Laravel API Doc

A highly configurable, beautiful, and interactive API documentation generator for Laravel.

Laravel API Doc is an elegant, zero-configuration API documentation package designed to give your Laravel projects a beautiful, interactive dashboard out of the box.

Inspired by Laravel's clean DX and the capabilities of packages like Scramble and Scribe, it automatically parses your routes, form requests, models, and JSON resources to generate a live, testable API portal exactly when you need it—without requiring you to write endless generic PHPDoc blocks.

✨ Features

• Zero Config Required: Just install and visit /docs/api!
• Beautiful UI: A premium, fully responsive 3-column layout built with Livewire and Tailwind CSS.
• AST Parsing Engine: Accurately extracts complex validation rules even when your FormRequest relies on unresolved route models or unauthenticated users.
• Smart Model Introspection: Seamlessly infers parameter types via Eloquent Model casts and database schema.
• Automatic JSON Resources: Safely extracts JsonResource and ResourceCollection schemas, including automatic Laravel Pagination wrapping (detects .paginate() and adds links and meta schemas).
• Interactive "Try It Out" Panel: Test any endpoint securely from your browser.
• Advanced Route Filtering: Exclude routes via URL patterns, route names, middleware, or directly via PHP Attributes.
• Code Snippets: Real-time multi-language snippets (cURL, JavaScript, PHP, Python) for your endpoints.
• OpenAPI Export: Export your exact API schema compliant with the OpenAPI 3.1.0 specification.
• Custom Markdown Pages: Render extra .md documentation files directly in the frontend sidebar.

📦 Installation

Requires PHP 8.3+ and Laravel 11+.

You can install the package via Composer:

composer require php-nl/laravel-api-doc

Next, publish the configuration file and assets using:

php artisan vendor:publish --tag="laravel-api-doc-config"
php artisan vendor:publish --tag="laravel-api-doc-assets"

🚀 Usage

Once installed, simply navigate to the predefined documentation route in your browser:

http://your-app.test/docs/api

Defining Endpoints

The package leverages Laravel's native routing metadata. Standard PHPDoc blocks, FormRequest validations, and parameter Model bindings are automatically extracted to document your API.

If your controller method returns a JsonResource or invokes a FormRequest, the package uses AST Parsing and Reflection to read the structure of your application without actually executing destructive code.

Customizing Endpoints via Attributes

Sometimes, you want to explicitly document query parameters or body payloads that aren't tied to a FormRequest, or you want to group your routes logically. Laravel API Doc provides custom PHP attributes for the ultimate developer experience (DX).

Grouping & Naming

Organize your routes in the sidebar using the #[ApiDoc] attribute:

use PhpNl\LaravelApiDoc\Attributes\ApiDoc;

#[ApiDoc(group: 'Product Management', name: 'Update Product', description: 'Modify an existing product.')]
public function update(Request $request, Product $product)
{
    // ...
}

Manual Parameters

If you pull data directly from the Request (e.g., request('status')) instead of using a FormRequest, you can document it seamlessly using parameter attributes:

use PhpNl\LaravelApiDoc\Attributes\QueryParam;
use PhpNl\LaravelApiDoc\Attributes\BodyParam;

#[QueryParam('sort', type: 'string', description: 'Field to sort by', enumValues: ['asc', 'desc'])]
#[BodyParam('notify_user', type: 'boolean', required: false, description: 'Send an email notification')]
public function index()
{
    // ...
}

Unauthenticated Routes

By default, the UI assumes your endpoints are secure (requiring Bearer tokens if auth middleware is detected). To mark a route as public (like login or register), use the #[Unauthenticated] attribute:

use PhpNl\LaravelApiDoc\Attributes\Unauthenticated;

#[Unauthenticated]
public function login(Request $request)
{
    // ...
}

🚫 Excluding Routes

You might not want your internal or horizon routes showing up in the documentation. Laravel API Doc provides 4 elegant ways to filter out routes.

1. Via Configuration Patterns (URL, Name, Middleware)

Open your config/laravel-api-doc.php and define exclusion rules:

'routes' => [
    'include' => ['api/*'],
    
    // Exclude by URL wildcards
    'exclude' => [
        'api/internal/*',
        'api/webhooks/*',
    ],
    
    // Exclude by Route Name
    'exclude_names' => [
        'admin.*',
        'horizon.*',
    ],
    
    // Exclude by assigned Middleware
    'exclude_middleware' => [
        'auth:admin',
    ],
],

2. Via PHP Attributes

For the ultimate localized DX, you can ignore a specific Controller or Method directly in the code:

use PhpNl\LaravelApiDoc\Attributes\ExcludeFromDocs;

#[ExcludeFromDocs]
class SecretController extends Controller
{
    // ...
}

⚙️ Configuration

You can fully customize the behavior and look of your documentation by modifying config/laravel-api-doc.php.

return [
    'ui' => [
        'title' => 'My API Documentation',
        'theme' => [
            'primary_color' => '#3b82f6', // Customize your brand color!
            'background_color' => '#f8fafc',
            'sidebar_width' => '300px',
        ],
        'docs_path' => resource_path('docs/api'), // Where your custom .md files live
    ],
    // ...
];

Global Authentication

Use the Security & Authentication panel (found on the dashboard's welcome screen) to securely define your tokens locally. These tokens are placed in your browser's local storage and injected directly into the "Try It Out" playground.

Custom Markdown Pages

You can write standard .md Markdown files (e.g., Getting-Started.md, Authentication.md) and place them in the resources/docs/api directory (configurable via docs_path). They will be parsed dynamically and explicitly shown in your API sidebar navigation.

🛠 Artisan Commands

For production environments or advanced CI/CD pipelines, Laravel API Doc provides several helpful commands:

Caching Documentation

Parsing ASTs and reflecting over hundreds of controllers can be heavy. In production, you should cache the schema:

php artisan api-doc:cache

To clear the cache:

php artisan api-doc:clear

JSON Response Generation

Want to show real JSON responses instead of just schema types? Run the response generator command. It will execute safe GET endpoints locally to capture live representations of your API returns.

php artisan api-doc:generate-responses

OpenAPI Export

Export your documentation to an OpenAPI 3.1.0 compatible openapi.json file. You can view your schema live at /docs/api/openapi.json or generate it via CLI:

php artisan api-doc:openapi > openapi.json

🤝 Contributing

Please see CONTRIBUTING for details.

📄 License

The MIT License (MIT). Please see License File for more information.