Free crime data APIs: what each option gives you
Four free options answer different questions. The FBI Crime Data Explorer API gives aggregate agency and state figures for the whole US with a free api.data.gov key, city open-data portals give raw incidents for one city each, and data.police.uk gives UK street-level crimes without a key. Crime Data API gives normalized incidents for 11 US cities with 500 free calls a month.
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Last updated: 2026-11-07. External facts checked 2026-11-07.
Key facts
- FBI CDE API: free api.data.gov key; default 1,000 requests per hour per key. The shared DEMO_KEY allows 30 per hour and 50 per day per IP (api.data.gov developer manual).
- City portals: free, one licence and one schema per city; see open-data portals vs one API.
- data.police.uk: UK only; no key needed in our test; 15 requests per second, burst 30 (API call limits).
- Crime Data API: 500 calls a month, no card, 11 US cities; the free MCP server is limited to the last 180 days, a 1 km radius and 50 rows per call.
Free options compared
| Option | What you get | Coverage | Key |
|---|---|---|---|
| FBI Crime Data Explorer API | Aggregate monthly rates and clearances by agency, state and US | US agencies that report to the FBI | Free api.data.gov key (guide) |
| City open-data portals | Raw incident rows in the city's own schema | One city per portal | Usually none or an app token |
| data.police.uk | Street-level crimes by month | UK police forces | None in our test |
| Crime Data API | Normalized incidents, stats and density scores near a point | 11 US cities | Free key, 500 calls a month |
Which one to use
- You need a national or state trend: the FBI API. It is not built for what happened near an address.
- You need one city and can handle its schema and updates: that city's portal.
- You need UK data: data.police.uk.
- You need several US cities in one schema, queried by location, with the source and licence on every response: Crime Data API.
Limits of our free tier
The free plan is 500 calls a month with no card; over quota, calls return 429 rather than a surprise bill. Coverage is Baltimore, Boston, Cincinnati, Dallas, Kansas City, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, New York City, San Francisco, Seattle and Washington DC only. NYC's source updates quarterly, so its records lag by about three months. Location precision varies by city. Paid plans, sold on RapidAPI, are Pro at $29 a month for 20,000 calls and Ultra at $79 for 100,000.
Free is not the same as unrestricted
Each city keeps the licence of its portal, listed with its source in the coverage table. Crime Data API is not a consumer reporting agency. Do not use it for tenant, employment, credit or insurance screening or any eligibility decision. Reported incidents are not convictions or a prediction of personal risk. Data is revised by the source and can be incomplete; keep the source attribution and check each city's licence for your use.
FAQ
Is there a free crime data API?
Yes, several. The FBI Crime Data Explorer API is free with an api.data.gov key and returns aggregate figures. City open-data portals are free and return incident records for one city each. Crime Data API gives 500 free calls a month for normalized incidents in 11 US cities. For the UK, data.police.uk is free.
Is the FBI crime data API free?
Yes. You need a free api.data.gov key. The api.data.gov default limit is 1,000 requests per hour per key. The API returns aggregate rates by agency, state and nation rather than individual incidents.
Is there a free UK crime data API?
Not from us: Crime Data API covers US cities only. The official police.uk API at data.police.uk is free and returned street-level crimes without a key when we tested it on 2026-11-07. Its documented rate limit is 15 requests per second with a burst of 30.
Can I use free crime data in a commercial product?
Check the licence of each source. Our cities range from public domain to CC BY and ODC-BY, which require attribution. Keep the source and licence with anything you display, and never use the data for tenant, employment, credit or insurance screening.
Related
Crime data API overview and pricing · FBI Crime Data API key guide · FBI API alternative · SpotCrime alternative · CrimeoMeter alternative · Crime map API · Crime API reference
Crime Data API is not affiliated with, sponsored by, or endorsed by the FBI, GSA or api.data.gov, or UK police forces or data.police.uk. Names are used solely to identify the services described.