GDP API

Frequently Asked Questions

• Can I use the GDP API for commercial purposes?

  Yes, but you must have a premium subscription. Commercial use of the GDP API is not permitted on the free tier. See our pricing page to choose a plan that fits your needs.

• How do I get an API key and start using the GDP API?

  Sign up for a free account to instantly get your API key, then pass it in the X-Api-Key header on every request. The documentation above includes ready-to-run examples in cURL, Python, JavaScript, Node.js, and more.

• What happens if I exceed my quota for the month?

  Your API requests will simply be denied once you hit your monthly quota — you will never be charged more than the plan you signed up for. To increase your quota, you can upgrade your plan any time on our pricing page.

• What happens if a request to the GDP API fails?

  The API responds with a standard HTTP status code and a JSON error message describing the problem. See our error codes reference for the full list of codes and how to resolve each one, or contact support if you need help.

• How do I look up GDP data for a specific country or year?

  Pass the country parameter as either a country name or 2-letter ISO-3166 alpha-2 code (e.g. Canada or CA), and optionally narrow results with the year parameter; at least one of the two must be set. To resolve country names and codes you can cross-reference the Country API.

• What fields does the GDP API response include?

  Each object in the returned JSON array includes country (3-letter ISO 3166 alpha-3 code), year, gdp_growth (percentage), gdp_nominal and gdp_per_capita_nominal in US dollars, gdp_ppp and gdp_per_capita_ppp at purchasing power parity, and gdp_ppp_share (the country's share of world GDP at PPP). If a request fails, an error is returned instead.

• What are some use cases for the GDP API?

  The API is useful for building economic dashboards, comparing nominal versus PPP output across countries, and powering research tools that track gdp_growth over time. It pairs well with other macroeconomic data such as the Inflation API, Unemployment API, and Population API.

• Does the GDP API provide historical data?

  Yes, it returns both current and historical GDP statistics going back decades (sample data starts in 1980), so omitting the year parameter returns the full time series for a country. See pricing for usage limits across plans.