API reference
Propose a Monitor from Plain English API
Turns a plain-English request into a complete, editable monitor proposal: what it watches, the identifiers it found, the platforms, the matching rules and exclusions, the frequency, the delivery and the estimated cost, with the reason for each choice. Nothing is created.
Endpoint
GET/v1/monitors/proposelive · provenfreeParameters
Query parameters
Useful optional inputs
dry_run— Read a free estimate before fetching sources or scheduling paid work.Zero credits; cache status and availability are snapshots rather than guarantees.
| Name | Required | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
text | yes | What you want to keep an eye on, in a sentence | Tell me when people complain about Monzo on Reddit or Hacker News |
template | no | Start from a template id instead of, or as well as, the sentence | complaints |
dry_run | no | Read a zero-credit estimate without fetching sources, running AI, or reserving credits. Cache status is a snapshot, not a guarantee at execution. Accepted values: 1, 0, true, false. Case, spaces, hyphens and underscores are interchangeable. | 1 |
Examples
Make the request
curl "https://www.monocrawl.com/v1/monitors/propose?text=Tell%20me%20when%20people%20complain%20about%20Monzo%20on%20Reddit%20or%20Hacker%20News" \ -H "x-api-key: mn_your_key_here"
TypeScript
const key = process.env.MONOCRAWL_API_KEY;
if (!key) throw new Error('Set MONOCRAWL_API_KEY on your server.');
const res = await fetch(
"https://www.monocrawl.com/v1/monitors/propose?text=Tell%20me%20when%20people%20complain%20about%20Monzo%20on%20Reddit%20or%20Hacker%20News",
{ headers: { "x-api-key": key } },
);
const body = await res.json();
if (!body.success) {
// one error shape for every endpoint — see /docs/errors
throw new Error(`${body.error.type}: ${body.error.message}`);
}
console.log(body.data, "credits left:", body.credits_remaining);Python
import os
import requests
res = requests.get(
"https://www.monocrawl.com/v1/monitors/propose?text=Tell%20me%20when%20people%20complain%20about%20Monzo%20on%20Reddit%20or%20Hacker%20News",
headers={"x-api-key": os.environ["MONOCRAWL_API_KEY"]},
timeout=60,
)
body = res.json()
if not body["success"]:
# one error shape for every endpoint — see /docs/errors
raise RuntimeError(f"{body['error']['type']}: {body['error']['message']}")
print(body["data"], "credits left:", body["credits_remaining"])Response
Response fields and example
This example is illustrative, not a captured live response. Variable-cost operations may settle a charge different from the list price below. A successful response puts the platform payload in data and reports the exact credits used, remaining balance, request id and cache status beside it.
{
"success": true,
"platform": "monitors",
"endpoint": "/v1/monitors/propose",
"data": {
"proposal": {},
"notes": [],
"requires_choice": false,
"choices": [],
"question": null
},
"credits_used": 0,
"credits_remaining": 99,
"request_id": "req_…",
"cached": false
}The example is illustrative and shows a documented subset of data. The fields below are optional across supported sources; nullable fields can also be absent. Preserve unknown values and accept additional fields.
Schema basis: reviewed response shaper. See schema coverage and validation limits.
Download the data JSON Schema. Validate response.data, not the whole envelope. A valid shape does not establish that every field or source record was returned.
| Field inside data | Type | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
proposal | object | null | Nested response fields; optional unless explicitly documented. |
notes | array | null | Nested response fields; optional unless explicitly documented. |
requires_choice | boolean | null | Nested response fields; optional unless explicitly documented. |
choices | array | null | Nested response fields; optional unless explicitly documented. |
question | string | null | Nested response fields; optional unless explicitly documented. |
Core response fields reviewed from the public response shaper. Fields vary by requested options; additive fields remain allowed.
Failures use the typed error envelope. A confirmed uncharged or refunded failure reports zero; a pending reconciliation can report an unknown charge. Read credits_used and error.details.billing_status, and keep request_id for recovery. Response contract · Error reference