Basecamp API
Basecamp 4 has a mature public REST API, JSON-only and documented on GitHub, with OAuth 2.0 as the only auth path. Roughly 50 endpoint families cover projects, to-dos, messages, chat, schedules, and files. Rate limiting is 50 requests per 10 seconds per token, and SDKs are community-built.
Frequently asked questions
Basecamp scores A on the API Report Card. Basecamp 4 has a mature public REST API, JSON-only and documented on GitHub, with OAuth 2.0 as the only auth path. Roughly 50 endpoint families cover projects, to-dos, messages, chat, schedules, and files. Rate limiting is 50 requests per 10 seconds per token, and SDKs are community-built.
Basecamp has a workable official integration path. Most engineering teams can build against it directly. Open API: self-serve, documented, with SDKs
Basecamp is the flagship project management and team collaboration product from 37signals, the Chicago-based bootstrapped software company founded in 1999 by Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson (creator of Ruby on Rails, which was extracted from Basecamp's codebase).
Vertical: misc (horizontal team collaboration; cuts across every Supergood vertical with no specific industry tilt). Sub-vertical: Project Management & Team Collaboration. Project-centric workspaces grouping to-dos, messages, files, schedules, and docs into a single 'project' container.
Medium-high, 6/10.
Owner: 37signals (privately held, no outside investors); HQ Chicago, IL. Founders: Jason Fried (CEO), David Heinemeier Hansson (CTO; creator of Ruby on Rails). Founded: 37signals 1999; Basecamp product 2004; current version Basecamp 4 (2019).
Founded in 1999 as 37signals (originally a web design consultancy); Basecamp launched in 2004 as the first product. The company famously rebranded entirely to 'Basecamp' from 2014–2022 before reverting to '37signals' as the parent brand.
Grades measure one thing: can a customer's engineering team get their own data out programmatically? We check six things (whether a real API exists, how access is gated, data coverage, auth quality, docs and developer experience, and stability) and roll them into a letter grade. Grades get re-verified, and they only move on evidence.