Lorem Picsum vs Unsplash

Lorem Picsum serves placeholder photos by encoding the size, and optionally a specific image ID or a seed, directly into the request URL — no signup or key required. Every photo comes from Unsplash's library, and query parameters can request a grayscale or blurred variant, a JPEG or WebP file extension, or a random cache-busting suffix for multiple images at one size. A companion /v2/list JSON endpoint returns the full photo catalog with author and dimension metadata for browsing before you hotlink.

Unsplash's JSON API lets apps search, browse, and download from its library of freely licensed photos, returning dynamically resizable image URLs (powered by Imgix) alongside photographer and collection metadata. Nearly all real use is covered by a static Client-ID access key sent via the Authorization header — full OAuth is only needed for a handful of actions performed on a user's behalf, like liking a photo. New applications start in demo mode at 50 requests/hour and can apply for production approval to reach 1,000/hour, with attribution to the photographer and Unsplash required under the Unsplash API Guidelines.