Nobel Prize API

Beginner's Pick Open Data / No Auth Required Beginner HTTPS CORS
Free to Use
88 A
Measured Score 0 50 100 Speed 28/30 Consistency 17/20 Security 20/20 Browser access 15/15 Transparency 8/15 TESTED 2026-08-10

Overview

The Nobel Prize API provides free, open access to data about all Nobel Prize laureates and prize events since 1901. No API key is needed—just send a GET request to retrieve winners, categories, motivations, and biographical details. It is an excellent beginner project for exploring historical data and building timelines or educational tools.

Beginner Tip

Use the Nobel Prize API v2 at https://api.nobelprize.org/2.1/nobelPrizes to list all prizes, or https://api.nobelprize.org/2.1/laureates to search winners by name, country, or year. No authentication is required.

Measurement Record

What actually happened when we called this API from our own infrastructure. Every value below was recorded by the request, not copied from the provider's documentation.

Request
GET https://api.nobelprize.org/2.1/nobelPrizes?limit=5&offset=0
Result
HTTP 200 · application/json · 6,430 bytes · compressed
Response time
37 ms (median of 3) · fastest 35 ms
Transport
TLSv1.3 · TLS_AES_256_GCM_SHA384 · certificate issued by Google Trust Services
Browser CORS
Allowed — Access-Control-Allow-Origin: *
Served by
cloudflare
Recorded
2026-08-10

Fields Returned

Top-level fields present in the response we captured, with the type and value we actually received.

Field Type Value received
nobelPrizes array [1 item]
meta object {6 fields}
links object {4 fields}

Captured Response

Captured from a real request to https://api.nobelprize.org/2.1/nobelPrizes?limit=5&offset=0 on 2026-08-10. Long arrays and nested objects are truncated to keep the shape readable.

JSON Response · Captured
{
  "nobelPrizes": [
    {
      "awardYear": "1901",
      "category": {
        "…": "(3 more fields)"
      },
      "categoryFullName": {
        "…": "(3 more fields)"
      },
      "dateAwarded": "1901-11-12",
      "prizeAmount": 150782,
      "prizeAmountAdjusted": 10833458,
      "links": [
        {
          "…": "(4 more fields)"
        }
      ],
      "laureates": [
        {
          "…": "(7 more fields)"
        }
      ]
    }
  ],
  "meta": {
    "offset": 0,
    "limit": 5,
    "count": 682,
    "terms": "https://www.nobelprize.org/about/terms-of-use-for-api-nobelprize-org-and-data-nobelprize-org/",
    "license": "https://www.nobelprize.org/about/terms-of-use-for-api-nobelprize-org-and-data-nobelprize-org/#licence",
    "disclaimer": "https://www.nobelprize.org/about/terms-of-use-for-api-nobelprize-org-and-data-nobelprize-org/#disclaimer"
  },
  "links": {
    "first": "http://nobel-external-api-app.azurewebsites.net/2.1/nobelPrizes?offset=0&limit=5",
    "self": "http://nobel-external-api-app.azurewebsites.net/2.1/nobelPrizes?offset=0&limit=5",
    "next": "http://nobel-external-api-app.azurewebsites.net/2.1/nobelPrizes?offset=5&limit=5",
    "last": "http://nobel-external-api-app.azurewebsites.net/2.1/nobelPrizes?offset=680&limit=5"
  }
}

Field Reference

nobelPrizes List of Nobel Prize objects grouped by year and category
awardYear The year the prize was awarded
laureates Array of laureate objects who received the prize that year

Implementation Example

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

Request
const url = "https://api.nobelprize.org/2.1/nobelPrizes?limit=5&offset=0";
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.

How This API Fails

We deliberately sent this API a broken request and recorded exactly what came back on 2026-08-10. Knowing the shape of an error before you hit it makes error handling much easier to write.

HTTP 404 Requesting a path that does not exist application/json
{
  "message": "Not found"
}

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.

404 Not Found Requesting a laureate ID or year that does not exist
Verify the ID or year in the laureates or nobelPrizes endpoints first, then fetch by ID
Empty data array Filter parameters returned no matching results
Broaden your search by removing filters like yearTo or category, or check spelling of parameter values
CORS error in browser Browser may block the request depending on how the URL is structured
Ensure you are using https://api.nobelprize.org (not the old nobelprize.org/nobelprizes endpoint) which has CORS enabled

Measured Score Breakdown

Live HTTP request to the API endpoint

Speed 28/30
Consistency 17/20
Security 20/20
Browser access 15/15
Transparency 8/15
Endpoint Response Time 37ms

Fully tested on Aug 10, 2026

Technical Specifications

Auth No Auth
HTTPS REQUIRED
CORS YES
Category Open Data
Difficulty Beginner
Endpoint last called: 2026-08-10

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