List Catalog Categories

GET /public/catalog/categories — Returns the full catalog category hierarchy grouped by industry, including sub-categories and image URLs where available.

Retrieves the complete category tree from the Portal.io catalog. The response is an array of top-level industry objects, each containing a nested categories array with their child categories and optional image URLs. Sub-categories may themselves contain additional subCategories arrays. Use the id values from this response as CategoryId or ParentCategoryId filters when searching catalog items.

The Catalog endpoints require separate authorization. Contact your Portal.io representative to confirm your account has catalog API access enabled.

Request

GET /public/catalog/categories

Headers

Accept · string · required

Must be application/json.

X-MSS-API-APPID · string · required

Your API Application Key.

X-MSS-API-USERKEY · string · required

Your User API Key.

X-MSS-CUSTOM-DATE · string · required

Current UTC timestamp in RFC 7231 format (e.g. Mon, 06 Apr 2026 00:22:19 GMT).

X-MSS-SIGNATURE · string · required

HMAC-SHA256 signature of the canonical request, Base64-encoded.

Response

200 Success

Returns an array of industry-level category objects.

id · integer · required

Unique numeric identifier of the industry (top-level category group).

name · string · required

Display name of the industry group (e.g. Audio, Video, Networking).

categories · array

Child categories belonging to this industry.

Show Category object

id · integer

Unique numeric identifier of the category. Use as CategoryId when searching items.

name · string

Display name of the category (e.g. AV Receivers, Amplifiers).

imageUrl · string

URL of the category image. May be null if no image is configured.

subCategories · array

Nested sub-categories, following the same object shape. May be empty.

Error Codes

Code	Meaning
401	Not authorized. Your HMAC signature was incorrect or credentials are invalid.
402	An active Portal.io subscription is required to use this endpoint.
403	Your user account does not have permission for this API call.
500	Internal server error.

Example

curl

curl -i -X GET \
  'https://api.portal.io/public/catalog/categories' \
  -H 'Accept: application/json' \
  -H 'X-MSS-API-APPID: YOUR_APP_ID' \
  -H 'X-MSS-API-USERKEY: YOUR_USER_KEY' \
  -H 'X-MSS-CUSTOM-DATE: Mon, 06 Apr 2026 00:22:19 GMT' \
  -H 'X-MSS-SIGNATURE: BASE64_SIGNATURE'

200

[
  {
    "id": 12,
    "name": "Audio",
    "categories": [
      {
        "id": 47,
        "name": "AV Receivers",
        "imageUrl": "https://images.portal.io/categories/47.jpg",
        "subCategories": []
      },
      {
        "id": 48,
        "name": "Amplifiers",
        "imageUrl": null,
        "subCategories": []
      }
    ]
  },
  {
    "id": 13,
    "name": "Video",
    "categories": [
      {
        "id": 60,
        "name": "Displays",
        "imageUrl": "https://images.portal.io/categories/60.jpg",
        "subCategories": [
          {
            "id": 61,
            "name": "4K Displays",
            "imageUrl": null,
            "subCategories": []
          }
        ]
      }
    ]
  }
]