HTTP Cat API

Beginner's Pick Animals / No Auth Required Beginner HTTPS CORS

Free to Use

92 A+

Metadata Score Metadata estimate · not endpoint-tested

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Overview

HTTP Cat returns a cat-themed image for any HTTP status code via a simple URL pattern. No auth needed—just use https://http.cat/404 as an img src for playful error pages.

Beginner Tip

This is an image API, not JSON. The response is a JPEG—use the URL as an img src attribute rather than trying to parse it as JSON.

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.

cat image URLs

breed information

cat-specific data

Use case: Integrate cat for every http status data into web and mobile applications

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

{
  "name": "HTTP Cat",
  "data": "HTTP Cat-specific information and attributes",
  "source": "HTTP Cat"
}

Field Reference

(image binary) JPEG image of a cat themed around the HTTP status code—use the URL directly as an img src

Implementation Example

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

Request

const url = "https://http.cat/404";
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.

Trying to JSON.parse the response Expecting JSON but the API returns image/jpeg content type

✓ Use the URL directly as an image source in an img tag

404 for obscure status codes Not all HTTP status codes have a cat image available

✓ Test your status code first; fall back to 200 or 404 if the code has no image

Image blocked by CSP Content Security Policy blocking external image sources

✓ Add http.cat to your CSP img-src directive or download images to serve locally

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

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