Authentication for Planet's tile services depends on which service you are connecting to. There are two distinct services with different authentication methods: 

• Planet Mosaics WMTS (delivered via api.planet.com)
• Planet Insights / OGC WMS (delivered via api.eu-1.planet.com/ogc/wms/... or services.sentinel-hub.com/ogc/wms/...). 

Using the wrong authentication method for a service is one of the most common causes of connection failures.

Planet Mosaics WMTS 

Planet Mosaics WMTS uses a Planet API key for authentication. The API key is passed directly in the service URL as a query parameter.

No separate username or password is typically required.

URL format:

https://api.planet.com/basemaps/v1/mosaics/wmts?api_key={api-key}

For a specific mosaic:

https://api.planet.com/basemaps/v1/mosaics/{mosaic-name}/wmts?api_key={api-key}

Replace {api-key} with the value from your Planet Account page. See Finding an API Key for where to look.

Note: If your GIS client (for example, ArcGIS Pro) prompts for a username and password during the WMTS setup wizard despite the API key being in the URL, paste the API key into the Username field and leave the Password field blank. This happens when the client tries to negotiate HTTP Basic auth before processing the query string.

Planet Insights / OGC WMS — Configuration ID, no credentials

For OGC WMS connections through Planet Insights Platform, authentication is handled by the Configuration ID baked into the URL. You do not need to provide a username or password.

URL formats:

https://services.sentinel-hub.com/ogc/wms/{configuration-id}
https://api.eu-1.planet.com/ogc/wms/{configuration-id}

Find the Configuration ID in the lower-left panel of the configuration's details page in the Configurations dashboard.

Important: In the configuration's Advanced Settings, Enable OGC requests must be turned on, or the WMS will not be accessible externally even if the URL is correct.

Why am I getting different images from WMS and WMTS for the same configuration?

WMS and WMTS render tiles using different request parameters and caching strategies. Differences in returned imagery for the same configuration and date typically come from one of:

• Different visibility zoom levels between the two services. Check the configuration's layer settings.
• WMTS tile caching that may serve a previously generated tile while WMS renders fresh. Clearing the WMTS cache forces a re-render.
• Date range or evalscript differences in the visualization layers themselves.

If both services return different images at the same zoom and date, capture both URLs and the time stamps and contact Planet Support so the configuration can be inspected.

Quick reference

Related resources

• How to Load WMTS Basemap False-color Visualizations in QGIS, ArcGIS Pro and ArcGIS 10.X Desktop
• What is Planet WMTS (Web Map Tile Service) Basemap?
• How to use Planet Tile Services in ArcGIS Online
• Planet Tile Streaming FAQ
• Planet OGC service documentation
• Planet ArcGIS integration documentation
• Planet QGIS integration documentation
• Planet WMTS Tile Services API reference