Photography — entry 006 of 25
Flickr
Flickr's REST API (also available as XML-RPC, SOAP, JSON, or PHP-serialized responses) exposes photo search, metadata, favorites, groups, and the site's large Creative Commons-licensed photo collection to third-party applications. Every call requires an application API key, which alone is enough for the read-only public methods that make up most integrations; Flickr's own OAuth 1.0a flow is layered on only for actions performed against a specific signed-in user's account, like uploading or editing. Non-commercial use is free and capped at 3,600 queries/hour per key; commercial use is possible only by prior arrangement with Flickr, owned by SmugMug since 2018.
AuthenticationAPI KeySign up with the provider to obtain credentials.
HTTPSSupportedTraffic is encrypted in transit.
CORSEnabledCallable directly from browser JavaScript.
PricingFreemiumA usable free tier exists, with paid plans for more volume.
FormatsJSON, XMLResponses can be requested as JSON or XML.
GreatAPIs Score
Score87
Authentication15/25API key required
Pricing17/20Freemium tier available
Docs20/20Machine-readable spec file bundled
Formats15/15Supports 2 response formats
Freshness20/20Verified within 6 months
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<a href="https://greatapis.com/api/flickr/"><img src="https://greatapis.com/badge/flickr.svg" alt="Scored 87 on greatapis.com"></a>Auth quickstart
- Sign up with the provider to get an API key.
- Send it on every request as a header
Authorization: <key> - The exact header isn't documented — Authorization is a common default; confirm in the provider's docs.
Stored keyNo key stored
Your key is stored only in this browser (localStorage) and sent directly to the API — never to greatapis.
Endpoints
Public25
GET/oauth/access_token
Parameters
| Name | In | Required | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
oauth_consumer_key | query | yes | string |
oauth_nonce | query | yes | string |
oauth_timestamp | query | yes | string |
oauth_signature_method | query | yes | string |
oauth_version | query | yes | string |
oauth_signature | query | yes | string |
oauth_verifier | query | yes | string |
oauth_token | query | yes | string |
Responses
| Status | Description | Schema |
|---|---|---|
200 | OK | — |
GET/oauth/request_token
Parameters
| Name | In | Required | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
oauth_consumer_key | query | yes | string |
oauth_nonce | query | yes | string |
oauth_timestamp | query | yes | string |
oauth_signature_method | query | yes | string |
oauth_version | query | yes | string |
oauth_signature | query | yes | string |
oauth_callback | query | yes | string |
Responses
| Status | Description | Schema |
|---|---|---|
200 | OK | — |
GET/rest?method=flickr.favorites.getContext
Parameters
| Name | In | Required | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
api_key | query | yes | string |
photo_id | query | yes | string |
user_id | query | no | string |
Responses
| Status | Description | Schema |
|---|---|---|
200 | OK | — |
GET/rest?method=flickr.favorites.getList
Parameters
| Name | In | Required | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
api_key | query | yes | string |
user_id | query | yes | string |
min_fave_date | query | no | number |
max_fave_date | query | no | number |
page | query | no | number |
per_page | query | no | number |
Responses
| Status | Description | Schema |
|---|---|---|
200 | OK | — |
GET/rest?method=flickr.galleries.getPhotos
Parameters
| Name | In | Required | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
api_key | query | yes | string |
gallery_id | query | yes | string |
Responses
| Status | Description | Schema |
|---|---|---|
200 | OK | — |
GET/rest?method=flickr.groups.discuss.replies.getInfo
Parameters
| Name | In | Required | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
api_key | query | yes | string |
group_id | query | no | string |
topic_id | query | yes | string |
reply_id | query | yes | string |
Responses
| Status | Description | Schema |
|---|---|---|
200 | OK | — |
GET/rest?method=flickr.groups.discuss.topics.getInfo
Parameters
| Name | In | Required | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
api_key | query | yes | string |
group_id | query | no | string |
topic_id | query | yes | string |
Responses
| Status | Description | Schema |
|---|---|---|
200 | OK | — |
GET/rest?method=flickr.groups.discuss.topics.getList
Parameters
| Name | In | Required | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
api_key | query | yes | string |
group_id | query | no | string |
page | query | no | number |
per_page | query | no | number |
Responses
| Status | Description | Schema |
|---|---|---|
200 | OK | — |
GET/rest?method=flickr.groups.getInfo
Parameters
| Name | In | Required | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
api_key | query | yes | string |
group_id | query | no | string |
group_path_alias | query | no | string |
lang | query | no | string |
Responses
| Status | Description | Schema |
|---|---|---|
200 | OK | — |
GET/rest?method=flickr.groups.pools.getContext
Parameters
| Name | In | Required | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
api_key | query | yes | string |
photo_id | query | yes | string |
group_id | query | no | string |
Responses
| Status | Description | Schema |
|---|---|---|
200 | OK | — |
GET/rest?method=flickr.groups.pools.getPhotos
Parameters
| Name | In | Required | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
api_key | query | yes | string |
group_id | query | no | string |
Responses
| Status | Description | Schema |
|---|---|---|
200 | OK | — |
GET/rest?method=flickr.people.getInfo
Parameters
| Name | In | Required | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
api_key | query | yes | string |
user_id | query | no | string |
Responses
| Status | Description | Schema |
|---|---|---|
200 | OK | — |
GET/rest?method=flickr.people.getPhotos
Parameters
| Name | In | Required | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
api_key | query | yes | string |
user_id | query | yes | string |
safe_search | query | no | number |
min_upload_date | query | no | number |
max_upload_date | query | no | number |
min_taken_date | query | no | number |
max_taken_date | query | no | number |
content_type | query | no | number |
privacy_filter | query | no | number |
page | query | no | number |
per_page | query | no | number |
Responses
| Status | Description | Schema |
|---|---|---|
200 | OK | — |
GET/rest?method=flickr.photolist.getContext
Parameters
| Name | In | Required | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
api_key | query | yes | string |
photo_id | query | yes | string |
photolist_id | query | yes | string |
Responses
| Status | Description | Schema |
|---|---|---|
200 | OK | — |
GET/rest?method=flickr.photos.getContext
Parameters
| Name | In | Required | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
api_key | query | yes | string |
photo_id | query | yes | string |
Responses
| Status | Description | Schema |
|---|---|---|
200 | OK | — |
GET/rest?method=flickr.photos.getExif
Parameters
| Name | In | Required | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
api_key | query | yes | string |
photo_id | query | yes | string |
secret | query | no | string |
Responses
| Status | Description | Schema |
|---|---|---|
200 | OK | — |
GET/rest?method=flickr.photos.getInfo
Parameters
| Name | In | Required | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
api_key | query | yes | string |
photo_id | query | yes | string |
Responses
| Status | Description | Schema |
|---|---|---|
200 | a photo | — |
GET/rest?method=flickr.photos.getSizes
Parameters
| Name | In | Required | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
api_key | query | yes | string |
photo_id | query | yes | string |
Responses
| Status | Description | Schema |
|---|---|---|
200 | Photo sizes | — |
GET/rest?method=flickr.photos.licenses.getInfo
Parameters
| Name | In | Required | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
api_key | query | yes | string |
Responses
| Status | Description | Schema |
|---|---|---|
200 | OK | — |
GET/rest?method=flickr.photos.search
Parameters
| Name | In | Required | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
api_key | query | yes | string |
text | query | no | string |
tags | query | no | string |
user_id | query | no | string |
min_upload_date | query | no | string |
max_upload_date | query | no | string |
min_taken_date | query | no | string |
max_taken_date | query | no | string |
license | query | no | string |
sort | query | no | string |
privacy_filter | query | no | number |
bbox | query | no | string |
accuracy | query | no | string |
safe_search | query | no | number |
content_type | query | no | number |
machine_tags | query | no | string |
machine_tag_mode | query | no | string |
group_id | query | no | string |
contacts | query | no | string |
woe_id | query | no | string |
place_id | query | no | string |
media | query | no | string |
has_geo | query | no | string |
geo_context | query | no | string |
lat | query | no | string |
lon | query | no | string |
radius | query | no | number |
radius_units | query | no | string |
is_commons | query | no | boolean |
in_gallery | query | no | boolean |
is_getty | query | no | boolean |
per_page | query | no | number |
page | query | no | number |
Responses
| Status | Description | Schema |
|---|---|---|
200 | OK | — |
GET/rest?method=flickr.photosets.getContext
Parameters
| Name | In | Required | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
api_key | query | yes | string |
photo_id | query | yes | string |
photoset_id | query | no | string |
Responses
| Status | Description | Schema |
|---|---|---|
200 | OK | — |
GET/rest?method=flickr.photosets.getList
Parameters
| Name | In | Required | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
api_key | query | yes | string |
user_id | query | yes | string |
page | query | no | number |
per_page | query | no | number |
Responses
| Status | Description | Schema |
|---|---|---|
200 | OK | — |
GET/rest?method=flickr.photosets.getPhotos
Parameters
| Name | In | Required | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
api_key | query | yes | string |
photoset_id | query | yes | string |
Responses
| Status | Description | Schema |
|---|---|---|
200 | OK | — |
GET/rest?method=flickr.test.echo
Parameters
| Name | In | Required | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
api_key | query | yes | string |
echo | query | no | string |
Responses
| Status | Description | Schema |
|---|---|---|
200 | OK | — |
POST/upload
Request body
multipart/form-data (required)
Responses
| Status | Description | Schema |
|---|---|---|
200 | OK | — |
Try it
Developer reference
Base URL
https://api.flickr.com/servicesRate limit
3,600 queries/hour per API key, aggregated across every user of the integration; keys that exceed it (or otherwise abuse the API) risk suspension. No published higher tier — heavier commercial use requires prior arrangement with Flickr.
Key endpoints
- GET/rest?method=flickr.photos.search
- GET/rest?method=flickr.photos.getInfo
- GET/rest?method=flickr.people.getPhotos
- GET/rest?method=flickr.photosets.getPhotos
- POST/upload