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ONS vs Open Government, ACT

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

APIONSNEW—Open Government, ACTNEW—
Uptime · 30d
Uptime · 90d—%—%
Uptime · 30d—%—%
P50 · ms——
P95 · ms——
Authnonenone
CORSyesyes
HTTPSyesyes
Card requirednono
Commercial useunclearunclear
Data licenseUnverifiedPer-dataset
Free tierFree — limits not publishedFree — app token optional (raises limits)
Rate limitUnpublishedThrottled; higher limits with a free Socrata app token
In directory since2026-07-052026-07-05
operationalpartialdownno data

ONS vs Open Government, ACT: common questions

Which is more reliable, ONS or Open Government, ACT?

On our scheduled checks, Open Government, ACT leads on measured uptime — ONS at —% versus Open Government, ACT 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 ONS and Open Government, ACT need an API key?

Neither needs a paid key — ONS is callable with no signup, and Open Government, ACT is callable with no signup. Both are quick to prototype with; rate limits still apply.

Can I call ONS and Open Government, ACT from the browser?

Yes — both ONS and Open Government, ACT 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 ONS and Open Government, ACT free for commercial use?

ONS has unclear commercial terms, and Open Government, ACT 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.