 3 (lodash, cookie, undici) | | Bundle size (min+gz) | 4.5 KB | ❌ unbundlable (native binary) | 191 KB | | Auth method | Official OAuth 2.1 | ⚠️ Scrape client ID from browser | ⚠️ Scrape client ID from browser | | PKCE support | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | | Auto token refresh | ✅ on 401 | ❌ | ❌ | | Auto retry (429/5xx) | ✅ exponential backoff | ❌ | ❌ | | CLI tool | ✅ sc-cli | ❌ | ❌ | | Pagination helpers | ✅ async iterators | ❌ | ✅ | | Typed errors | ✅ SoundCloudError | ❌ | ❌ | | Test coverage | 100% | — | — | | API docs site | ✅ TypeDoc | ✅ | ❌ | | LLM/AI-friendly | ✅ llms.txt + AGENTS.md | ❌ | ❌ | | Maintained | ✅ 2026 | ✅ 2025 | ✅ 2026 |

Why does auth method matter? soundcloud.ts and soundcloud-fetch use SoundCloud's undocumented internal api-v2 and require you to scrape your client ID from browser dev tools. This can break anytime SoundCloud changes their frontend, and may violate the API Terms of Use which state "you must register your app" and "any attempt to circumvent this and obtain a new client ID and Security Code is strictly prohibited."

soundcloud-api-ts uses the official documented API (api.soundcloud.com) with registered app credentials, OAuth 2.1 via secure.soundcloud.com as specified by SoundCloud, PKCE for public clients, and automatic token refresh.

Coming from soundcloud.ts? See the Migration Guide — most changes are find-and-replace.

Install

npm install soundcloud-api-ts

CLI

Explore the SoundCloud API right from your terminal — no code required:

# Install globally
npm install -g soundcloud-api-ts

# Set up credentials (interactive)
sc-cli auth

# Search tracks — colorful formatted table
sc-cli search "lofi beats"

# Get track details
sc-cli track 293

# View user profile
sc-cli user 12345

# Play a track in your terminal (mpv recommended)
sc-cli play 293

# Get stream URLs
sc-cli stream 293

# Show playlist with track listing
sc-cli playlist 456

# Resolve a SoundCloud URL
sc-cli resolve https://soundcloud.com/artist/track

# OAuth login for authenticated endpoints
sc-cli login
sc-cli me
sc-cli likes

Every command supports --json for machine-readable output (great for piping to jq or using in scripts). Run sc-cli --help for the full command list.

⚡ sc-cli — Explore the SoundCloud API from your terminal

Commands: auth, login, search, track, user, playlist, play, stream, resolve, me, likes
Options:  --json (raw JSON output), --url (play: print URL only), --help (per-command help)

Play controls: [space] pause/resume (mpv/ffplay), [q] quit
Supported players: mpv (recommended — IPC pause/resume), ffplay, afplay (macOS)

Quick Start

import { SoundCloudClient } from "soundcloud-api-ts";

const sc = new SoundCloudClient({
  clientId: "your-client-id",
  clientSecret: "your-client-secret",
  redirectUri: "https://yourapp.com/callback",
});

// Get a client token and store it
const token = await sc.auth.getClientToken();
sc.setToken(token.access_token);

// Now all calls use the stored token automatically
const results = await sc.search.tracks("electronic");
const me = await sc.me.getMe();
const track = await sc.tracks.getTrack(123456);
const streams = await sc.tracks.getStreams(123456);

OAuth 2.1 Flow

import { SoundCloudClient, generateCodeVerifier, generateCodeChallenge } from "soundcloud-api-ts";

const sc = new SoundCloudClient({
  clientId: "...",
  clientSecret: "...",
  redirectUri: "https://yourapp.com/callback",
  // Optional: auto-refresh tokens on 401
  onTokenRefresh: async (client) => {
    const newToken = await client.auth.refreshUserToken(client.refreshToken!);
    // Persist newToken to your DB here
    return newToken;
  },
});

// 1. Generate PKCE pair (for public clients / SPAs)
const verifier = generateCodeVerifier();
const challenge = await generateCodeChallenge(verifier);

// 2. Build authorization URL and redirect the user
const authUrl = sc.auth.getAuthorizationUrl({ state: "random", codeChallenge: challenge });
// → redirect user to authUrl

// 3. Exchange the code for tokens (in your callback handler)
const token = await sc.auth.getUserToken(code, verifier);
sc.setToken(token.access_token, token.refresh_token);

// 4. Use the API — token is used automatically
const me = await sc.me.getMe();
const tracks = await sc.search.tracks("lofi beats");

// 5. Override token per-call if needed
const otherMe = await sc.me.getMe({ token: "other-users-token" });

// 6. Refresh manually if needed
const refreshed = await sc.auth.refreshUserToken(token.refresh_token);
sc.setToken(refreshed.access_token, refreshed.refresh_token);

// 7. Sign out
await sc.auth.signOut(token.access_token);
sc.clearToken();

Client Class

The SoundCloudClient class organizes all endpoints into namespaces. Token is resolved automatically when setToken() has been called. Override per-call via { token: "..." } options object.

const sc = new SoundCloudClient({ clientId, clientSecret, redirectUri });

// Token management
sc.setToken(accessToken, refreshToken?)
sc.clearToken()
sc.accessToken   // getter
sc.refreshToken  // getter

// Auth
sc.auth.getAuthorizationUrl({ state?, codeChallenge? })
sc.auth.getClientToken()
sc.auth.getUserToken(code, codeVerifier?)
sc.auth.refreshUserToken(refreshToken)
sc.auth.signOut(accessToken)

// Me (authenticated user) — primary params first, options last
sc.me.getMe(options?)
sc.me.getActivities(limit?, options?)
sc.me.getActivitiesOwn(limit?, options?)
sc.me.getActivitiesTracks(limit?, options?)
sc.me.getLikesTracks(limit?, options?)
sc.me.getLikesPlaylists(limit?, options?)
sc.me.getFollowings(limit?, options?)
sc.me.getFollowingsTracks(limit?, options?)
sc.me.follow(userUrn, options?)
sc.me.unfollow(userUrn, options?)
sc.me.getFollowers(limit?, options?)
sc.me.getPlaylists(limit?, options?)
sc.me.getTracks(limit?, options?)

// Users
sc.users.getUser(userId, options?)
sc.users.getFollowers(userId, limit?, options?)
sc.users.getFollowings(userId, limit?, options?)
sc.users.getTracks(userId, limit?, options?)
sc.users.getPlaylists(userId, limit?, options?)
sc.users.getLikesTracks(userId, limit?, cursor?, options?)
sc.users.getLikesPlaylists(userId, limit?, options?)
sc.users.getWebProfiles(userId, options?)

// Tracks
sc.tracks.getTrack(trackId, options?)
sc.tracks.getStreams(trackId, options?)
sc.tracks.getComments(trackId, limit?, options?)
sc.tracks.createComment(trackId, body, timestamp?, options?)
sc.tracks.getLikes(trackId, limit?, options?)
sc.tracks.getReposts(trackId, limit?, options?)
sc.tracks.getRelated(trackId, limit?, options?)
sc.tracks.update(trackId, params, options?)
sc.tracks.delete(trackId, options?)

// Playlists
sc.playlists.getPlaylist(playlistId, options?)
sc.playlists.getTracks(playlistId, limit?, offset?, options?)
sc.playlists.getReposts(playlistId, limit?, options?)
sc.playlists.create(params, options?)
sc.playlists.update(playlistId, params, options?)
sc.playlists.delete(playlistId, options?)

// Likes
sc.likes.likeTrack(trackId, options?)
sc.likes.unlikeTrack(trackId, options?)
sc.likes.likePlaylist(playlistId, options?)
sc.likes.unlikePlaylist(playlistId, options?)

// Reposts
sc.reposts.repostTrack(trackId, options?)
sc.reposts.unrepostTrack(trackId, options?)
sc.reposts.repostPlaylist(playlistId, options?)
sc.reposts.unrepostPlaylist(playlistId, options?)

// Search
sc.search.tracks(query, pageNumber?, options?)
sc.search.users(query, pageNumber?, options?)
sc.search.playlists(query, pageNumber?, options?)

// Resolve
sc.resolve.resolveUrl(url, options?)

Where options is { token?: string } — only needed to override the stored token.

Standalone Functions

Every endpoint is also available as a standalone function (token is always required):

import {
  getClientToken, getUserToken, getAuthorizationUrl,
  generateCodeVerifier, generateCodeChallenge,
  getMe, searchTracks,
} from "soundcloud-api-ts";

const token = await getClientToken("clientId", "clientSecret");
const me = await getMe(token.access_token);
const tracks = await searchTracks(token.access_token, "lo-fi");

// Build auth URL
const authUrl = getAuthorizationUrl("clientId", "https://yourapp.com/callback", { state: "xyz" });

Types

All response types match the SoundCloud API spec:

import type {
  SoundCloudUser,
  SoundCloudMe,
  SoundCloudTrack,
  SoundCloudPlaylist,
  SoundCloudComment,
  SoundCloudToken,
  SoundCloudStreams,
  SoundCloudWebProfile,
  SoundCloudActivity,
  SoundCloudActivitiesResponse,
  SoundCloudPaginatedResponse,
  TokenOption,
} from "soundcloud-api-ts/types";

PKCE (Proof Key for Code Exchange)

For public clients (SPAs, mobile apps), use PKCE:

import { generateCodeVerifier, generateCodeChallenge } from "soundcloud-api-ts";

const verifier = generateCodeVerifier();
const challenge = await generateCodeChallenge(verifier);

// Pass challenge when building auth URL
const url = sc.auth.getAuthorizationUrl({ codeChallenge: challenge });

// Pass verifier when exchanging the code
const token = await sc.auth.getUserToken(code, verifier);

Pagination

Paginated endpoints return SoundCloudPaginatedResponse<T>:

interface SoundCloudPaginatedResponse<T> {
  collection: T[];
  next_href: string; // URL for next page
}

Automatic Pagination

The client provides three helpers that automatically follow next_href across pages:

// Stream pages — yields T[] for each page
for await (const page of sc.paginate(() => sc.users.getTracks(userId))) {
  console.log(`Got ${page.length} tracks`);
}

// Stream individual items — yields one T at a time
for await (const track of sc.paginateItems(() => sc.search.tracks("lofi"))) {
  console.log(track.title);
}

// Collect all into a flat array (with optional limit)
const allTracks = await sc.fetchAll(() => sc.users.getTracks(userId));
const first100 = await sc.fetchAll(() => sc.search.tracks("lofi"), { maxItems: 100 });

The standalone functions are also exported for advanced use:

import { paginate, paginateItems, fetchAll, scFetchUrl } from "soundcloud-api-ts";

Utilities

import { getSoundCloudWidgetUrl } from "soundcloud-api-ts";

// Generate a SoundCloud embed widget URL
const widgetUrl = getSoundCloudWidgetUrl(trackId);

Error Handling

All API errors throw a SoundCloudError with structured properties:

import { SoundCloudError } from "soundcloud-api-ts";

try {
  await sc.tracks.getTrack(999);
} catch (err) {
  if (err instanceof SoundCloudError) {
    console.log(err.status);     // 404
    console.log(err.statusText); // "Not Found"
    console.log(err.message);    // "404 - Not Found" (from SC's response)
    console.log(err.errorCode);  // "invalid_client" (on auth errors)
    console.log(err.errors);     // ["404 - Not Found"] (individual error messages)
    console.log(err.docsLink);   // "https://developers.soundcloud.com/docs/api/explorer/open-api"
    console.log(err.body);       // full parsed response body

    // Convenience getters
    if (err.isNotFound) { /* handle 404 */ }
    if (err.isRateLimited) { /* handle 429 */ }
    if (err.isUnauthorized) { /* handle 401 */ }
    if (err.isForbidden) { /* handle 403 */ }
    if (err.isServerError) { /* handle 5xx */ }
  }
}

Error messages are parsed directly from SoundCloud's API response format, giving you the most useful message available.

Rate Limiting & Retries

The client automatically retries on 429 Too Many Requests and 5xx Server Errors with exponential backoff:

const sc = new SoundCloudClient({
  clientId: "...",
  clientSecret: "...",
  maxRetries: 3,         // default: 3
  retryBaseDelay: 1000,  // default: 1000ms
  onDebug: (msg) => console.log(msg), // optional retry logging
});

• 429 responses respect the Retry-After header when present
• 5xx responses (500, 502, 503, 504) are retried with exponential backoff
• 4xx errors (except 429) are NOT retried — they throw immediately
• 401 errors trigger onTokenRefresh (if configured) instead of retry
• Backoff formula: baseDelay × 2^attempt with jitter

API Terms Compliance

This package is built on SoundCloud's official documented API (api.soundcloud.com) and follows the API Terms of Use:

• ✅ Uses registered app credentials (client ID + client secret) via OAuth 2.1 on secure.soundcloud.com
• ✅ No undocumented or internal API endpoints (api-v2)
• ✅ No client ID scraping or credential circumvention
• ✅ No content downloading, ripping, or stream capture
• ✅ No content aggregation into alternative streaming services

Important: SoundCloud's API Terms prohibit using User Content (audio, tracks, metadata) to train or develop AI/ML models. The "LLM-friendly" features of this package (llms.txt, AGENTS.md) are for helping AI coding agents use the package itself — not for feeding SoundCloud content to AI systems. Please review the full terms before building your application.

AI / LLM Integration

This package is designed to be easily used by AI coding agents:

• llms.txt — Complete method reference in plain text, optimized for LLM consumption
• AGENTS.md — Setup guide, common patterns, and gotchas for AI agents
• Full JSDoc with @example on every export — works great with GitHub Copilot, Cursor, etc.

Documentation

Full API documentation is available at twin-paws.github.io/soundcloud-api-ts — auto-generated from source with TypeDoc.

Requirements

• Node.js 20+ (uses native fetch)
• SoundCloud API credentials

Changelog

See CHANGELOG.md for release history.

Related Packages

• soundcloud-api-ts-next — React hooks + Next.js API route handlers built on this package. Use it when building Next.js apps that need SoundCloud data with secrets kept server-side.

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please see CONTRIBUTING.md for guidelines.

License

MIT © Twin Paws