If you’re working on building a movie-based app or project, finding the right movie API can feel like a blockbuster task (pun intended). For those who aren’t familiar, an API, or Application Programming Interface, serves as a bridge between different software applications, allowing them to communicate and share their valuable data. And so a movie API gives access to movie-related data, from basic details like title and release date to more comprehensive info like cast and crew, reviews, and box office stats.
In this article, we’ll spotlight the best movie APIs out there – the ones that offer up-to-date, accurate, and diverse movie data with reasonable cost and good documentation so you can make the best choice for your specific needs, ensuring your next project doesn’t just get by, it steals the show.
Let’s take a look.
Top Movie APIs Compared Side by Side
| API | Price | Key Features | Rate Limits |
|---|---|---|---|
| IMDb | -Free 30-day trial-The IMDb Essential Metadata API - $150,000 for 12 months + metered costs-The IMDb and Box Office Mojo for Movies/TV/OTT API - $400,000 for 12 months + metered costs | -Most extensive library of movies, shows, video game titles, cast and crew, global box office data, and star ratings-Updated daily-Uses GraphQL | Pay for Metered costs (Calculator on AWS exchange for each plan) |
| TMDb | Free for non-commercial use | -Extensive database of movies, shows, and people-API wrappers and libraries for several languages | ~50 requests per second rate limit |
| OMDb | -Free plan -Basic plan - $1 per month-Standard plan - $5 per month-Pro plan - $10 per month | -Pulls data from popular sources-Key Parameters to retrieve data include ID, title, and search-Poster API with over 280,000 posters | -Free plan - 1,000 requests per day-Basic plan - 100,000 requests per day-Standard plan - 250,000 daily requests-Pro plan - access to a private server with no request limits |
| Movie Reviews | Free for non-commercial use | -Large database of movie reviews dating back to 1924-Critics’ pick reviews | 500 requests per day and 5 requests per minute. |
| uNoGS | -Free plan-Pro Plan - $10 per month | -Access to global Netflix library-Data includes genres, countries, people, images, and more-Constantly updated | -Free plan - up to 100 API requests per day, with additional requests costing $.10 each-Pro Plan - 30,000 requests a day, with extra requests costing $0.00034 each |
Best Movie APIs of 2024
So what are the top movie APIs in 2024?
In this section, we’ll highlight the key features along with some pros and cons for each so you have a clearer picture of which API best meets your project’s needs, whether you’re focused on data richness, cost-effectiveness, ease of use, or all of the above.
1. IMDb Developer
Devs and non-devs alike have heard of IMDb, and that’s because it’s one of the most popular and widely used movie databases out there. It boasts over 9 million titles, more than 11 million cast and crew members, and global box office data. Its community is vast, with 1 billion ratings from the world’s largest entertainment fan community.
IMDb has introduced a new, GraphQL-backed API, which is available exclusively via AWS Data Exchange. This lets developers access the latest IMDb data on-demand, which includes star ratings, analytics from hundreds of millions of entertainment data points, and power search and discovery features to help your customers find their favorite shows and make even better recommendations.
Unlike other options on this list, IMDb’s API is quite expensive (we’ll review costs below), but they do offer a free 1-month trial.
Top Features
- Data from over 9 million movies, TV shows, and video game titles, plus 12 million cast and crew, global box office data, and 1 billion star ratings
- Add-on data sets like user reviews, parent guides (safety ratings), and trivia
- Data is updated daily
- Uses GraphQL for API rather than REST (more efficient data fetching, simplified data structure, etc)
Pricing
As mentioned above, IMDb does offer a free 1-month trial for their complete dataset API. If you have a big project, this is a great way to get quick access and see if it’s worth the price.
IMDb offers two plans on the AWS Data Exchange.
The IMDb Essential Metadata API offers data for movies, TV, OTT series, and video games, along with performer and creator information. This also includes IMDb’s 1-10 star rating system. The subscription costs $150,000 for 12 months plus metered costs.
The IMDb and Box Office Mojo for Movies/TV/OTT API is IMDb’s premier plan, coming in at a very heft $400,000 price tag for 12 months, plus metered costs. It offers everything from the plan above plus the inclusion of full lifetime box office grosses from IMDbPro’s Box Office Mojo.
IMDb Pros
- Extensive data from 9+ million titles, 11+ million casts, and crew, 1 billion ratings, plus global box office data
- GraphQL-backed API, which can have some benefits over REST
- Used by major companies like Prime Video, Alexa, etc
- Technical support staff
- Updated daily
- Free 30-day trial
IMDb Cons
- Expensive
- No free plan
- There’s a learning curve if you’re unfamiliar with GraphQL
Best Suited For
Given its comprehensive entertainment metadata and global box office data, the IMDb API is perfect for businesses with a bigger budget, like a streaming platform. These platforms can leverage (and afford) the API’s vast data resources to enhance their content discovery, recommendation algorithms, and user personalization.
2. The Movie Database (TMDb)
TMDb is a massive community-based database for movies, TV shows, actors, and more. It offers extensive details about a wide range of media, including general info like titles and genres to more specific details like cast lists and production data.
What’s great is that they offer an API so your project can fetch this data, which is currently in its third version. It’s completely free to use for non-commercial use with proper attribution.
To use the TMDb API, users need to register for an API key via the account settings page, and then agree to the TMDb’s terms of use.
Top Features
- Offers a vast amount of API endpoints, like credits, movies, movie lists, reviews, people, networks, tv series, tv seasons, images, etc.
- Database of millions of movies, shows, and people
- API wrappers and libraries for a variety of languages
- API is free to use for non-commercial purposes
- ~50 requests per second rate limit
Pricing
Free to use for non-commercial purposes, just be sure to attribute TMDb. The pricing for commercial use is not disclosed, so you’ll need to email them at [email protected] for more information.
TMDb Pros
- Extensive database for movies, shows, and people
- A long list of API endpoints (flexible search)
- Community-driven API
- Free
- Easy to use and good documentation
TMDb Cons
- Have to pay for commercial use
Best Suited For
Since TMDB’s API has a free version, it’s an especially solid option for independent developers or small startups building entertainment-focused apps or websites. The access to their vast film and TV show JSON at no cost is a significant advantage for those working with a tight budget but still wanting to provide rich, engaging content to their users.
3. The Open Movie Database (OMDb)
The Open Movie Database (OMDb) API is another great resource for tapping into movie information. Made and maintained by Brian Fritz, this RESTful web service offers both free and paid access, which we’ll look at in the next section.
As an open database, OMDb pulls its data from a variety of popular movie sites like IMDb, Rotten Tomatoes, and Wikipedia, ensuring broad and detailed coverage.
Users can leverage this API to search and access information by using parameters like the movie title, valid IMDb ID, the year of release, or a plot summary.
Top Features
- Pulls data from popular sources like IMDb, Rotten Tomatoes, and Wikipedia
- Key Parameters to retrieve data include ID, title, and search
- Poster API with over 280,000 high-resolution posters, updated daily
Pricing
The API is free to use with a limit of 1,000 requests per day, making it accessible for those with small-scale projects. For heavier use, OMDb offers tiered “Patron” plans. At $1 per month, the ‘Basic’ tier increases the limit to 100,000 requests per day. For $5 per month, the ‘Standard’ tier gives users access to the Poster API and 250,000 daily requests. At the ‘Pro’ level for $10 per month, users get access to a private server with no request limits and the Poster API.
An additional ‘Sponsor’ tier at $25 per month offers all the previous benefits and a credit/link on the homepage.
OMDb Pros
- Simple and straightforward to use
- A good amount of data from big movie databases
- Has a free version, and paid versions are affordable
OMDb Cons
- Limited search capabilities compared to TMDb and IMDb
- Low API rate limit for the free version
- Depends on third-party sites where it collects its data
- Not updated often (you can check their Change Log for recent updates)
Best Suited For
The OMDb API is best suited for individual developers working on small projects. It’s an affordable and straightforward tool for integrating movie data but isn’t the best option for large-scale projects.
4. NYT Movie Reviews API
The New York Times Movie Reviews API is one of a handful of public APIs. It’s a useful tool that lets users access a wealth of data on film reviews from the New York Times database, which dates back to 1924. It offers a comprehensive search functionality that lets users find movie reviews based on various factors, like keywords, opening dates, and critics’ choices.
Additionally, users can get reviews from specific critics, offering an in-depth look at the opinions of seasoned film reviewers. While certainly not as robust as other APIs on this list, this API does ensure that users can quickly and efficiently search for, retrieve, and process data easily, making it a valuable resource for movie enthusiasts, film industry analysts, content creators, and developers alike.
This API uses a RESTful style and resource-oriented architecture, with a rate limit of 500 requests per day and 5 requests per minute.
Top Features
- Access to a large database of movie reviews
- Includes Critics’ pick reviews
- Detailed movie information like MPAA rating, byline of the review, headline, summary, publication date, opening date, multimedia like images, and more.
Pricing
Free to use for non-commercial use only. For commercial use, users are asked to email [email protected].
Movie Reviews API Pros
- A vast library of movie reviews dating back to 1924
- Easy search capability
- High-quality content from a trusted news source (NYT)
- Rich metadata
Movie Reviews API Cons
- Limited requests
- Limited data available – not as comprehensive as other movie APIs
Best Suited For
The New York Times Movie Reviews API is a pretty simple API, but it’s perfect for anyone specifically interested in integrating detailed movie reviews into their project without the need for more extensive movie data.
5. Unofficial Netflix Online Global Search (uNoGS)
uNoGS, or Unofficial Netflix online Global Search, is a service that you can use to search across the global Netflix library. It offers information about which movies and shows are available in which countries, and includes more useful details about each title. This can be especially useful for Netflix users who are traveling or using VPNs since the available content can vary greatly by region.
uNoGS does offer an API, but instead of offering it directly like others on this list, they’ve partnered with RapidAPI, an API marketplace. This means that if you want to access the uNoGS API, you would need to do so through RapidAPI’s platform.
So for developers looking to integrate global Netflix data into their own apps and projects, the uNoGS API via RapidAPI would be the primary source. The API currently has a latency of 341ms and a 100% service level on the RapidAPI platform, so it’s reliable.
Top Features
- Access to the global Netflix library
- Data includes genres, countries, people, images, and more
- Constantly updated
Pricing
The uNoGS API has two pricing plans on RapidAPI. The Basic Plan is free and gets you up to 100 API requests per day, with additional requests costing $0.10 each. The Pro Plan costs $10 per month and offers 30,000 requests, with extra requests costing $0.00034 each.
uNoGS API Pros
- Extensive Netflix content
- Regular updates
- Advanced queries like country-specific searches, new releases, etc
- Global reach
- Free tier
uNoGS API Cons
- The free tier is very limited
- Costs for high usage
- Unofficial source since uNoGS is not affiliated with Netflix
Best Suited For
The uNoGS API is a solid solution for those looking to specifically access Netflix data and wants to use it in their applications. You can retrieve and analyze Netflix availability, genres, languages, and other related details across multiple countries.
Summary
There really aren’t a ton of great options when it comes to movie APIs, but if you want the most comprehensive solution, IMDb Developer API or TMDb API is your best bet. These APIs have an extensive database of movies, TV shows, and global box office data. IMDb has more to offer, but TMDb is the more popular choice since it’s a community-built, public API.
OMDb is another good choice and also offers affordable options, sourcing data from various movie sites. The NYT Movie Reviews API has an impressive offering as well, but it specializes exclusively in movie reviews from the New York Times database. Lastly, uNoGS fills the void left by Netflix’s lack of a public API, enabling access to global Netflix content.
With these movie APIs, developers can access rich movie data, enhance their projects, and offer personalized experiences for their users. Each one has its own strengths and considerations, so choose the one that best suits your specific needs.
FAQs
Are Movie APIs free to use?
Many APIs, including movie database APIs, can be free to use but often come with restrictions like rate or data limits. On the other hand, some APIs do come with a cost, especially for advanced features, larger data access, or commercial usage. These paid APIs might also offer better support or service-level agreements. In short, while there are free APIs available, depending on your specific needs and usage, you might find value in the paid options.
Are Movie APIs User-Friendly?
The user-friendliness of movie APIs largely depends on their design and the quality of their documentation. A developer’s familiarity with APIs and the standards used (like REST or GraphQL) also play a big role in perceived user-friendliness.
How are these APIs changing or influencing the digital media landscape?
Movie APIs like the ones on this list are profoundly shaping the digital media landscape by allowing for richer, more personalized content experiences. By giving detailed, structured data about films, TV shows, and related entities, these APIs allow streaming platforms, websites, and apps to personalize recommendations, enrich content with metadata, and integrate data from various sources seamlessly, which of course enhances user engagement and offers more dynamic and interactive experiences for audiences worldwide.
What are some common use cases for these Movie APIs?
Movie APIs are often used in developing entertainment apps or websites, enhancing content with detailed movie information, creating recommendation algorithms for personalized user experiences, or conducting entertainment industry research and analytics. These APIs serve as a vital source of structured and reliable data for any app or platform dealing with film, TV shows, actors, directors, and other related entities.
Jessica Cotzin is a Senior Engineer at a global digital agency. She is also a freelance writer in the tech industry, offering insights into the ever-evolving digital landscape.
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