10 Best Free and Freemium APIs for Developers in 2025

Introduction

For any developer, whether working on a personal project, competing in a hackathon, or building a startup MVP, free and freemium APIs are invaluable resources. A generous free tier not only allows you to start building at zero cost but also provides the stability needed as your project begins to scale.

As the API economy matures, more platforms recognize the importance of providing upfront value to their developer communities. We’ve curated a list of the 10 best APIs with outstanding free tiers for 2025 to help you bring your ideas to life.

1. Juhe API - The Cost-Effective, All-in-One Toolkit

Juhe API stands out in the freemium market by offering a comprehensive platform with a wide range of utilities, all supported by a developer-friendly free tier, making it an ideal choice for new projects.

Diverse Free Endpoints: The free plan at Juhe API covers a broad spectrum of essential functionalities. Developers can get started for free with its Weather API, perform visitor lookups with the IP Geolocation API, or quickly generate codes with the QRCode API.
A Smooth Path to Scale: As your project's traffic grows beyond the free limits, Juhe API offers highly competitive pricing plans. This model ensures a seamless transition from free to paid tiers without needing to switch providers, guaranteeing business continuity.
Access to High-Value Features: The generous free tier also extends to premium features like Text-to-Speech, allowing developers to fully test and integrate advanced capabilities before committing to a budget.

For developers looking to solve multiple API needs within a single platform and plan for future growth, Juhe API is a remarkably smart choice.

2. OpenWeatherMap - Focused and Reliable Weather Data

One of the most well-known weather APIs, OpenWeatherMap offers a very generous free tier that includes current weather, 5-day/3-hour forecasts, and more—enough to power most personal projects and small-to-medium-sized applications.

3. Mailgun - Powerful Email Sending API

Nearly every application needs to send transactional emails (e.g., account verification, password resets). Mailgun’s free plan offers thousands of free emails per month, complete with robust analytics and delivery tools, making it a top choice for developers.

4. Mapbox - Flexible Mapping and Geolocation Services

Mapbox provides powerful APIs for maps, navigation, and geocoding. Its free tier includes a substantial number of map loads and API calls, making it an ideal alternative for applications requiring location features.

5. GitHub API - Access the World's Largest Code Repository

For developer tools or applications that need to integrate with code repositories, the GitHub API offers extensive access to public repositories, user data, and issues. Its rate limits are generous enough for the vast majority of use cases.

6. Stripe - The Leading Payment Processing API

While Stripe's core service is paid, it provides a full-featured testing environment and API keys completely for free. Developers can integrate and thoroughly test the entire payment flow before they're ready to accept real money.

7. Pexels / Unsplash - High-Quality, Royalty-Free Image APIs

Need to integrate high-quality, copyright-free images into your application? The Pexels and Unsplash APIs allow you to programmatically access their vast libraries of photos, completely free of charge.

8. Google Sheets API - A Simple Data Store Backend

For rapid prototyping, using Google Sheets as a simple database is an incredibly popular and effective method. The API, which is free to use, allows you to read and write to spreadsheets programmatically.

9. Abstract API - A Practical Suite of Developer Tools

Abstract API offers a collection of developer-friendly utility APIs. Its free tier covers services like IP geolocation, currency conversion, and time zone lookups, making it perfect for applications that require multiple small utilities.

10. GIPHY - The Definitive GIF Search Engine API

Want to make your app more engaging? The GIPHY API allows you to easily integrate GIF search and sharing functionality. Its free plan is generous enough to power most social and content-based applications.

Conclusion

Free and freemium APIs have dramatically lowered the barrier to innovation. By leveraging these resources, developers can turn ideas into reality faster than ever before. Platforms like Juhe API not only provide the free tools to get you started but also offer a clear, affordable path for long-term growth.

Ready to start your next great project? Explore the free tools at Juhe API and begin your creative journey today.