The API documentation is available in a machine-readable JSON format. It allows for the creation of developer tools that provide code completion and related functionality. This page documents the structure of this format.
The current api_version
that these docs reflect is 3
, which was introduced with Factorio 1.1.62
. See Changelog.
Some general notes that apply to the format in general:
null
, it is omitted from the JSON instead.""
) instead of null
if they could exist on any given member, but just happen to be empty (ex. an empty attribute description).null
(and thus omitted) if they don't exist at all (ex. the variant_parameter_description
for a method without variant parameters).order
property of its members.https://
), a relative link (linking to another API page relative to the current one), or an internal link (referring to any member of the API).The format has some top level members indicating the context of the format. These are:
application
:: string: The application this documentation is for. Will always be "factorio"
.stage
:: string: Indicates the stage this documentation is for. Will always be "runtime"
(as opposed to "data"
; see the data lifecycle for more detail).application_version
:: string: The version of the game that this documentation is for. An example would be "1.1.30"
.api_version
:: number: The version of the machine-readable format itself. It is incremented every time the format changes. The version this documentation reflects is stated at the top.Then, there are several top level members that contain the API documentation itself, organized by their various types. These are:
classes
:: array[Class]: The list of classes (LuaObjects) the API provides. Equivalent to the classes page.events
:: array[Event]: The list of events that the API provides. Equivalent to the events page.defines
:: array[Define]: The list of defines that the game uses. Equivalent to the defines page.builtin_types
:: array[BuiltinType]: The list of types that are built into Lua itself. Equivalent to the built-in types page.concepts
:: array[Concept]: The list of concepts of various types that the API uses. Equivalent to the concepts page.global_objects
:: array[GlobalObject]: The list of objects that the game provides as global variables to serve as entry points to the API.global_functions
:: array[Method]: The list of functions that the game provides as global variables to provide some specific functionality.name
:: string: The name of the class.order
:: number: The order of the class as shown in the html.description
:: string: The text description of the class.notes
:: array[string] (optional): A list of strings containing additional information about the class.examples
:: array[string] (optional): A list of strings containing example code and explanations.methods
:: array[Method]: The methods that are part of the class.attributes
:: array[Attribute]: The attributes that are part of the class.operators
:: array[Operator
]: A list of operators on the class. They are called call
, index
, or length
and have the format of either a Method or an Attribute.abstract
:: boolean: Whether the class is never itself instantiated, only inherited from.base_classes
:: array[string] (optional): A list of the names of the classes that his class inherits from.name
:: string: The name of the event.order
:: number: The order of the event as shown in the html.description
:: string: The text description of the event.notes
:: array[string] (optional): A list of strings containing additional information about the event.examples
:: array[string] (optional): A list of strings containing example code and explanations.data
:: array[Parameter]: The event-specific information that is provided.Defines can be recursive in nature, meaning one Define can have multiple sub-Defines that have the same structure. These are singled out as subkeys
instead of values
.
name
:: string: The name of the define.order
:: number: The order of the define as shown in the html.description
:: string: The text description of the define.values
:: array[BasicMember] (optional): The members of the define.subkeys
:: array[Define] (optional): A list of sub-defines.name
:: string: The name of the builtin type.order
:: number: The order of the builtin type as shown in the html.description
:: string: The text description of the builtin type.name
:: string: The name of the concept.order
:: number: The order of the concept as shown in the html.description
:: string: The text description of the concept.notes
:: array[string] (optional): A list of strings containing additional information about the concept.examples
:: array[string] (optional): A list of strings containing example code and explanations.type
:: Type: The type of the concept.name
:: string: The global variable name of the object.order
:: number: The order of the global object as shown in the html.description
:: string: The text description of the global object.type
:: string: The class name of the global object.Several data structures are used in different parts of the format, which is why they are documented separately to avoid repetition.
name
:: string: The name of the member.order
:: number: The order of the member as shown in the html.description
:: string: The text description of the member.name
:: string: The name of the event being raised.order
:: number: The order of the member as shown in the html.description
:: string: The text description of the raised event.timeframe
:: string: The timeframe during which the event is raised. One of "instantly", "current_tick", or "future_tick".optional
:: boolean: Whether the event is always raised, or only dependant on a certain condition.A type is either a string, in which case that string is the simple type. Otherwise, a type is a table:
complex_type
:: string: A string denoting the kind of complex type.Depending on complex_type
, there are additional members:
type
:
union
:
array
:value
:: Type: The type of the elements of the array.dictionary
or LuaCustomTable
:
function
:parameters
:: array[Type]: The types of the function arguments.literal
:
LuaLazyLoadedValue
:value
:: Type: The type of the LuaLazyLoadedValue.struct
:attributes
:: array[Attribute]: A list of attributes with the same properties as class attributes.table
or tuple
:parameters
:: array[Parameter]: The parameters present in the table.variant_parameter_groups
:: array[ParameterGroup] (optional): The optional parameters that depend on one of the main parameters.variant_parameter_description
:: string (optional): The text description of the optional parameter groups.name
:: string: The name of the parameter.order
:: number: The order of the parameter as shown in the html.description
:: string: The text description of the parameter.type
:: Type: The type of the parameter.optional
:: boolean: Whether the type is optional or not.name
:: string: The name of the parameter group.order
:: number: The order of the parameter group as shown in the html.description
:: string: The text description of the parameter group.parameters
:: array[Parameter]: The parameters that the group adds.name
:: string: The name of the method.order
:: number: The order of the method as shown in the html.description
:: string: The text description of the method.notes
:: array[string] (optional): A list of strings containing additional information about the method.examples
:: array[string] (optional): A list of strings containing example code and explanations.raises
:: array[EventRaised] (optional): A list of events that this method might raise when called.subclasses
:: array[string] (optional): A list of strings specifying the sub-type (of the class) that the method applies to.parameters
:: array[Parameter]: The parameters of the method. How to interpret them depends on the takes_table
member.variant_parameter_groups
:: array[ParameterGroup] (optional): The optional parameters that depend on one of the main parameters. Only applies if takes_table
is true
.variant_parameter_description
:: string (optional): The text description of the optional parameter groups.variadic_type
:: Type (optional): The type of the variadic arguments of the method, if it accepts any.variadic_description
:: string (optional): The description of the variadic arguments of the method, if it accepts any.takes_table
:: boolean: Whether the method takes a single table with named parameters or a sequence of unnamed parameters.table_is_optional
:: boolean (optional): If takes_table
is true
, whether that whole table is optional or not.return_values
:: array[Parameter]: The return values of this method, which can contain zero, one, or multiple values. Note that these have the same structure as parameters, but do not specify a name.name
:: string: The name of the attribute.order
:: number: The order of the attribute as shown in the html.description
:: string: The text description of the attribute.notes
:: array[string] (optional): A list of strings containing additional information about the attribute.examples
:: array[string] (optional): A list of strings containing example code and explanations.raises
:: array[EventRaised] (optional): A list of events that this attribute might raise when written to.subclasses
:: array[string] (optional): A list of strings specifying the sub-type (of the class) that the attribute applies to.type
:: Type: The type of the attribute.optional
:: boolean: Whether the attribute is optional or not.read
:: boolean: Whether the attribute can be read from.write
:: boolean: Whether the attribute can be written to.string
A string, which can be an identifier for something, or a description-like text formatted in Markdown.
number
A number, which could either be an integer or a floating point number, as JSON doesn't distinguish between those two.
boolean
A boolean value, which is either true
or false
.
Changes for version 3, introduced with Factorio 1.1.62:
abstract
field to classesoptional
field to attributestype
, literal
, tuple
and struct
typesglobal_functions
top level membervariant
type to union
category
field on concepts with the type
fieldChanges for version 2, introduced with Factorio 1.1.54:
raises
field to methods and attributesreturn_type
and return_description
fields on methods with the return_values
-arraysee_also
field from classes, events, concepts, methods and attributesChanges for version 1, introduced with Factorio 1.1.35: