REST Countries vs SnapshotAPI

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

Uptime · 30d
Uptime · 90d100%6.9%
Uptime · 30d100%0.0%
P50 · ms328396
P95 · ms1189547
AuthnoneapiKey
CORSnono
HTTPSyesyes
Card requirednono
Commercial useyesunclear
Data licenseMPL-2.0Unverified
Free tierUnlimitedFree tier — API key required
Rate limitNone publishedUnpublished
In directory since2026-05-022026-07-05
operationalpartialdownno data

REST Countries vs SnapshotAPI: common questions

Which is more reliable, REST Countries or SnapshotAPI?

On our scheduled checks, REST Countries leads on measured uptime — REST Countries at 100% versus SnapshotAPI at 6.9% 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, REST Countries or SnapshotAPI?

REST Countries has the lower median latency in our checks — REST Countries responds in 328 ms versus SnapshotAPI at 396 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 REST Countries and SnapshotAPI need an API key?

REST Countries needs no key, while SnapshotAPI requires a free API key. If you want to start calling without signup, reach for REST Countries first.

Can I call REST Countries and SnapshotAPI from the browser?

Neither sends browser-friendly CORS headers reliably, so call REST Countries and SnapshotAPI from a server or proxy rather than client-side. The CORS and HTTPS rows above show exactly what we detected for each.

Are REST Countries and SnapshotAPI free for commercial use?

REST Countries allows commercial use on its free tier, and SnapshotAPI 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.