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

# Retrieve a document

> Fetch a document (e.g. a record’s notes) by its `doc_…` id, rendered to markdown. The value a notes-type field holds is that `doc_` id. **Requires scope:** `documents:read`.



## OpenAPI

````yaml /openapi-v1.json get /v1/documents/{id}
openapi: 3.1.0
info:
  title: Custral API
  version: v1
  description: >-
    The curated, versioned, API-key-authenticated public REST surface (`/v1`).
    Every endpoint here is what the official SDKs (`@custral/sdk`) and the MCP
    server are built on. Authenticate with a secret API key (`sk_…`) created in
    **Settings → Applications**.
  contact:
    name: Custral Support
    email: hello@custral.com
    url: https://custral.com
  license:
    name: Proprietary
    url: https://custral.com
servers:
  - url: https://api.custral.com
    description: Production
security:
  - ApiKey: []
tags:
  - name: Identity
    description: Introspect the calling API key.
  - name: Records
    description: Create, list, retrieve, and update records on any object.
  - name: Objects
    description: Read the object (table) schema of your workspace.
  - name: Conversations
    description: View, manage, and ingest conversations and their messages.
  - name: MCP
    description: Introspect the Model Context Protocol tool surface for a key.
  - name: Documents
    description: Read record notes / page documents as markdown.
paths:
  /v1/documents/{id}:
    get:
      tags:
        - Documents
      summary: Retrieve a document
      description: >-
        Fetch a document (e.g. a record’s notes) by its `doc_…` id, rendered to
        markdown. The value a notes-type field holds is that `doc_` id.
        **Requires scope:** `documents:read`.
      operationId: getDocument
      parameters:
        - name: id
          in: path
          required: true
          description: The document id (`doc_…`).
          schema:
            type: string
          example: doc_123
      responses:
        '200':
          description: The document.
          content:
            application/json:
              schema:
                type: object
                properties:
                  data:
                    $ref: '#/components/schemas/Document'
                  reqId:
                    $ref: '#/components/schemas/RequestId'
        '401':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/Unauthorized'
        '403':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/Forbidden'
        '404':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/NotFound'
components:
  schemas:
    Document:
      type: object
      description: A document rendered to markdown.
      properties:
        id:
          type: string
          example: doc_123
        markdown:
          type: string
          description: The document content as markdown.
          example: |-
            ## Bug

            Repro steps…
      required:
        - id
        - markdown
    RequestId:
      type: string
      description: >-
        A per-request id (`req_…`). Quote it to support when reporting a
        problem.
      example: req_2a1f9c8e7b6d5
    Error:
      type: object
      description: >-
        The failure envelope. Every error carries a machine-readable `code` and
        the `reqId` of the failing request.
      properties:
        error:
          type: object
          properties:
            code:
              type: string
              example: insufficient_scope
          required:
            - code
        reqId:
          $ref: '#/components/schemas/RequestId'
      required:
        - error
  responses:
    Unauthorized:
      description: >-
        The API key is missing, unknown, inactive, or expired (`code:
        invalid_api_key`).
      content:
        application/json:
          schema:
            $ref: '#/components/schemas/Error'
          example:
            error:
              code: invalid_api_key
            reqId: req_2a1f9c8e7b6d5
    Forbidden:
      description: >-
        The key lacks the scope this endpoint requires (`code:
        insufficient_scope`).
      content:
        application/json:
          schema:
            $ref: '#/components/schemas/Error'
          example:
            error:
              code: insufficient_scope
            reqId: req_2a1f9c8e7b6d5
    NotFound:
      description: 'The object or record was not found (`code: not_found`).'
      content:
        application/json:
          schema:
            $ref: '#/components/schemas/Error'
          example:
            error:
              code: not_found
            reqId: req_2a1f9c8e7b6d5
  securitySchemes:
    ApiKey:
      type: http
      scheme: bearer
      bearerFormat: sk_...
      description: >-
        A Custral **secret** API key (`sk_…`), created in Settings →
        Applications. Sent as `Authorization: Bearer sk_…`. The `X-Api-Key:
        sk_…` header is also accepted and takes precedence. Never expose a
        secret key in a browser.

````

## Related topics

- [The Document object](/dev/api-reference/documents.md)
- [Retrieve a record](/api-reference/records/retrieve-a-record.md)
- [Retrieve a conversation](/api-reference/conversations/retrieve-a-conversation.md)
- [Retrieve an object](/api-reference/objects/retrieve-an-object.md)
- [Retrieve a usage module](/api-reference/usage-modules/retrieve-a-usage-module.md)