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Chronicling America vs Microlink.io

Same instrument, two spec sheets — measured, not claimed.

APIChronicling AmericaNEW—Microlink.ioNEW—
Uptime · 30d
Uptime · 90d—%—%
Uptime · 30d—%—%
P50 · ms——
P95 · ms——
Authnonenone
CORSnoyes
HTTPSyesyes
Card requirednono
Commercial useyesunclear
Data licensePublic domain / no known copyright (Library of Congress)N/A — returns metadata extracted from the URL you pass
Free tierFree — public-domain collection dataFree tier — no key required (Pro plans need a key)
Rate limitLoC throttles heavy crawling (see LoC API policy)Free tier is rate-limited per day (see pricing)
In directory since2026-07-052026-07-05
operationalpartialdownno data

Chronicling America vs Microlink.io: common questions

Which is more reliable, Chronicling America or Microlink.io?

On our scheduled checks, Microlink.io leads on measured uptime — Chronicling America at —% versus Microlink.io at —% over 90 days. These are our own probe results, not provider claims; the uptime bars above show the day-by-day record for both.

Do Chronicling America and Microlink.io need an API key?

Neither needs a paid key — Chronicling America is callable with no signup, and Microlink.io is callable with no signup. Both are quick to prototype with; rate limits still apply.

Can I call Chronicling America and Microlink.io from the browser?

Only Microlink.io is browser-friendly — it returns CORS headers over HTTPS. Chronicling America needs a server-side call or proxy, so factor that into which one fits a front-end project.

Are Chronicling America and Microlink.io free for commercial use?

Chronicling America allows commercial use on its free tier, and Microlink.io has unclear commercial terms. We track service terms and the data license as separate fields — see the Commercial use and Data license rows above, and confirm both before shipping either in a paid product.