Altair GraphQL Client

Active

Founded: 2017
Developer: Samuel Costa (XKojiMedia)
Pricing: Free (open-source)
Open source: Yes
Platforms: macOS, Windows, Linux, Chrome, Firefox, Web

Indexes

API Testing

Overview

Altair GraphQL Client is a GraphQL client IDE that allows users to interact with GraphQL servers by sending queries, mutations, and subscriptions. It supports testing and debugging GraphQL implementations without access to server code, targeting developers working with GraphQL APIs across multiple platforms.³⁷

Key Features

Query Editing - Edit GraphQL queries with pretty printing, linting, and autocomplete functionality.
Schema Documentation - Displays schema docs offline after retrieval, aiding query construction.
Headers Management - Set custom headers for requests to handle authentication and other metadata.
Subscriptions Support - Handles real-time GraphQL subscriptions for live data updates.
Query Storage - Saves queries and data locally to resume work.
Multiple Themes - Supports various themes and languages for user customization.
Formatting - Formats queries for better readability.

Pricing

Plan	Price	Includes
Free	$0	Full access to all features as open-source software.

Platforms & Requirements

Available as native desktop apps for macOS, Windows, and Linux via installers like winget; browser extensions for Chrome and Firefox; and embeddable web version. No specific minimum requirements listed; runs in modern browsers and desktop environments. Limitations may include browser-specific constraints for extensions.¹⁵⁶

Integrations & Ecosystem

GraphQL servers (queries, mutations, subscriptions)
ASP.NET Core via GraphQL.Server.Ui.Altair package
Custom headers for authentication
Schema introspection
Local storage for queries

Alternatives

App	Difference
GraphiQL	Official reference IDE, simpler but lacks some advanced features like subscriptions in basic setup.
GraphQL Playground	Feature-rich with playground-style interface, supports subscriptions but discontinued in favor of newer tools.
Postman	General API client with GraphQL support, more focused on REST but broader testing capabilities.
Insomnia	API design and testing tool with GraphQL, emphasizes collaboration and environments.

Reputation

Altair is regarded as a reliable, feature-rich GraphQL client praised for its cross-platform availability and tools like autocomplete and schema docs. Users value its offline capabilities and ease for quick testing. Some note it as a preferred alternative to GraphQL Playground due to active maintenance.¹³

Sources (7)