---
search:
  tags:
    - File Uploads
    - POST
seo:
  description: >-
    Creates an upload job and returns signed credentials so you can POST a local
    file… Reference for the POST /uploads/prepare endpoint in the Ordinal API.
sidebar:
  label: Prepare a local file upload
  badge: POST
title: Prepare a local file upload
type: openapi-operation
---
Creates an upload job and returns signed credentials so you can POST a local file directly to the returned `uploadUrl`. After preparing, POST the file to `uploadUrl` as multipart form data with the returned `params`, `signature`, and `file` fields, then poll `GET /uploads/{id}` until status is `ready`.

See [File uploads](/api/file-uploads#local-file-upload) for a full walkthrough and curl examples.

**Supported file types:**
- Images: JPEG, PNG, GIF, WebP
- Videos: MP4, QuickTime (MOV)

**File size limits:**
- Images: 10 MB max
- GIFs: 15 MB max
- Videos: 350 MB max

The returned credentials are short-lived. Upload the file before `expiresAt`.

`POST /uploads/prepare`