# Visual Crossing

> visualcrossing.com | Data APIs; 1 record: free tier, limits, identity cost and evidence.

HTML https://fshy.ajam.dev/p/visualcrossing/ | JSON https://fshy.ajam.dev/api/v1/entity/visualcrossing.json | how to read a record: https://fshy.ajam.dev/llms-full.txt

## Visual Crossing

- `data-apis/visual-crossing` | qualifies-with-caveat | evidence documented | binding volume-quota | category weather API | tier free
- needs card no, phone no, ID no, institution no | verified 2026-11-03T00:27:15.391Z (live) | stale on 2026-12-04
- url https://www.visualcrossing.com/weather-data-editions/
- free tier: Free account: 1,000 weather records a day (30,000 a month) through the Timeline Weather API and the Query Builder, with forecasts, current conditions and 50+ years of history; 1,000 records and 5 locations per query, 1 concurrent request, and 10,000 weather map requests a month. | unit: mixed | metered on: object-count | read on: 2026-10-31 | source: [1] | note: The allowance is counted in weather records: each history record returned counts as one record and a single 15-day forecast query counts as one. Bulk path: Query Builder datasets of up to 1,000 records and 5 locations each on Free, with no dataset scheduling.
- per-object cap: 1,000 records and 5 locations per API query; 1,000 records and 5 locations per Query Builder dataset | source: [1]
- retention: not applicable: the unit is a record returned | source: [1]
- egress: not applicable | metered: no | source: [1]
- identity: email | detail: An account is opened with an email address as the username, a validation code emailed to that address, a password and a checked box accepting the terms; the API key is shown when the account is created and stays on the account page.
- interface: rest
- limits:
  - volume-quota (binding): 1,000 records a day (30,000 a month) [1]
  - per-object-cap: 1,000 records and 5 locations per API query [1]
  - request-rate: 1 concurrent API request [1]
  - request-rate: 10,000 weather map requests a month [1]
  - per-object-cap: Query Builder datasets: 1,000 records and 5 locations each, no scheduling [1]
  - per-ip-shaping: Keyless Timeline calls need no API key or account registration; usage is managed per client IP address under fair-use controls and no fixed request allowance is published [2]
  - per-object-cap: Keyless queries: a maximum query cost of 48 records; a query that would cost 49 is refused with HTTP 401 and the message to split it into smaller queries [3]
- binding note: 1,000 records a day binds: each daily or hourly history row is one record (24 records for a day of hourly data at one location) and a full 15-day forecast for one location is one record, so 1,000 forecast calls a day for one location fit the same allowance.
- interface detail: Timeline Weather API over HTTP: parameters go in the query string or in a POST query; a registered account's key goes in the key parameter and supported free requests need no key; contentType selects json, flatjson or csv answers
- endpoint: https://weather.visualcrossing.com/VisualCrossingWebServices/rest/services/timeline/
- tooling: A keyless request must send Accept-Encoding: gzip; without it the API refuses the request with the text "Bad API Request:Anonymous requests require gzip response support. Send Accept-Encoding: gzip."
- composes with: A history-heavy source: one call returns daily or hourly history, current conditions and a 15-day forecast for a location, so 1,000 locations of forecasts or 1,000 rows of history fit in a day.
- reliability: Fair use: an account past the day's fair usage answers HTTP 429 and is held to one concurrent request for the rest of the day; extreme cases are suspended until support restores the account.
- notes: Bulk path: Query Builder datasets, 1,000 records and 5 locations each on Free. Past the free records, the Metered plan bills USD 0.0001 a record.
- evidence note: The plan table was read from the raw pricing HTML and the free-plan, record and fair-use pages; the keyed free plan was not exercised. A burst of 90 parallel keyless Timeline calls from one address answered HTTP 200 for every call; the request count or window at which a keyless address is refused is unverified.
- evidence:
  - [1] 2026-10-31: the Free column allows 30,000 records a month at 1,000 a day | capture: sha256:7259b867100896a406bdb2af0783a6baa9a9a9a442c5ad4c3184901bc2e40c7c | quote: <div class="vc-limit-main">30,000</div> <div class="vc-limit-sub">1,000 records/day</div>
  - [4] 2026-10-31: the free plan allows up to 1,000 records a day | capture: sha256:0668c76df64629d0e5ae5bd97eeb978c2c805530c7a663dbbf9c62bdfe6d2197 | quote: | API Requests | Up to 1,000 [records](https://www.visualcrossing.com/resources/documentation/weather-data/what-exactly-is-a-weather-record/) per day |
  - [1] 2026-10-31: the Free column allows 1,000 records per API query | capture: sha256:7259b867100896a406bdb2af0783a6baa9a9a9a442c5ad4c3184901bc2e40c7c | quote: <td><a href="#record-limits">Records/API Query</a></td> <td class="text-center vc-free-col">1,000</td>
  - [1] 2026-10-31: the Free column allows 5 locations per API query | capture: sha256:7259b867100896a406bdb2af0783a6baa9a9a9a442c5ad4c3184901bc2e40c7c | quote: <td><a href="#record-limits">Locations/API Query</a></td> <td class="text-center vc-free-col">5</td>
  - [1] 2026-10-31: the Free column allows 1 concurrent API request | capture: sha256:7259b867100896a406bdb2af0783a6baa9a9a9a442c5ad4c3184901bc2e40c7c | quote: <td><a href="#record-limits">Maximum API Concurrency</a></td> <td class="text-center vc-free-col">1</td>
  - [1] 2026-10-31: the Free column allows 10,000 weather map requests a month | capture: sha256:7259b867100896a406bdb2af0783a6baa9a9a9a442c5ad4c3184901bc2e40c7c | quote: <td><a href="#">Monthly Request Limit</a></td> <td class="text-center vc-free-col">10,000</td>
  - [1] 2026-10-31: a Free Query Builder dataset holds up to 1,000 records | capture: sha256:7259b867100896a406bdb2af0783a6baa9a9a9a442c5ad4c3184901bc2e40c7c | quote: <td><a href="#bulk-limits">Records/dataset</a></td> <td class="text-center vc-free-col">1,000</td>
  - [1] 2026-10-31: a Free Query Builder dataset holds up to 5 locations | capture: sha256:7259b867100896a406bdb2af0783a6baa9a9a9a442c5ad4c3184901bc2e40c7c | quote: <td><a href="#bulk-limits">Locations/dataset</a</td> <td class="text-center vc-free-col">5</td>
  - [1] 2026-10-31: Query Builder datasets are the bulk path | capture: sha256:934b2a304d17768339d47adc3d6477fd96b9cbdd8ac112b4472c313ae0efbc76 | quote: Bulk datasets can include multiple locations across multiple days or hours and are perfect for populating data lakes or databases.
  - [1] 2026-10-31:  | capture: sha256:934b2a304d17768339d47adc3d6477fd96b9cbdd8ac112b4472c313ae0efbc76
  - [5] 2026-10-31: a 15-day forecast for one location is one record | capture: sha256:5caa1f6f8de87bd217cc7222e7ca807d56513a49f46720fe24f3d798e9041bd7 | quote: A full 15-day forecast for one location counts as a single record.
  - [5] 2026-10-31: each row of history is one record | capture: sha256:5caa1f6f8de87bd217cc7222e7ca807d56513a49f46720fe24f3d798e9041bd7 | quote: One weather history record is defined as a single row of history data.
  - [6] 2026-10-31: past fair usage the account is held to one concurrent request for the day | capture: sha256:e459e5bcfd942001ffc038abaecce912294b83eeb4b695a57afb335a8c776360 | quote: Your usage has exceeded the fair usage for the current day. You can continue to execute queries however you cannot execute more than one concurrent request.
  - [7] 2026-10-31: the sign-up form asks for an account email | capture: sha256:55520962329ec1aaeb97b0bf582bf58b58f6224c6519318d916bfbf9b7fa87d2 | quote: Account Email
  - [8] 2026-10-31: the key is issued on the account page | capture: sha256:8da4b892698b2f1d556060a42b8bf32b1990cbe2949c5dc5e69d131478c0033a | quote: Your API key is available from your [account page](https://www.visualcrossing.com/account/) and is used to authenticate each Weather API request.
  - [4] 2026-10-31: the free plan authenticates with an API key | capture: sha256:0668c76df64629d0e5ae5bd97eeb978c2c805530c7a663dbbf9c62bdfe6d2197 | quote: | Authentication | API Key |
  - [4] 2026-10-31: the free plan reaches more than 50 years of history | capture: sha256:0668c76df64629d0e5ae5bd97eeb978c2c805530c7a663dbbf9c62bdfe6d2197 | quote: | Historical Coverage | More than 50 years of historical weather data |
  - [4] 2026-10-31: the free plan includes the Query Builder and the full Weather API | capture: sha256:0668c76df64629d0e5ae5bd97eeb978c2c805530c7a663dbbf9c62bdfe6d2197 | quote: | API Access | Query Builder and Full Weather API |
  - [4] 2026-10-31: the key goes in the key query parameter | capture: sha256:0668c76df64629d0e5ae5bd97eeb978c2c805530c7a663dbbf9c62bdfe6d2197 | quote: https://weather.visualcrossing.com/VisualCrossingWebServices/rest/services/timeline/London?key=YOUR_API_KEY
  - [2] 2026-10-31: the Timeline API takes GET or POST | capture: sha256:e5336750428f2a539da14499520d21ec6606ff6398c937cd334d72b5a02887ec | quote: The API also supports HTTP POST requests.
  - [2] 2026-10-31: answers come as JSON, flat JSON or CSV | capture: sha256:e5336750428f2a539da14499520d21ec6606ff6398c937cd334d72b5a02887ec | quote: Visual Crossing offers JSON, Flat JSON, and CSV, data formats.
  - [6] 2026-10-31: extreme fair-use cases are suspended | capture: sha256:e459e5bcfd942001ffc038abaecce912294b83eeb4b695a57afb335a8c776360
  - [9] 2026-10-31: past 1,000 free records a day, pay-as-you-go costs USD 0.0001 a record | capture: sha256:d76909361e413ce91971f3319031008156b9f645313402322be94d0d21b342f1 | quote: our prices start at free up to 1000 records per day, are only $0.0001 per record for pay-as-you-go access
  - [10] 2026-10-31: listed under Weather in the public-apis list with an apiKey | capture: sha256:7c0d65a75227ba9bd3f8576a39262f7af32373d3eca4190cd91e66329ca1d059 | quote: | [Visual Crossing](https://www.visualcrossing.com/weather-api) | Global historical and weather forecast data | `apiKey` | Yes | Yes |
  - [11] 2026-11-02: a registered account is opened with an email address as the username | capture: sha256:d1df8d8bfb7236b316d5748508032b72777c30374590ddd8bbc8bf68d9c4629a | quote: Enter a valid email as your username and hit continue.
  - [1] 2026-11-02: the Free column allows 30,000 records a month at 1,000 records a day | capture: sha256:73f23f83c9e7827be76352ffa121866c1290813eae749911b0bd261e7ff30332 | quote: <div class="vc-limit-main">30,000</div> <div class="vc-limit-sub">1,000 records/day</div>
  - [6] 2026-11-02: past the day's fair usage an account is held to one concurrent request | capture: sha256:e459e5bcfd942001ffc038abaecce912294b83eeb4b695a57afb335a8c776360 | quote: Your usage has exceeded the fair usage for the current day. You can continue to execute queries however you cannot execute more than one concurrent request.
  - [12] 2026-11-02: the Timeline Weather API is a REST endpoint | capture: sha256:b27e6998a90016bf6bc706ce56e4a1b2682497380ca8c149a03f159c4d5c784c | quote: The Visual Crossing Timeline Weather API is the primary REST endpoint for retrieving historical weather, current conditions, and forecast data through a single consistent API.
  - [13] 2026-11-02: the registered free tier carries up to 1,000 records a day and needs no credit card at signup; the same page lists the keyless lane with no fixed allowance | capture: sha256:739c95d94490c0362960698e4869826e553a14a8c18e27cd7af54c8062596ef7 | quote: Registered free tier: up to 1,000 records per day with an API key and no credit card required for signup.
  - [11] 2026-11-02: the account email receives a validation code during sign-up | capture: sha256:d1df8d8bfb7236b316d5748508032b72777c30374590ddd8bbc8bf68d9c4629a | quote: A validation email code will be sent to the email address that you provide.
  - [1] 2026-11-02: a single 15-day forecast query counts as one record and each history record returned counts as one | capture: sha256:73f23f83c9e7827be76352ffa121866c1290813eae749911b0bd261e7ff30332 | quote: Note that A single 15-day forecast query counts as a single Query Result while each history record returned counts as a Query Result.
  - [5] 2026-11-02: a forecast for the same location can be requested 1000 times a day on the Free plan, one record each | capture: sha256:5caa1f6f8de87bd217cc7222e7ca807d56513a49f46720fe24f3d798e9041bd7 | quote: This means that you can get a forecast for 1000 different locations or for the same location 1000 times per day every day without any cost ever on our Free plan.
  - [12] 2026-11-02: the Timeline parameters are HTTP query parameters that may also be passed in a POST query | capture: sha256:b27e6998a90016bf6bc706ce56e4a1b2682497380ca8c149a03f159c4d5c784c | quote: The following are specified as HTTP query parameters (they may also be passed in a POST query).
  - probe:https://weather.visualcrossing.com/VisualCrossingWebServices/rest/services/timeline/London,UK?unitGroup=metric 2026-11-02: an anonymous request without Accept-Encoding: gzip is refused with a message to send it | capture: sha256:1b0bd3b73033a6038603cdec0109cfdc7340ee4531c7a0fc6417a880ca825f03 | quote: Bad API Request:Anonymous requests require gzip response support. Send Accept-Encoding: gzip.
  - probe:https://weather.visualcrossing.com/VisualCrossingWebServices/rest/services/timeline/London,UK?unitGroup=metric&include=current 2026-11-02: a burst of 90 parallel keyless Timeline calls ran with no error in any call; the record lists a status of 200 for each | capture: sha256:4c2b2f4c72af5929d606dc64e022b18bfabf4fae685b21362a27f4c44e920d9d | quote: "error": null, "probed_at": "2026-11-02T10:30:57.234Z", "probe_version": "1.0.0", "mode": "concurrency", "concurrency": 90,
  - [2] 2026-11-02: no fixed request allowance is published for the keyless lane, whose usage is managed per client IP address | capture: sha256:e5336750428f2a539da14499520d21ec6606ff6398c937cd334d72b5a02887ec | quote: We do not currently publish a fixed request allowance, and the available limits may change.
  - [3] 2026-11-02: a keyless query costing 49 records is refused: the maximum query cost for the account is 48 | capture: sha256:506c343b702cee7c9078ba1379dfea8877a4749751d8ffc6c174d02ac5abcc86 | quote: This query size (49) exceeds the maximum query cost for your account (48). Please split your query into smaller queries.
  - [13] 2026-11-02: keyless Timeline calls need no signup or account registration | capture: sha256:739c95d94490c0362960698e4869826e553a14a8c18e27cd7af54c8062596ef7 | quote: No signup or account registration required.
  - [9] 2026-11-02: keyless use needs no API key, signup or credit card | capture: sha256:d76909361e413ce91971f3319031008156b9f645313402322be94d0d21b342f1 | quote: Start using the API immediately — no API key, signup, or credit card required.
  - probe:https://weather.visualcrossing.com/VisualCrossingWebServices/rest/services/timeline/London,UK?unitGroup=metric 2026-11-02: a keyless Timeline request sent without Accept-Encoding: gzip answered HTTP 400 | capture: sha256:ba66ab4754cb5a1ced0d2051a027c0f27bcec0abfa65f4809305fe7421535f96 | quote: "status": 400
  - probe:https://weather.visualcrossing.com/VisualCrossingWebServices/rest/services/timeline/London,UK?unitGroup=metric 2026-11-02: a keyless Timeline call that sent Accept-Encoding: gzip answered HTTP 200 | capture: sha256:182427ac7d25b4e3b7acc41865cf7d63fb5b7ad66c0934e4b21fa645d0a5f38e | quote: "status": 200
  - probe:https://weather.visualcrossing.com/VisualCrossingWebServices/rest/services/timeline/London,UK/2025-03-02/2025-03-03?unitGroup=metric&include=hours&elements=datetime,temp 2026-11-02: a burst of 90 parallel keyless calls, each for two days of hourly data, ran with no error in any call | capture: sha256:6a0042373a386ad47d3a58f1bc754c8650b1e024f8519e7448e7c180b6cf04d5 | quote: "error": null, "probed_at": "2026-11-02T10:51:04.861Z", "probe_version": "1.0.0", "mode": "concurrency", "concurrency": 90,
  - [14] 2026-11-02: the sign-up form's Website input is bound to a variable named honeypot | capture: sha256:c946cd045ab466390c0be717801cde9becc6715dec0e8f1eb0c8cbd6beade955 | quote: "onUpdate:modelValue": t[5] || (t[5] = (l) => n.honeypot = l),
- sources:
  - [1] https://www.visualcrossing.com/weather-data-editions/
  - [2] https://www.visualcrossing.com/resources/documentation/weather-api/free-weather-api-no-key/
  - [3] https://weather.visualcrossing.com/VisualCrossingWebServices/rest/services/timeline/London,UK/2025-01-01/2025-02-18?unitGroup=metric&include=days&elements=datetime,temp
  - [4] https://www.visualcrossing.com/resources/documentation/visual-crossing-weather-free-plan-free-weather-data-for-analysts-and-api-developers/
  - [5] https://www.visualcrossing.com/resources/documentation/weather-data/what-exactly-is-a-weather-record/
  - [6] https://www.visualcrossing.com/resources/documentation/weather-api/understanding-the-fair-use-system-in-visual-crossing-weather/
  - [7] https://www.visualcrossing.com/sign-up/
  - [8] https://www.visualcrossing.com/resources/documentation/weather-api/how-do-i-get-started-with-the-weather-api
  - [9] https://www.visualcrossing.com/weather-api/
  - [10] https://raw.githubusercontent.com/public-apis/public-apis/master/README.md
  - [11] https://www.visualcrossing.com/resources/documentation/weather-data/how-to-sign-up-for-a-weather-data-weather-api-account/
  - [12] https://www.visualcrossing.com/resources/documentation/weather-api/timeline-weather-api/
  - [13] https://www.visualcrossing.com/llms.txt
  - [14] https://www.visualcrossing.com/wp-content/plugins/visualcrossing-dashboards/dist/UnitGroupDropdown-BeZkmj5h.js