shouldiuse.io

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VERDICT

Should I use Public APIs?

Discover over 1000 free public APIs for your next project. - publicapis.io

Worth it. It's a free directory, so risk is near zero: hobbyists and developers hunting free APIs for prototypes or side projects should use it. Production teams and enterprises shouldn't depend on it — listings are third-party and direct evidence on this specific site is thin.

Confidence

Low. Based on 14 public sources; mostly community lists and category threads, with few direct reviews of this site.

Ratings

  • Value for money
  • Ease of use
  • Feature depth
  • Support qualityNo support evidence in sources
  • Security postureNo findings either way

Pricing

$0

Directory access

ModelNot disclosed
Monthly feesNot disclosed
HardwareNot disclosed
Free tierYes

Best for

  • Hobby developers building side projects
  • Hackathon prototyping
  • Learning API integration
  • Indie makers hunting free data sources

Not for

  • Production teams needing SLAs — listings are unvetted third parties
  • Enterprises wanting vendor contracts and account support
  • Teams needing managed marketplaces with testing and workspaces
  • Anyone expecting the directory to guarantee API uptime

Gotchas - check before you buy

medium

'Free' APIs still carry provider-set rate limits, keys, and pricing changes — check each listing's terms.

medium

Guess: community-maintained API lists go stale; expect some dead or changed endpoints.

medium

No vendor support — the directory cannot fix a broken listed API.

Pros and cons

Pros

  • Lists 1000+ free public APIs across weather, finance, AI, and maps
  • Includes API keys, code examples, and documentation links per listing
  • Free to browse; the APIs themselves are free to use
  • Strong community demand — similar lists hit 1400+ APIs on Reddit

Cons

  • Listed APIs are third-party; reliability and limits belong to providers
  • Crowded space — rivals list 682 to 1400 APIs, little differentiation
  • Lacks marketplace features like team workspaces that RapidAPI offers

Sources & method

Analyzed 9/29/2026 - 10 sources - No known vulnerabilities found in the sources reviewed.

official x5review x3security x1news x1

Key stats

  • Value for money: 5/5

    Rating

  • $0

    Starting price

  • 10

    Sources

  • Analyzed

  • Value for money: 5/5. Free directory; nothing to pay
  • Ease of use: 4/5. Category browsing with keys and examples
  • Feature depth: 3/5. 1000+ listings but basic directory features
  • Support quality. No support evidence in sources
  • Security posture. No findings either way
  • 1000+ APIs listed Rival lists claim 682–1400
  • $0 Price Free to browse
  • 5+ Named categories Weather, finance, AI, maps, social

Pricing

Directory access

$0

  • Browse 1000+ API listings free
  • Keys, examples, and docs linked per listing

Security

No known vulnerabilities found in the sources reviewed.

What users say

Developers actively share and curate API lists on Reddit and GitHub, but no structured reviews of this specific site were found.

Full analysis

Based on 14 public sources; mostly community lists and category threads, with few direct reviews of this site.

Free directory of 1000+ public APIs — great for discovery at $0, but verify each listed API before building on it.

Methodology

Based on 14 public sources; mostly community lists and category threads, with few direct reviews of this site.

Sources

  1. Public APIs — Discover 1000+ free public APIspublicapis.io
    official
  2. public-apis/public-apis: A collective list of free APIsgithub.com
    official
  3. A Collaborative List Of 1400+ Public APIs For Developerspublicapis.dev
    official
  4. Free Public APIs — 682 free APIsfreepublicapis.com
    official
  5. Free API — 90+ Public APIs For Testing [No Key]apipheny.io
    review
  6. 1400+ public APIs curated by the communityreddit.com
    review
  7. Public Apis | APIs.io Providersapis.io
    official
  8. Product security pagepublicapis.io
    security
  9. Postman ranked #1 in G2's Best API Platforms reportblog.postman.com
    news
  10. RapidAPI Reviews 2026g2.com
    review

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