A free fantasy football API
Quick answer: GridIron Data has a free plan: 100 requests a day, 10 a minute, and no credit card. It includes PPR projections, 2020–2026 actuals, deviations, snap share, matchups and player news. Sign up, confirm your email, and copy the key from your dashboard.
- Price
- $0
- Daily requests
- 100
- Per minute
- 10
- Credit card
- Not needed
How do I get a free key?
- Open the signup page and leave the plan on Free.
- Enter your name, email and a password.
- Type the code we email you.
- Your key appears on the dashboard. We also email it to you.
That's it. There is no card, no trial end date and no sales call.
What is included for free?
| Feature | Free | Basic ($5) | Pro ($29) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Projections, actuals, deviations | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Snap share, matchups, news | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Requests | 100 per day | 5,000 per month | 50,000 per month |
| Rate limit | 10 per minute | 30 per minute | 100 per minute |
| Injury changes feed | No | No | Yes |
Is 100 requests a day enough?
For one person, usually yes. A weekly start/sit check for a full roster takes about 4 to 6 requests: one projections call per position. Looking up a few players' news adds a handful more. A draft board that loads every player at once uses more, so cache it and refresh once a day.
If you run a bot for a whole league or a public site, you will outgrow the free plan. Basic has no daily cap and costs $5 a month.
What happens at the daily cap?
Request 101 gets an HTTP 429 response. The body explains the limit and links to pricing. The count resets at 00:00 UTC, which is 8 pm ET during daylight time. Your dashboard shows how many requests you have used today.
HTTP/1.1 429 Too Many Requests
{
"error": "Free plan limit reached: 100 requests/day (resets 00:00 UTC). Upgrade to Basic ($5/month, 5,000 requests/month) or Pro at https://www.gridirondata.com/pages/pricing.html",
"reason": "free_daily_quota",
"upgrade_url": "https://www.gridirondata.com/pages/pricing.html"
}What other free options are there?
Other free sources are good at different jobs. nflverse publishes open play-by-play and roster data for R and Python. The Sleeper API returns league, roster and player data for Sleeper leagues. GridIron's free plan adds PPR projections, deviations, snap share and impact-tagged news under one key. Many developers use more than one.
Frequently asked questions
Is the GridIron Data API really free?
Yes. The free plan costs $0 and needs no credit card. It allows 100 requests a day at 10 a minute.
Do I need a credit card to sign up?
No. The free plan asks for a name, an email and a password. You only enter a card if you choose Basic or Pro.
Can I upgrade later without changing my code?
Yes. Upgrading to Basic or Pro keeps your key and raises its limits.
Which endpoints are not on the free plan?
Only the Pro injury changes feed, GET /api/v1/injuries/changes. Every other endpoint works on a free key.