xkcd — Free Comic JSON API (No Key)

TL;DR

xkcd provides a simple JSON API for every comic strip published since 2006. Get the current comic, any specific comic by number, or the latest 10 comics. Each response includes the comic title, image URL, alt text (mouseover text), transcript, and publication date. No API key, no rate limits — just plain JSON from Randall Munroe's servers.

Quick start: https://xkcd.com/info.0.json

No API key needed — free and open comics!

How to Use This API

1. Get the Current Comic

Always returns the most recently published xkcd strip:

https://xkcd.com/info.0.json

2. Get a Specific Comic by Number

Replace 0 with the comic number (e.g., comic 936 — "Password Strength"):

https://xkcd.com/936/info.0.json

3. JavaScript — Get Comic and Alt Text

fetch('https://xkcd.com/info.0.json')
  .then(r => r.json())
  .then(comic => {
    console.log(`#${comic.num}: ${comic.title}`);
    console.log(`Published: ${comic.month}/${comic.day}/${comic.year}`);
    console.log(`Alt text: ${comic.alt}`);
    console.log(`URL: ${comic.img}`);
  });

4. Python — Fetch Random Comic

import requests, random

latest = requests.get('https://xkcd.com/info.0.json').json()
max_num = latest['num']
rand_num = random.randint(1, max_num)

comic = requests.get(f'https://xkcd.com/{rand_num}/info.0.json').json()
print(f"#{comic['num']}: {comic['title']}")
print(comic['alt'])
print(f"Image: {comic['img']}")

5. Get an Explanation (Explain xkcd)

For context on any comic, use the explain xkcd wiki (not official but community-run):

https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/{comic_num}

Get current comic: https://xkcd.com/info.0.json

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Frequently Asked Questions

What data fields are in the response?: Each comic returns num, title, img (image URL), alt (hover/alt text), transcript, day, month, year, safe_title, and link (if the image links elsewhere).
How do I get all comics?: Fetch the latest comic to get num (latest number), then iterate from 1 to that number. There are currently over 3000 comics. Be respectful with request frequency.
Are images included in the response or just URLs?: The API returns the image URL (img field). Images are served from imgs.xkcd.com in 2x PNG format. You must fetch images separately from the JSON.
Is there a rate limit?: No official rate limit, but please be reasonable. For bulk downloads, spread requests over time rather than hammering the server.
Are old comics available?: Yes — all xkcd comics are available via the API. Comic #1 (drawn in 2006) through the latest. Some very early comics may have different styling.
Can I use xkcd comics in my app?: xkcd comics are licensed under Creative Commons BY-NC 2.5. You can share and adapt them for non-commercial use with attribution to Randall Munroe.

API Details

API URL: https://xkcd.com/info.0.json
Documentation: xkcd.com/json.html
Category: Fun
Authentication: Not Required
Rate Limit: None documented — be respectful

What You Can Build

Daily comic viewer widget for desktop or mobile home screens
xkcd search engine — search alt text and titles by keyword
Random comic generator with shareable links
Comic archive browser with thumbnail gallery by year
Terminal-based comic viewer using alt text as captions