# Using the Content Management API to Read the Taxonomy Information

### About this export

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| **content_type** | lesson |
| **platform** | contentstack-academy |
| **source_url** | https://www.contentstack.com/academy/courses/taxonomy-foundations/using-the-content-management-api-to-read-the-taxonomy-information |
| **course_slug** | taxonomy-foundations |
| **lesson_slug** | using-the-content-management-api-to-read-the-taxonomy-information |
| **markdown_file_url** | /academy/md/courses/taxonomy-foundations/using-the-content-management-api-to-read-the-taxonomy-information.md |
| **generated_at** | 2026-04-28T06:55:49.340Z |

> Part of **[Taxonomy Foundations](https://www.contentstack.com/academy/courses/taxonomy-foundations)** on Contentstack Academy. **Academy MD v3** — structured for retrieval; no quiz or assessment keys.

<!-- ai_metadata: {"lesson_id":"19","type":"video","duration_seconds":227,"video_url":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/previews/6BL8hWDK","thumbnail_url":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/6BL8hWDK/poster.jpg?width=720","topics":["Using","the","Content","Management","API","Read"]} -->

#### Video details

#### At a glance

- **Title:** Taxonomy-postman-cma-read2
- **Duration:** 3m 47s
- **Media link:** https://cdn.jwplayer.com/previews/6BL8hWDK
- **Publish date (unix):** 1716059980

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#### Timed text tracks (delivery)

- **thumbnails:** `https://cdn.jwplayer.com/strips/6BL8hWDK-120.vtt`

#### Transcript

Hi, in this video, we're going to take a look at using the content management API to select items from the taxonomy. Let's get started. First, navigate to the content management API documentation page and make sure that you have Postman downloaded or you can run it directly in Postman. Second, I usually like to look at the API documentation when I'm using the APIs. Taxonomy is down here on the right side, and you can see it located right here. Get all taxonomies is going to be the first command we're going to execute, and you can see we have a small description, and then on the right side, we have an example of the get request. You can always run them in the browser, but I honestly prefer to run them in Postman. In Postman, we need to set up a few variables. First of all, if you have the Postman collection and you downloaded it six months ago, you might need to update it first before the taxonomy is shown here. Once you update your Postman collection, you should see taxonomy here, and we're going to use the command get all taxonomies. Now, before we run this command, we need to make sure that we have a content management API token set up, and that's one of the headers that's passed over. We have a few settings that we need to set up first. First is the API key, and second is authorization, which is the management token. I've already set this variable up in my settings. If that doesn't return a value for you like it does here for me, then you need to go ahead and create that in context stack. Just for your information, if you want to do that, you need to go over to settings, here in tokens, and then inside tokens, go to management tokens, and create a new management token. By default, your training instance has only one token, but it does not have a management token for you to do this operation. Also, by the way, when you create your management token, the password's a one-time password. You need to copy that password out or the token out when you create the token itself. I've done that previously, and that's what I've used in Postman. Once that's all set up, you can go ahead and start using Postman to interact with the taxonomy. Let's go ahead and take a look at it here. Now, let's go into taxonomy, get all taxonomies, and you can see it's a really simple call. It's just a base URL, b3 in taxonomies, and click send. Here, you can see a list of the taxonomies that I have in my context stack training instance. Now, what if I wanted to get a single taxonomy, maybe the superhero origin taxonomy? I can go ahead and select that, copy that with my UID, go over here to get a single taxonomy, and it's asking me for my taxonomy UID. Either I can update the variable over here in Postman, or I can paste the text right in here. In this case, I'm just going to paste my text in. There we go. We've got my superhero taxonomy there, and hit send. Now, you can see I've returned my superhero origin taxonomy. Now, what if I wanted to get all the terms of this taxonomy? Then, I can go over here and say get all terms of a taxonomy, and you guessed it. We're going to replace this variable right here with the taxonomy name we want to return. There's all the origins that we have. We have the yellow sun, and down here, we have a science experiment. That's an example of how you can use Postman with the taxonomy API and the content management API to work with and get read-only terms of the taxonomy that you can use in your applications. This taxonomy, this API, is intended to be used in the backend. If you wanted to get taxonomies for the frontend of your website, that would be part of the content delivery API.

#### Subtitles (WebVTT)

```webvtt
WEBVTT

1
00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:07.000
Hi, in this video, we're going to take a look at using the content management API to select items from the taxonomy. Let's get started.

2
00:00:07.000 --> 00:00:16.000
First, navigate to the content management API documentation page and make sure that you have Postman downloaded or you can run it directly in Postman.

3
00:00:16.000 --> 00:00:21.000
Second, I usually like to look at the API documentation when I'm using the APIs.

4
00:00:21.000 --> 00:00:30.000
Taxonomy is down here on the right side, and you can see it located right here.

5
00:00:30.000 --> 00:00:39.000
Get all taxonomies is going to be the first command we're going to execute, and you can see we have a small description, and then on the right side, we have an example of the get request.

6
00:00:39.000 --> 00:00:44.000
You can always run them in the browser, but I honestly prefer to run them in Postman.

7
00:00:44.000 --> 00:00:48.000
In Postman, we need to set up a few variables.

8
00:00:48.000 --> 00:00:57.000
First of all, if you have the Postman collection and you downloaded it six months ago, you might need to update it first before the taxonomy is shown here.

9
00:00:57.000 --> 00:01:04.000
Once you update your Postman collection, you should see taxonomy here, and we're going to use the command get all taxonomies.

10
00:01:04.000 --> 00:01:12.000
Now, before we run this command, we need to make sure that we have a content management API token set up, and that's one of the headers that's passed over.

11
00:01:12.000 --> 00:01:15.000
We have a few settings that we need to set up first.

12
00:01:15.000 --> 00:01:20.000
First is the API key, and second is authorization, which is the management token.

13
00:01:20.000 --> 00:01:23.000
I've already set this variable up in my settings.

14
00:01:23.000 --> 00:01:31.000
If that doesn't return a value for you like it does here for me, then you need to go ahead and create that in context stack.

15
00:01:32.000 --> 00:01:42.000
Just for your information, if you want to do that, you need to go over to settings, here in tokens, and then inside tokens, go to management tokens, and create a new management token.

16
00:01:42.000 --> 00:01:49.000
By default, your training instance has only one token, but it does not have a management token for you to do this operation.

17
00:01:49.000 --> 00:01:54.000
Also, by the way, when you create your management token, the password's a one-time password.

18
00:01:54.000 --> 00:01:59.000
You need to copy that password out or the token out when you create the token itself.

19
00:01:59.000 --> 00:02:02.000
I've done that previously, and that's what I've used in Postman.

20
00:02:02.000 --> 00:02:08.000
Once that's all set up, you can go ahead and start using Postman to interact with the taxonomy.

21
00:02:08.000 --> 00:02:11.000
Let's go ahead and take a look at it here.

22
00:02:11.000 --> 00:02:17.000
Now, let's go into taxonomy, get all taxonomies, and you can see it's a really simple call.

23
00:02:17.000 --> 00:02:20.000
It's just a base URL, b3 in taxonomies, and click send.

24
00:02:20.000 --> 00:02:26.000
Here, you can see a list of the taxonomies that I have in my context stack training instance.

25
00:02:27.000 --> 00:02:32.000
Now, what if I wanted to get a single taxonomy, maybe the superhero origin taxonomy?

26
00:02:32.000 --> 00:02:41.000
I can go ahead and select that, copy that with my UID, go over here to get a single taxonomy, and it's asking me for my taxonomy UID.

27
00:02:41.000 --> 00:02:47.000
Either I can update the variable over here in Postman, or I can paste the text right in here.

28
00:02:47.000 --> 00:02:49.000
In this case, I'm just going to paste my text in.

29
00:02:50.000 --> 00:02:56.000
There we go. We've got my superhero taxonomy there, and hit send.

30
00:02:56.000 --> 00:03:00.000
Now, you can see I've returned my superhero origin taxonomy.

31
00:03:00.000 --> 00:03:04.000
Now, what if I wanted to get all the terms of this taxonomy?

32
00:03:04.000 --> 00:03:08.000
Then, I can go over here and say get all terms of a taxonomy, and you guessed it.

33
00:03:08.000 --> 00:03:14.000
We're going to replace this variable right here with the taxonomy name we want to return.

34
00:03:15.000 --> 00:03:17.000
There's all the origins that we have.

35
00:03:17.000 --> 00:03:21.000
We have the yellow sun, and down here, we have a science experiment.

36
00:03:21.000 --> 00:03:34.000
That's an example of how you can use Postman with the taxonomy API and the content management API to work with and get read-only terms of the taxonomy that you can use in your applications.

37
00:03:34.000 --> 00:03:38.000
This taxonomy, this API, is intended to be used in the backend.

38
00:03:38.000 --> 00:03:43.000
If you wanted to get taxonomies for the frontend of your website, that would be part of the content delivery API.

```

```transcript
<!-- PLACEHOLDER: replace with real transcript before publish if cues were auto-derived from WebVTT -->
[00:00] Hi, in this video, we're going to take a look at using the content management API to select items from the taxonomy. Let's get started.
[00:07] First, navigate to the content management API documentation page and make sure that you have Postman downloaded or you can run it directly in Postman.
[00:16] Second, I usually like to look at the API documentation when I'm using the APIs.
[00:21] Taxonomy is down here on the right side, and you can see it located right here.
[00:30] Get all taxonomies is going to be the first command we're going to execute, and you can see we have a small description, and then on the right side, we have an example of the get request.
[00:39] You can always run them in the browser, but I honestly prefer to run them in Postman.
[00:44] In Postman, we need to set up a few variables.
[00:48] First of all, if you have the Postman collection and you downloaded it six months ago, you might need to update it first before the taxonomy is shown here.
[00:57] Once you update your Postman collection, you should see taxonomy here, and we're going to use the command get all taxonomies.
[01:04] Now, before we run this command, we need to make sure that we have a content management API token set up, and that's one of the headers that's passed over.
[01:12] We have a few settings that we need to set up first.
[01:15] First is the API key, and second is authorization, which is the management token.
[01:20] I've already set this variable up in my settings.
[01:23] If that doesn't return a value for you like it does here for me, then you need to go ahead and create that in context stack.
[01:32] Just for your information, if you want to do that, you need to go over to settings, here in tokens, and then inside tokens, go to management tokens, and create a new management token.
[01:42] By default, your training instance has only one token, but it does not have a management token for you to do this operation.
[01:49] Also, by the way, when you create your management token, the password's a one-time password.
[01:54] You need to copy that password out or the token out when you create the token itself.
[01:59] I've done that previously, and that's what I've used in Postman.
[02:02] Once that's all set up, you can go ahead and start using Postman to interact with the taxonomy.
[02:08] Let's go ahead and take a look at it here.
[02:11] Now, let's go into taxonomy, get all taxonomies, and you can see it's a really simple call.
[02:17] It's just a base URL, b3 in taxonomies, and click send.
[02:20] Here, you can see a list of the taxonomies that I have in my context stack training instance.
[02:27] Now, what if I wanted to get a single taxonomy, maybe the superhero origin taxonomy?
[02:32] I can go ahead and select that, copy that with my UID, go over here to get a single taxonomy, and it's asking me for my taxonomy UID.
[02:41] Either I can update the variable over here in Postman, or I can paste the text right in here.
[02:47] In this case, I'm just going to paste my text in.
[02:50] There we go. We've got my superhero taxonomy there, and hit send.
[02:56] Now, you can see I've returned my superhero origin taxonomy.
[03:00] Now, what if I wanted to get all the terms of this taxonomy?
[03:04] Then, I can go over here and say get all terms of a taxonomy, and you guessed it.
[03:08] We're going to replace this variable right here with the taxonomy name we want to return.
[03:15] There's all the origins that we have.
[03:17] We have the yellow sun, and down here, we have a science experiment.
[03:21] That's an example of how you can use Postman with the taxonomy API and the content management API to work with and get read-only terms of the taxonomy that you can use in your applications.
[03:34] This taxonomy, this API, is intended to be used in the backend.
[03:38] If you wanted to get taxonomies for the frontend of your website, that would be part of the content delivery API.
```

#### Key takeaways

- Connect **Using the Content Management API to Read the Taxonomy Information** back to your stack configuration before moving to the next module.
- Capture one concrete artifact (screenshot, Postman call, or code snippet) that proves the step works in your environment.
- Re-read the delivery versus management boundary for anything you changed in the entry model.

## Supplement for indexing

### Content summary

Using the Content Management API to Read the Taxonomy Information. Using the Content Management API to Read the Taxonomy Information in Taxonomy Foundations (taxonomy-foundations).

### Retrieval tags

- Using
- the
- Content
- Management
- API
- Read
- taxonomy-foundations
- lesson 19
- Using the Content Management API to Read the Taxonomy Information
- taxonomy-foundations lesson

### Indexing notes

Index this lesson as a primary chunk tagged with lesson_id "19" and topics: [Using, the, Content, Management, API, Read].
Parent course slug: taxonomy-foundations. Use asset_references URLs as thumbnail hints in search results when present.
Never surface LMS quiz content or assessment answers from this file.

### Asset references

| Label | URL |
| --- | --- |
| Video thumbnail: Using the Content Management API to Read the Taxonomy Information | `https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/6BL8hWDK/poster.jpg?width=720` |

### External links

| Label | URL |
| --- | --- |
| Contentstack Academy home | `https://www.contentstack.com/academy/` |
| Training instance setup | `https://www.contentstack.com/academy/training-instance` |
| Academy playground (GitHub) | `https://github.com/contentstack/contentstack-academy-playground` |
| Contentstack documentation | `https://www.contentstack.com/docs/` |
