C++ Client SDK
Statsig's SDK for Experimentation and Feature Flags in C++ applications.
Set up the SDK
Install the SDK
cppadd_subdirectory(path/to/downloaded/statsig_sdk) target_link_libraries(${PROJECT_NAME} StatsigClientSDK)Initialize the SDK
Next, initialize the SDK with a client SDK key from the "API Keys" tab on the Statsig console. These keys are safe to embed in a client application.Along with the key, pass in a User Object with the attributes you'd like to target later in a gate or experiment.cpp#include <statsig/statsig.h> using namespace statsig; StatsigUser user; user.user_id = "a-user"; user.custom_ids = { {"employeeID", "an-employee"} }; // Create your own instance StatsigClient client; // Initialize synchronously using cached values from the previous session client.InitializeSync("client-{YOUR_CLIENT_SDK_KEY}", user); // or, Initialize asynchronously from network client.InitializeAsync( "client-{YOUR_CLIENT_SDK_KEY}", [](StatsigResultCode result) { // completion callback }, user );Synchronous initialization uses cache (if available) and returns immediately. The SDK then fetches data for subsequent sessions in the background.
Asynchronous initialization provides a callback, allowing you to wait for the SDK to fetch the most current data.
For convenience, there is also a singleton instance accessible through
StatsigClient::Shared().cpp// Initialize synchronously using cached values from the previous session StatsigClient::Shared().InitializeSync("client-{YOUR_CLIENT_SDK_KEY}", user); // or, Initialize asynchronously from network StatsigClient::Shared().InitializeAsync( "client-{YOUR_CLIENT_SDK_KEY}", [](StatsigResultCode result) { // completion callback }, user );Optional - Configuration through StatsigOptions
To adjust how the SDK works, pass a StatsigOptions struct during initialization.cppStatsigOptions options; options.environment = StatsigEnvironment{"staging"}; client.InitializeSync(..., options); // or client.InitializeAsync(..., options);
Use the SDK
Checking a Feature Flag/Gate
After the SDK is initialized, check a Feature Gate. Feature Gates create logic branches in code that you can roll out to different users from the Statsig Console. Gates are always CLOSED or OFF (equivalent toreturn false;) by default.if (client.CheckGate("a_gate")) {
// show new feature
}
// or, use the shared instance
if (StatsigClient::Shared().CheckGate("a_gate")) {
// show new feature
}
Reading a Dynamic Config
Feature Gates work well for simple on/off switches with optional advanced user targeting. To send a different set of values (strings, numbers, and so on) to clients based on specific user attributes such as country, use Dynamic Configs. The API is similar to Feature Gates, but returns an entire JSON object you configure on the server, from which you can fetch typed parameters. For example:
DynamicConfig config = client.GetDynamicConfig("a_config");
// or, use the shared instance
DynamicConfig config = StatsigClient::Shared().GetDynamicConfig("a_config");
// then access the params
std::cout << config.GetValue()["a_string_param"] << std::endl;
DynamicConfig.GetValue returns JsonObj, which is an unordered map of string to nlohmann/json. Refer to https://github.com/nlohmann/json
Getting a Layer/Experiment
Layers/Experiments support running A/B/n experiments. Statsig offers two APIs, but recommends layers to enable quicker iterations with parameter reuse.// Values via getLayer
Layer layer = StatsigClient::Shared().GetLayer("name");
std::string promoTitle = layer.GetValue("title").get<std::string>();
double discount = layer.GetValue("discount").get<double>();
// or, via getExperiment
Experiment titleExperiment = StatsigClient::Shared().GetExperiment("new_user_promo_title");
Experiment priceExperiment = StatsigClient::Shared().GetExperiment("new_user_promo_price");
std::string promoTitle = titleExperiment.GetValue()["title"].get<std::string>();
double discount = priceExperiment.GetValue()["discount"].get<double>();
Layer.GetValue and Experiment.GetValue return JsonObj, which are unordered maps of string to nlohmann/json. Refer to https://github.com/nlohmann/json
Logging an Event
After setting up a Feature Gate or an Experiment, you can track custom events to see how your new features or different experiment groups affect those events. Call the Log Event API for the event, and optionally provide a value and metadata object to log with the event:
std::unordered_map<std::string, std::string> metadata{
{ "price", "9.99" },
{ "item_name", "some_great_product" }
};
StatsigEvent event("add_to_cart", "SKU_12345", metadata);
StatsigClient::Shared().LogEvent(event);
// Then, at some point later, you need to "flush" the events
StatsigClient::Shared().Flush();
Statsig User
You need to provide a StatsigUser object to check or get your configurations. Pass as much information as possible to take advantage of advanced gate and config conditions.
TheuserID field is required in most cases to provide a consistent experience for a given user (refer to logged-out experiments for how to run experiments for logged-out users).In addition to userID, StatsigUser offers the following top-level fields: email, ip, userAgent, country, locale, and appVersion. You can also pass any key-value pairs in an object or dictionary to the custom field to create targeting based on them.
StatsigUser user;
user.user_id = "a-user";
user.email = "developer@statsig.com";
user.custom_ids = {
{"employeeID", "an-employee"}
};
Private attributes
To prevent logging sensitive user PII, use the privateAttributes field on the StatsigUser object. Statsig uses any attribute set in privateAttributes only for evaluation and targeting, and removes it from logs before sending them to the server.
For example, suppose you have feature gates that should only pass for users with emails ending in "@statsig.com", but you don't want to log email addresses to Statsig. In that case, add the key-value pair { email: "my_user@statsig.com" } to privateAttributes on the user.
Updating users
When user data changes, call an UpdateUser function to make Statsig aware of the new user.
client.UpdateUserSync(user);
// or, use the shared instance
StatsigClient::Shared().UpdateUserSync(user);
To ensure you have the latest values during an update (for example, when transitioning from logged out to logged in), use the asynchronous update function.
{client or StatsigClient::Shared()}.UpdateUserAsync(
user,
[](StatsigResultCode result) {
if (result == StatsigResultCode::Ok) {
// do something now that the latest values have been fetched
} else {
// error state
}
}
);
Asynchronous vs Synchronous behaviors are the same as the Initialize functions.
Statsig Options
StatsigClient::Initialize, in addition to sdk_key and user, takes an optional options parameter to customize the StatsigClient. The following list shows the current options:
apistd::stringThe API to use for all SDK network requests. You don't need to override this unless you have another API that implements the Statsig API endpoints.
providersEvaluationsDataProviderArray of EvaluationsDataProvider that customizes the initialization and update behavior.
Shutting Statsig down
To save data and battery usage and avoid dropping logged events, the SDK keeps event logs in client cache and flushes them periodically. Because of this periodic flushing, the SDK may not have sent some events when your app shuts down.
To ensure the SDK flushes or saves all logged events locally, call Shutdown when your app is closing:
client.Shutdown();
// or, use the shared instance
StatsigClient::Shared().Shutdown();
How do I run experiments for logged-out users
Go to the guide on device level experiments.Was this helpful?