Dynamic variables

A dynamic variable makes a new value every time you send. Use one when a request needs something fresh: a unique ID, the current time, a made-up name or email for test data. You do not define them. They are built in, and their names start with $.

Use a dynamic variable

Write the name between double curly braces, with the $, anywhere a normal variable works: the URL, params, headers, the body, auth fields.

{
  "id": "{{$guid}}",
  "email": "{{$randomEmail}}",
  "name": "{{$randomFullName}}",
  "createdAt": "{{$isoTimestamp}}"
}

What goes out looks like this, and differs on every send:

{
  "id": "0b8a3c1e-5a0f-4c53-9a44-6f1f2a9d7c10",
  "email": "nina.patel@harbor.dev",
  "name": "Omar Silva",
  "createdAt": "2026-11-09T08:15:30.123456Z"
}

Things to know:

• Every occurrence gets its own value. Two {{$guid}} in one request produce two different IDs. To use the same generated value twice, store it in a normal variable first with a pre-request script.
• Names are case-sensitive. {{$randomInt}} works; {{$randomint}} is left as written.
• Unknown names are left as written. A {{$something}} that is not in the tables below is sent unchanged.
• Your own variables win. If you define a variable whose name is exactly $guid, its value is used instead.
• The data is made up. Names, cities and companies come from short built-in lists. Use them for test data, not for realistic samples.
• To see what was sent, open the Console.

The names match Postman's, so imported collections keep working. The generated values are ApiWorkbench's own and will not look identical to Postman's.

Common

Name	Generates	Example
{{$guid}}	A random UUID (version 4)	0b8a3c1e-5a0f-4c53-9a44-6f1f2a9d7c10
{{$randomUUID}}	The same as {{$guid}}	e2c7f5a4-8d3b-4f19-b6a2-91c0d4e8f7a3
{{$timestamp}}	The current time in seconds since 1970	1794212130
{{$isoTimestamp}}	The current time in ISO 8601, UTC	2026-11-09T08:15:30.123456Z
{{$randomInt}}	A whole number from 0 to 1000	417
{{$randomAlphaNumeric}}	One lower-case letter or digit	k
{{$randomBoolean}}	true or false	true

Text and numbers

Name	Generates	Example
{{$randomWord}}	One word	harbor
{{$randomWords}}	Two to five words	delta river pixel
{{$randomLoremWord}}	One word	meadow
{{$randomLoremWords}}	Three words	orbit ember cloud
{{$randomLoremSentence}}	A sentence of five to ten words	Signal forest alpha quartz river.
{{$randomLoremParagraph}}	Three sentences
{{$randomLoremSlug}}	Three words joined by hyphens	kernel-island-vector
{{$randomHexColor}}	A colour as # and six hex digits	#3fa9c2
{{$randomColor}}	A colour name	teal
{{$randomAbbreviation}}	A technical abbreviation	JSON
{{$randomSemver}}	A version number	3.14.27

Internet

Name	Generates	Example
{{$randomIP}}	An IPv4 address	203.17.88.141
{{$randomIPV6}}	An IPv6 address	3f2a:09bc:… (eight groups)
{{$randomMACAddress}}	A MAC address	4a:0f:c3:91:7e:2d
{{$randomPassword}}	15 lower-case letters and digits	x7k2m9q4a1z8b3c
{{$randomUserName}}	A first name and a number	priya204
{{$randomDomainName}}	A domain name	lantern.io
{{$randomDomainWord}}	The word part of a domain	nebula
{{$randomDomainSuffix}}	com, net, org, io or dev	org
{{$randomUrl}}	An https:// address	https://granite.net
{{$randomEmail}}	An email address at a made-up domain	ben.chen@cloud.com
{{$randomExampleEmail}}	An email address at example.com	sofia42@example.com
{{$randomProtocol}}	http or https	https
{{$randomUserAgent}}	A Chrome-style user agent string
{{$randomLocale}}	A language code	fr

TIP

{{$randomEmail}} can produce an address at a domain that really exists. For data that may trigger a real email, use {{$randomExampleEmail}}: example.com is reserved for examples and never delivers mail.

Names and people

Name	Generates	Example
{{$randomFirstName}}	A first name	Elena
{{$randomLastName}}	A last name	Nakamura
{{$randomFullName}}	A first and last name	Kai Fernandez
{{$randomNamePrefix}}	Mr., Ms., Mrs. or Dr.	Dr.
{{$randomNameSuffix}}	Jr., Sr., II, III or PhD	Jr.
{{$randomJobTitle}}	A level and a job	Senior Analyst
{{$randomJobType}}	A job	Designer
{{$randomPhoneNumber}}	A phone number as three groups of digits	415-732-9081

Location

Name	Generates	Example
{{$randomCity}}	A city	Lisbon
{{$randomCountry}}	A country	Kenya
{{$randomCountryCode}}	A two-letter country code	JP
{{$randomStreetName}}	A street name	meadow Street
{{$randomStreetAddress}}	A number and a street name	221 timber Street
{{$randomLatitude}}	A latitude from -90 to 90, four decimals	12.9716
{{$randomLongitude}}	A longitude from -180 to 180, four decimals	-73.5674

Business and finance

Name	Generates	Example
{{$randomCompanyName}}	A company name	Globex Ltd
{{$randomPrice}}	An amount from 0 to 1000, two decimals	249.90
{{$randomCurrencyCode}}	A currency code	EUR
{{$randomBankAccount}}	An eight-digit number	48201937

Dates

Name	Generates	Example
{{$randomDateFuture}}	A time within the next year, ISO 8601, UTC	2027-03-14T19:22:05.482913Z
{{$randomDatePast}}	A time within the past year, ISO 8601, UTC	2026-02-01T06:40:51.107264Z
{{$randomDateRecent}}	A time within the last two days, ISO 8601, UTC	2026-11-08T11:03:27.951380Z
{{$randomWeekday}}	A weekday name	Thursday
{{$randomMonth}}	A month name	August

Recipes

A unique ID per request

Add a header so you can find the request in server logs.

Header	Value
X-Request-Id	{{$guid}}

A new user on every send

{
  "username": "{{$randomUserName}}",
  "email": "{{$randomExampleEmail}}",
  "password": "{{$randomPassword}}",
  "city": "{{$randomCity}}"
}

Sending this repeatedly from the runner or the load tester creates a different user each time.

A fresh timestamp in a signed token

In JWT Bearer auth, put {{$timestamp}} in the payload so the iat claim is always now:

{ "sub": "1234567890", "iat": {{$timestamp}} }

Avoid a cached answer

Add a query parameter that changes every time.

Parameter	Value
nocache	{{$timestamp}}

Next steps

• Variables and environments
• Scripts
• Data files
• Data-driven testing