Manus AI Agent

Manus is an autonomous AI agent for long-running, complex tasks. Excels at deep research with parallel processing, web browsing, and comprehensive report generation.

Quick Start

bash

# Create a task
curl -X POST "https://api.manus.ai/v1/tasks" \
  -H "API_KEY: $MANUS_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "prompt": "Your task description",
    "agentProfile": "manus-1.6"
  }'

# Poll for results (repeat until status != "running")
curl -s "https://api.manus.ai/v1/tasks/{task_id}" \
  -H "API_KEY: $MANUS_API_KEY"

When to Use Manus

Best for (1-10+ minute autonomous work):

Research: Market analysis, competitive intelligence, fact-checking, stock analysis
Content: Reports, presentations, videos, websites, visualizations
Data: PDF translation, multi-source synthesis, analysis with charts
Development: Chrome extensions, POCs, prototypes, code review
Automation: Form filling, Web scraping (JS-rendered), task scheduling

Not for (use Claude Code instead):

Quick web searches or page fetches
Code generation/editing
Simple file I/O operations
Git operations

Core Workflow

Create Task → Get task_id → Poll Status → Extract Results → Done

POST /v1/tasks - Create and get
```
task_id
```
GET /v1/tasks/{task_id} - Poll every 5-10 seconds until
```
status
```
≠
```
"running"
```
Extract - Read
```
output[].content[].text
```
from completed response

API Reference

Base URL

https://api.manus.ai/v1

Authentication

bash

API_KEY: $MANUS_API_KEY (header)

Create Task

bash

POST /v1/tasks
Content-Type: application/json
API_KEY: $MANUS_API_KEY

{
  "prompt": "Your task description",
  "agentProfile": "manus-1.6",       # manus-1.6-lite | manus-1.6 | manus-1.6-max
  "taskMode": "agent",               # agent | chat | adaptive (optional)
  "projectId": "proj_xxx",           # optional - use project context
  "connectors": ["uuid1"],           # optional - gmail, calendar, notion
  "attachments": [],                  # optional - files, URLs, file_ids
  "hideInTaskList": false,            # optional - hide from task list
  "createShareableLink": false,       # optional - public accessibility
  "taskId": "existing_task_id",       # optional - continue multi-turn conversation
  "locale": "en-US",                  # optional - user locale (e.g. "en-US", "zh-CN")
  "interactiveMode": false            # optional - enable follow-up questions
}

Response:

json

{
  "task_id": "TeBim6FDQf9peS52xHtAyh",
  "task_title": "Generated Title",
  "task_url": "https://manus.im/app/TeBim6FDQf9peS52xHtAyh",
  "share_url": "https://manus.im/share/xxx"
}

Get Task (Poll for Results)

bash

GET /v1/tasks/{task_id}
API_KEY: $MANUS_API_KEY

Response:

json

{
  "id": "task_id",
  "status": "running",          # running | completed | failed | stopped
  "model": "manus-1.6-adaptive",
  "metadata": {
    "task_title": "Task Title",
    "task_url": "https://manus.im/app/xxx"
  },
  "output": [
    {
      "role": "assistant",
      "status": "completed",
      "content": [
        {"type": "output_text", "text": "The result text..."}
      ]
    }
  ],
  "credit_usage": 42
}

List All Tasks

bash

GET /v1/tasks
API_KEY: $MANUS_API_KEY

Returns array of all tasks with status, metadata, and credit usage.

Delete Task

bash

DELETE /v1/tasks/{task_id}
API_KEY: $MANUS_API_KEY

Create Project

bash

POST /v1/projects
API_KEY: $MANUS_API_KEY

{
  "name": "Project Name",
  "instruction": "Default instruction for all tasks in this project"
}

List Projects

bash

GET /v1/projects
API_KEY: $MANUS_API_KEY

Upload File (for attachment)

bash

POST /v1/files/upload
API_KEY: $MANUS_API_KEY
Content-Type: multipart/form-data

file: <binary file data>

Returns

file_id

for use in task attachments. Upload window: 3 minutes.

Create Webhook

bash

POST /v1/webhooks
API_KEY: $MANUS_API_KEY

{
  "url": "https://your-server.com/webhook"
}

Webhook Events:

```
task_created
```
- Task started
```
task_progress
```
- Task making progress (plan updates)
```
task_stopped
```
- Task completed or needs input (
```
stop_reason
```
: "finish" or "ask")

Agent Profiles

Profile	Best For	Speed
`manus-1.6-lite`	Quick lookups, fact checks	Fast
`manus-1.6`	Most research tasks (balanced)	Medium
`manus-1.6-max`	Complex analysis, multi-source deep dives	Slow (~complex)

Integration Patterns

Simple Task (Standard)

bash

curl -X POST "https://api.manus.ai/v1/tasks" \
  -H "API_KEY: $MANUS_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "prompt": "Analyze Bitcoin price trends this week",
    "agentProfile": "manus-1.6"
  }'

Complex Research (Max Profile)

bash

curl -X POST "https://api.manus.ai/v1/tasks" \
  -H "API_KEY: $MANUS_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "prompt": "Deep analysis of AI market 2024-2026: market size, top 10 players, M&A trends, funding landscape",
    "agentProfile": "manus-1.6-max",
    "locale": "en-US"
  }'

With Attachments (URL + Base64 + File ID)

bash

curl -X POST "https://api.manus.ai/v1/tasks" \
  -H "API_KEY: $MANUS_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "prompt": "Analyze this financial report and create a summary",
    "attachments": [
      {"type": "url", "url": "https://example.com/report.pdf"},
      {"type": "file_id", "file_id": "file_xxx"},
      {"type": "base64", "data": "base64....", "mimeType": "text/csv", "fileName": "data.csv"}
    ],
    "agentProfile": "manus-1.6"
  }'

Multi-turn Conversation

bash

curl -X POST "https://api.manus.ai/v1/tasks" \
  -H "API_KEY: $MANUS_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "prompt": "Based on your previous analysis, what are the investment implications?",
    "taskId": "abc123",
    "interactiveMode": true
  }'

With Project Context

bash

curl -X POST "https://api.manus.ai/v1/tasks" \
  -H "API_KEY: $MANUS_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "prompt": "Analyze our Q1 competitor landscape",
    "projectId": "proj_xxx",
    "agentProfile": "manus-1.6"
  }'

With Connectors (Gmail, Calendar, Notion)

bash

curl -X POST "https://api.manus.ai/v1/tasks" \
  -H "API_KEY: $MANUS_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "prompt": "Check my calendar for the next 3 months and suggest the best time for a team offsite",
    "connectors": ["google-calendar-uuid"],
    "agentProfile": "manus-1.6"
  }'

Playbook Templates

Pre-optimized prompts for common workflows:

Template	Description
`market-research`	Competitive analysis, market sizing
`slide-generator`	Professional presentations (PPT/PDF)
`video-generator`	AI-generated videos
`website-builder`	Full website generation
`resume-builder`	Professional resumes
`swot-analysis`	Business SWOT analysis
`chrome-extension`	Browser extension development
`trip-planner`	Travel itineraries
`influencer-finder`	YouTube creator discovery
`fact-checker`	Claim verification
`pdf-translator`	Document translation
`interior-design`	Room/space design
`fitness-coach`	Custom workout plans
`startup-poc`	Proof of concept prototypes
`profile-builder`	Research profiles on people/companies
`sentiment-analyzer`	Reddit sentiment analysis
`viral-content`	YouTube viral content analysis
`business-canvas`	Business model canvas

Prompt Tips for Better Results

Good prompt structure:

Task: [Clear objective]
Scope: [Research scope/timeframe]
Sources: [Prefer specific sources if known]
Output Format: [Structured report, bullet points, CSV, etc.]

Example:

json

{
  "prompt": "Analyze competitors to ChatGPT in the enterprise AI space (2024-2026).
Scope: Market share, pricing, key features, customer segments.
Sources: G2, Gartner, official docs, recent news.
Output: Structured comparison table + strategic positioning analysis.",
  "agentProfile": "manus-1.6-max",
  "locale": "en-US"
}

Best Practices

Agent Profiles
- lite (fast, simple) → Quick lookups, fact checks
- 1.6 (default) → Most research tasks, balanced
- 1.6-max → Complex analysis, multi-source deep dives
Prompts
- Be specific: scope, sources, output format
- Define timeframe if researching recent events
- Request structured output (tables, bullet points, etc.)
Polling
- Poll every 5-10 seconds for results
- Most tasks complete in 1-5 minutes
- Complex research may take 10+ minutes
Projects - Organize related tasks with shared instructions (e.g., "Always cite sources")
Webhooks - Monitor task events asynchronously instead of polling (production recommended)
Attachments - Include PDFs, images, URLs as research context. File uploads have 3-minute window.
Locale - Set
```
locale: "zh-CN"
```
for Chinese output,
```
"en-US"
```
for English, etc.
Cost - Monitor
```
credit_usage
```
per task. Budget accordingly.

Polling Loop (Python Example)

python

import requests
import time
import json

API_KEY = "your-manus-api-key"
BASE_URL = "https://api.manus.ai/v1"

# 1. Create task
response = requests.post(
    f"{BASE_URL}/tasks",
    headers={"API_KEY": API_KEY, "Content-Type": "application/json"},
    json={
        "prompt": "Your task description",
        "agentProfile": "manus-1.6"
    }
)
task_id = response.json()["task_id"]
print(f"Task created: {task_id}")

# 2. Poll for completion
max_retries = 120  # 10 minutes with 5s interval
retry = 0

while retry < max_retries:
    result = requests.get(
        f"{BASE_URL}/tasks/{task_id}",
        headers={"API_KEY": API_KEY}
    ).json()

    status = result.get("status")
    print(f"Status: {status}")

    if status == "completed":
        # 3. Extract results
        outputs = result.get("output", [])
        for output in outputs:
            if output.get("role") == "assistant":
                for content in output.get("content", []):
                    if content.get("type") == "output_text":
                        print("\n=== RESULT ===")
                        print(content["text"])
        break
    elif status in ["failed", "stopped"]:
        print(f"Task {status}")
        break

    time.sleep(5)
    retry += 1

if retry == max_retries:
    print("Timeout: Task took too long")

Routing Logic

Use Claude Code (free, instant) for:

Code generation, editing, refactoring
File operations (read/write/search)
Git operations, GitHub PRs
Web search, simple page fetching
Memory persistence

Use Manus (costs credits) for:

Browser automation (JS-rendered sites)
Form filling, login-required scraping
PDF/slide/video generation
OAuth integrations (Gmail, Calendar)
Multi-hour autonomous research
Real purchases/bookings

Webhook Server Example

Simple Python webhook receiver:

python

from flask import Flask, request, jsonify

app = Flask(__name__)

@app.route('/webhook', methods=['POST'])
def handle_webhook():
    event = request.json
    event_type = event.get('event_type')

    if event_type == 'task_created':
        print(f"✅ Task started: {event['task_detail']['task_id']}")

    elif event_type == 'task_progress':
        print(f"⏳ Progress: {event['progress_detail']['message']}")

    elif event_type == 'task_stopped':
        detail = event['task_detail']
        if detail['stop_reason'] == 'finish':
            print(f"✓ Completed: {detail['message']}")
            for att in detail.get('attachments', []):
                print(f"  📎 {att['file_name']} ({att['size_bytes']} bytes)")
                print(f"     URL: {att['url']}")
        else:
            print(f"❓ Needs input: {detail['message']}")

    return jsonify({"status": "ok"})

if __name__ == '__main__':
    app.run(port=8080)

Register webhook:

bash

curl -X POST "https://api.manus.ai/v1/webhooks" \
  -H "API_KEY: $MANUS_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "url": "https://your-server.com/webhook"
  }'

Error Codes & Solutions

Code	Message	Fix
8	Credit limit exceeded	Add credits at manus.im
401	Unauthorized	Check API_KEY in header
400	Bad request	Validate JSON payload, check agentProfile
404	Task not found	Verify task_id is correct
429	Rate limited	Wait before retrying
500	Server error	Retry after a few seconds

Resources

API Docs: https://open.manus.ai/docs
Playbook Gallery: https://manus.im/playbook
API Settings: https://manus.im/app?show_settings=integrations&app_name=api
Webhook Setup: https://manus.im/app?show_settings=integrations
Dashboard: https://manus.im/app

manus

NPX Install

Tags

SKILL.md Content

Manus AI Agent

Quick Start

When to Use Manus

Core Workflow

API Reference

Base URL

Authentication

Create Task

Get Task (Poll for Results)

List All Tasks

Delete Task

Create Project

List Projects

Upload File (for attachment)

Create Webhook

Agent Profiles

Integration Patterns

Simple Task (Standard)

Complex Research (Max Profile)

With Attachments (URL + Base64 + File ID)

Multi-turn Conversation

With Project Context

With Connectors (Gmail, Calendar, Notion)

Playbook Templates

Prompt Tips for Better Results

Best Practices

Polling Loop (Python Example)

Routing Logic

Webhook Server Example

Error Codes & Solutions

Resources