Anime APIs

Anime and manga information APIs

17 APIs in this category · last checked 2 October 2026
17
APIs listed
10
need no API key (59%)
9
CORS enabled (53%)
16
HTTPS (94%)

This directory lists 17 anime APIs. 7 of them require no API key and support CORS, so you can call them directly from browser JavaScript with no backend and no sign-up. Every entry shows whether it needs authentication, serves over HTTPS and allows cross-origin requests, so you can pick one that fits your stack before you read a single doc page.

Showing 17 of 17 APIs

AniDB

AniDB catalogs anime titles, episodes and file hashes from a long running fan community. Using the HTTP API needs a free registered client ID and a cap of roughly one request every two seconds.

Auth: apiKey HTTPS CORS: Unknown

Jikan

Jikan is an unofficial REST API that scrapes MyAnimeList for anime, manga, character and season data. No API key is required, but requests are limited to three per second and sixty per minute.

Auth: No HTTPS CORS: Yes

AnimeFacts

AnimeFacts returns trivia snippets for over one hundred anime series through a small Node.js REST API. It needs no key and runs on a free Heroku dyno, so the first request after idle time is slow.

Auth: No HTTPS CORS: Yes

Danbooru Anime

Danbooru indexes millions of tagged anime and manga illustrations with a REST API returning XML or JSON. Reading needs no login, but a key is required for higher limits and any write action.

Auth: apiKey HTTPS CORS: Yes

Trace Moe

Trace.moe matches an uploaded screenshot or image URL against an indexed library of anime to return the episode, timestamp and similarity score. Basic searches need no key, but heavy use requires one.

Auth: No HTTPS CORS: No

Catboy

Catboys serves random neko style catgirl and catboy images, anime GIFs and short quotes through simple GET endpoints. No key or account is needed, and each response is plain JSON with an image URL.

Auth: No HTTPS CORS: Yes

NekosBest

Nekos.best returns random SFW anime images and GIFs across roughly sixty categories such as hug, pat and smile. No authentication is needed, and official clients exist for Python, JavaScript and Rust.

Auth: No HTTPS CORS: Yes

AnimeNewsNetwork

Anime News Network's Encyclopedia API returns anime and manga titles, staff, cast and company data as XML reports. No key is needed, but requests are capped at one per second and ANN must be credited.

Auth: No HTTPS CORS: Yes

AniList

AniList's GraphQL API gives access to more than 500,000 anime and manga entries plus characters, staff and live airing schedules. Browsing needs no key, while OAuth covers user specific actions.

Auth: OAuth HTTPS CORS: Unknown

Shikimori

Shikimori exposes anime and manga data, user ratings and forum content from a large Russian tracking community, plus a newer GraphQL endpoint alongside older REST, capped at five requests a second.

Auth: OAuth HTTPS CORS: Unknown

MangaDex

MangaDex's REST API covers manga metadata, chapters and covers from its scanlation community, free for public reads with no key. Building paid or ad supported apps on the data breaks its usage policy.

Auth: No HTTPS CORS: Unknown

Waifu.im

Waifu.im serves tagged anime waifu pictures, including an NSFW toggle, from an archive confirmed at well over four thousand images. No key is needed for normal use, only for voting or higher limits.

Auth: No HTTPS CORS: Yes

Mangapi

Mangapi translates manga page text between languages using OCR and is distributed through the RapidAPI marketplace rather than offered directly. A RapidAPI key is required on every call and plan.

Auth: X-Mashape-Key HTTPS CORS: Unknown

Kitsu

Kitsu provides anime and manga data plus social tracking features such as library entries and reviews through a JSON:API style REST interface. Browsing needs no key, but posting needs an OAuth2 token.

Auth: OAuth HTTPS CORS: Yes

MyAnimeList

MyAnimeList's official API returns anime and manga details plus a signed in user's own list once you register an application and complete the OAuth2 flow. It is free, but needs a client ID to work.

Auth: OAuth HTTPS CORS: Unknown

AnimeChan

Animechan returns anime quotes, searchable by series or character, from a catalog of over six thousand lines across 450 plus shows. The free tier allows one hundred requests a day, no signup needed.

Auth: No HTTPS CORS: No

Studio Ghibli

This community maintained Studio Ghibli API returns details on films, characters, locations, species and vehicles as JSON. It replaced the original Heroku hosted version, offline since 2022.

Auth: No HTTPS CORS: Yes

Best Anime and Manga APIs for Developers

An anime API allows developers to integrate anime and manga data into their applications: series details, episode guides, character profiles, voice actor credits, and community ratings. These APIs power fan sites, tracking tools, and recommendation engines worldwide.

Start with the big tracking platforms: AniList for its fast GraphQL schema and over 500,000 entries, Kitsu for JSON:API access to library and social data, and Shikimori for a large community data set with both REST and GraphQL. Jikan is the easiest way to pull MyAnimeList data with no key at all, while the official MyAnimeList API suits apps that need to manage a signed in user's own list.

For images and extras, Waifu.im and Nekos.best both need no auth and publish their image counts and categories. The main pitfall in this category is longevity: fan hosted projects on free dynos or personal domains disappear or get squatted by spam sites, as happened to the original Studio Ghibli API host and a couple of image sites here, so keep a fallback in mind.

What to check before you pick one

  • Database size: Larger databases like AniList and MyAnimeList cover tens of thousands of titles and provide more complete metadata.
  • GraphQL vs REST: GraphQL APIs let you fetch exactly the fields you need, reducing payload size for mobile apps.
  • Rate limits and caching: Plan your caching strategy based on each API's rate limit to avoid request throttling.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are anime APIs?

Anime APIs provide programmatic access to anime and manga databases, including titles, episodes, characters, voice actors, ratings, and streaming availability.

Is AniList or MyAnimeList API free?

AniList offers a free GraphQL API with no authentication required for read-only queries. MyAnimeList also provides a free API tier that requires client credentials.

What can I build with an anime API?

You can build anime tracking apps, manga reading lists, character databases, recommendation engines, and community platforms using the anime APIs listed in this directory.

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