Overview

The Hebcal API provides free Jewish calendar data including Hebrew date conversions, Shabbat candle-lighting times, Jewish holidays, and weekly Torah portion readings. It requires no API key and accepts latitude/longitude for location-specific Shabbat times. Responses can be returned as JSON or iCal format.

Beginner Tip

No API key needed. For Shabbat times, use the /shabbat endpoint with a city parameter, e.g., https://www.hebcal.com/shabbat?cfg=json&geo=city&city=NYC. For date conversion, use the /converter endpoint.

Available Data

The kind of data this API exposes, based on its documentation. We could not call the endpoint to confirm the exact field names.

event dates and names
holiday lists by country
date metadata

Example Response

Illustrative shape only — we were not able to call this endpoint (it requires credentials or exposes no public sample URL), so the fields below show the kind of data this API returns rather than a recorded response.

JSON Response · Illustrative
{
  "status": "success",
  "data": {
    "result": "Data from Hebrew Calendar",
    "description": "Convert between Gregorian and Hebrew, fetch Shabbat and Holiday times, etc",
    "timestamp": "2025-01-15T10:00:00Z"
  }
}

Field Reference

location.title Human-readable location name used for candle-lighting time calculations.
items[].title Name of the event, e.g., "Candle lighting: 4:11pm" or "Parashat Vayigash".
items[].date ISO 8601 date (or datetime) of the event.
items[].category Event type: "candles", "havdalah", "holiday", or "parashat".
items[].hebrew Hebrew-language name of the event or holiday.

Implementation Example

Calls a real endpoint of this API. Replace any placeholder credentials with your own key.

Request
const url = "https://www.hebcal.com/shabbat?cfg=json&geo=city&city=NYC";
const response = await fetch(url);
if (!response.ok) throw new Error(`Request failed: ${response.status}`);
const data = await response.json();
console.log(data);

What Can You Build?

Note: These code examples are AI-generated and unverified. Always refer to the official API documentation for accurate usage.

Common Errors & Troubleshooting

Generated guidance based on this API's documentation, not observed by us. Treat it as a starting point and check against the provider's own error reference.

Incorrect or missing Shabbat times No location specified or geo parameter missing
Pass explicit latitude and longitude with timezone: &latitude=40.6892&longitude=-74.0445&tzid=America/New_York.
Wrong Hebrew year returned Mixing up Gregorian-to-Hebrew and Hebrew-to-Gregorian conversion modes
Set g2h=1 for Gregorian-to-Hebrew conversion, or h2g=1 for Hebrew-to-Gregorian. Never combine both flags.
Empty items array Querying a date with no holiday or event
Most days have no holiday; include Torah readings by adding &lg=s for the weekly Parashat HaShavua portion.

Metadata Score Breakdown

Estimated from metadata — endpoint not independently tested

This score is estimated from observable metadata — HTTPS support, authentication model, declared CORS, and documentation reachability — because the API requires authentication or exposes no publicly testable endpoint. The five-signal breakdown is only shown for live-tested APIs.

Metadata estimate · endpoint not independently tested

Technical Specifications

Auth No Auth
HTTPS NO
CORS UNKNOWN
Category Calendar
Difficulty Beginner
Listing details not endpoint-verified

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