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FoodData Central vs Open Brewery DB

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

APIFoodData CentralUNMONITORED—Open Brewery DBNEW—
Uptime · 30d
Uptime · 90d—%—%
Uptime · 30d—%—%
P50 · ms——
P95 · ms——
AuthapiKeynone
CORSyesyes
HTTPSyesyes
Card requirednono
Commercial useunclearunclear
Data licenseUnverifiedUnverified (open dataset)
Free tierFree tier — API key may be required for productionFree — no key
Rate limitUnpublished120 req/window · 114 remaining
In directory since2026-07-052026-07-05
operationalpartialdownno data

FoodData Central vs Open Brewery DB: common questions

Which is more reliable, FoodData Central or Open Brewery DB?

Only Open Brewery DB is on our probe schedule so far (—% uptime over 90 days). The other is catalogued but not yet live-checked, so we can't compare measured reliability head-to-head — check the uncovered API's own status page for now.

Do FoodData Central and Open Brewery DB need an API key?

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

Can I call FoodData Central and Open Brewery DB from the browser?

Yes — both FoodData Central and Open Brewery DB send CORS headers over HTTPS, so front-end code can fetch either directly with no backend proxy. That makes them easy to swap in a client-side app while you compare responses.

Are FoodData Central and Open Brewery DB free for commercial use?

FoodData Central has unclear commercial terms, and Open Brewery DB 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.