> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.comfy.org/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Workflow API Format

> Understanding the API format for ComfyUI workflows and how to export them

ComfyUI workflows are JSON objects that describe a graph of nodes. When calling ComfyUI programmatically — whether through the Cloud API or running your own server — the workflow must be submitted in **API format**, a specialized JSON structure that differs from the regular save format used in the browser.

This page explains the differences and how to export your workflows correctly.

***

## Save Format vs API Format

The ComfyUI frontend can save workflows in two formats:

| | Save Format | API Format |
| - | - | - |
| **File menu** | `File → Save` or `Ctrl+S` | `File → Export Workflow (API)` |
| **File extension** | `.json` | `.json` |
| **Node keys** | Node titles or labels | Numeric node IDs |
| **Widget values** | Included | Included |
| **Position/layout data** | Included (x, y, width) | **Excluded** |
| **Colors/groups** | Included | **Excluded** |
| **Usage** | Re-opening in the frontend | API submission |
| **Can be loaded in UI** | Yes | Yes, but without layout |

The key difference: **API format omits UI metadata** (positions, colors, groups, node sizes) that is only needed for visual editing in the frontend. This keeps the JSON smaller and cleaner for programmatic use.

***

## How to Export

Open your workflow in the ComfyUI frontend, then navigate to `File → Export Workflow (API)`:

<Frame caption="Export a workflow in API format from the ComfyUI frontend">
  <img src="https://mintcdn.com/dripart/ozpqEvCuCvE4rrKe/images/development/export_workflow_api_format.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=ozpqEvCuCvE4rrKe&q=85&s=8a8d872f29df9d6a39326899c06714ed" alt="Saving a workflow in API format" width="1062" height="988" data-path="images/development/export_workflow_api_format.png" />
</Frame>

This will download a `.json` file containing only the API-relevant data:

```json theme={null}
{
  "3": {
    "inputs": {
      "seed": 156680208700286,
      "steps": 20,
      "cfg": 8,
      "sampler_name": "euler",
      "scheduler": "normal",
      "denoise": 1,
      "model": [
        "4",
        0
      ],
      "positive": [
        "6",
        0
      ],
      "negative": [
        "7",
        0
      ],
      "latent_image": [
        "5",
        0
      ]
    },
    "class_type": "KSampler",
    "_meta": {
      "title": "KSampler"
    }
  },
  "4": {
    "inputs": {
      "ckpt_name": "v1-5-pruned-emaonly-fp16.safetensors"
    },
    "class_type": "CheckpointLoaderSimple",
    "_meta": {
      "title": "Load Checkpoint"
    }
  },
  "5": {
    "inputs": {
      "width": 512,
      "height": 512,
      "batch_size": 1
    },
    "class_type": "EmptyLatentImage",
    "_meta": {
      "title": "Empty Latent Image"
    }
  },
  "6": {
    "inputs": {
      "text": "beautiful scenery nature glass bottle landscape, , purple galaxy bottle,",
      "clip": [
        "4",
        1
      ]
    },
    "class_type": "CLIPTextEncode",
    "_meta": {
      "title": "CLIP Text Encode (Prompt)"
    }
  },
  "7": {
    "inputs": {
      "text": "text, watermark",
      "clip": [
        "4",
        1
      ]
    },
    "class_type": "CLIPTextEncode",
    "_meta": {
      "title": "CLIP Text Encode (Prompt)"
    }
  },
  "8": {
    "inputs": {
      "samples": [
        "3",
        0
      ],
      "vae": [
        "4",
        2
      ]
    },
    "class_type": "VAEDecode",
    "_meta": {
      "title": "VAE Decode"
    }
  },
  "9": {
    "inputs": {
      "filename_prefix": "ComfyUI",
      "images": [
        "8",
        0
      ]
    },
    "class_type": "SaveImage",
    "_meta": {
      "title": "Save Image"
    }
  }
}
```

***

## Converting Between Formats

If you have a save-format workflow and need it in API format, the simplest method is:

1. Open the `.json` file using `File → Load` in the frontend
2. Export it via `File → Export Workflow (API)`

***

## Related Pages

* [Running Workflows](/development/run-workflows/overview): compare the API and deployment options
* [Cloud API Overview](/development/cloud/overview): submit API-format workflows to Comfy Cloud
* [API Examples](/development/comfyui-server/api-examples): see API-format workflows in action
* [Getting an API Key](/development/api-development/getting-an-api-key): required for Cloud API and Partner Nodes


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