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FoodData Central vs Healthcare.gov

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

APIFoodData CentralHEALTHY76Healthcare.govHEALTHY92
Uptime · 30d
Uptime · 90d98.0%96.1%
Uptime · 30d96.7%93.3%
P50 · ms1726420
P95 · ms34531696
AuthapiKeynone
CORSyesno
HTTPSyesyes
Card requirednono
Commercial useunclearyes
Data licenseUnverifiedU.S. Government content (CMS)
Free tierFree tier — API key may be required for productionFree — no key required
Rate limit10 req/window · 9 remainingUnpublished
In directory since2026-07-052026-07-05
operationalpartialdownno data

FoodData Central vs Healthcare.gov: common questions

Which is more reliable, FoodData Central or Healthcare.gov?

On our scheduled checks, FoodData Central leads on measured uptime — FoodData Central at 98.0% versus Healthcare.gov at 96.1% over 90 days. These are our own probe results, not provider claims; the uptime bars above show the day-by-day record for both.

Which is faster, FoodData Central or Healthcare.gov?

Healthcare.gov has the lower median latency in our checks — FoodData Central responds in 1726 ms versus Healthcare.gov at 420 ms (P50). Tail latency (P95) is in the table above; for most workloads the median is the number that shapes how the API feels.

Do FoodData Central and Healthcare.gov need an API key?

Healthcare.gov needs no key, while FoodData Central requires a free API key. If you want to start calling without signup, reach for Healthcare.gov first.

Can I call FoodData Central and Healthcare.gov from the browser?

Only FoodData Central is browser-friendly — it returns CORS headers over HTTPS. Healthcare.gov needs a server-side call or proxy, so factor that into which one fits a front-end project.

Are FoodData Central and Healthcare.gov free for commercial use?

FoodData Central has unclear commercial terms, and Healthcare.gov allows commercial use on its free tier. 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.