Open Library Books API

FREE NO AUTH

Access millions of book editions, author biographies, subject catalogs, and covers.

Website

Base URL

https://openlibrary.org

Overview & Specs

An open, editable library catalog powered by the Internet Archive. Search books by title, author, ISBN, or subject taxonomy with free public JSON APIs.

Rate Limit

100 req/min

Format

REST / JSON

HTTPS

✓ Enabled

CORS

✓ Allowed (*)

Endpoints Specification

Method Endpoint Path Description
GET /search.json Search book records by query string

Live Interactive Sandbox

Test this API endpoint directly inside your browser. Select a method and click Send Request.

Response Payload
200 OK 88 ms
{
  "numFound": 183,
  "docs": [
    {
      "title": "The Lord of the Rings",
      "author_name": ["J.R.R. Tolkien"]
    }
  ]
}

Language Code Examples

curl -X GET "https://openlibrary.org/search.json?q=javascript" \
  -H "Accept: application/json"

API Status & Latency

Operational

Checked real-time • 100% Uptime target

88 ms

Avg Response