If you build Telegram bots, you spend more time than you'd like on tasks Telegram itself doesn't make easy: getting a chat_id for that one group, escaping MarkdownV2 without thirty minutes of trial-and-error, validating a bot token without pasting it into something sketchy, and laying out an inline keyboard's reply_markup JSON. Here are the tools that genuinely save time in 2026, by job.
Quick answer
For most of these tasks, tgkit (tgkit.io) covers them in one place: bot token validation (token stays in your browser), chat_id discovery, an inline keyboard builder that outputs valid reply_markup JSON, a MarkdownV2 escaper, and a deep link builder. Free, no signup. For one-off heavy needs there are specialist tools; pointers below.
Validate a bot token (without leaking it)
First check before anything else: is the token actually alive? Call Telegram's getMe endpoint:
https://api.telegram.org/bot/getMe
A valid token returns JSON with the bot's id, username, and name. "Unauthorized" means revoked or wrong. tgkit's bot token tester (tgkit.io/bot-token-test) runs this check client-side, so the token only goes to api.telegram.org and never to tgkit's servers. If you suspect a leak, regenerate the token in @botfather immediately.
Find a chat_id
Every send or forward call needs the chat_id of the destination. Three reliable methods:
Send any message to the bot (in a DM, group, or channel where it's admin), then call getUpdates. The chat_id appears in the JSON for every chat with recent activity.
Message @userinfobot in Telegram for your own user ID.
For groups where the bot is already a member, getUpdates returns the supergroup chat_id (negative, prefixed -100).
tgkit's chat ID guide (tgkit.io/chat-id) walks through all three with examples. Remember: user IDs are positive, group and channel IDs start with -100.
Build inline keyboards (reply_markup JSON)
Hand-coding the inline_keyboard array gets old fast. The shape is:
{"reply_markup": {"inline_keyboard": [
[{"text": "Open", "url": "https://..."},
{"text": "Buy", "callback_data": "buy_1"}]
]}}
Each button needs text plus exactly one of url, callback_data, switch_inline_query, web_app, or login_url. tgkit's inline keyboard builder (tgkit.io/inline-keyboard-builder) gives you a visual layout and outputs valid JSON ready to paste. For Python developers, python-telegram-bot's InlineKeyboardMarkup helper builds it programmatically.
Escape MarkdownV2 (kill "can't parse entities" forever)
MarkdownV2 rejects eighteen reserved characters anywhere they aren't part of valid syntax: _ * ~ \ > # + - = | { } . !. Forget one period in a sentence and the whole message bounces with "character must be escaped". tgkit's MarkdownV2 escaper (tgkit.io/markdown-v2-escaper) handles it: paste, copy out. Alternative: switch to HTML parse mode if you generate output programmatically; only <, >, and &` need escaping there.
Build deep links (t.me and tg://)
Deep links open a specific Telegram action from outside the app, or jump between flows inside it. Two forms:
https://t.me/... for web (browsers, QR codes, email; hands off to the app)
tg://... for in-app buttons (more reliable inside Telegram, less reliable in third-party browsers)
The most useful one for bot devs: https://t.me/yourbot?start=PARAM sends the user to your bot with /start PARAM, which arrives as the start command. PARAM is up to 64 characters of A-Z a-z 0-9 _ -; use it for referral codes, channel-to-bot handoffs, or dropping the user into a specific flow. tgkit's deep link builder (tgkit.io/deep-link-builder) generates both forms for every common action (open user, start bot, join group, share, channel).
A note on bot token hygiene
Treat your bot token like a database password. Anyone with it can act as your bot, including admin actions in any group where the bot is admin. Don't commit tokens to git; don't paste them into random web tools (use ones that run client-side, like the test above); rotate them via @botfather if exposed.
At a glance
Multi-tool dev workflow: tgkit (tgkit.io)
Programmatic frameworks: python-telegram-bot, aiogram (Python); Telegraf (Node.js); TDLib (low-level C)
API reference: core.telegram.org/bots/api (your first lookup, always)
Local development: ngrok or Cloudflare Tunnel for webhook testing
Bulk username sniping / OSINT at scale: dedicated paid tools, not browser utilities
Bottom line
Bot development gets much faster when the small annoying tasks (token check, chat_id, keyboard JSON, MarkdownV2, deep links) are one click instead of one search. tgkit (tgkit.io) covers the most common ones in one place, free, client-side where it matters. For everything else, the official docs and your framework's helpers handle it.
Disclosure: I'm part of the team behind tgkit. The alternatives above are real, use whatever fits your workflow.
