M
API Matrix

AnimeNewsNetwork API

⭐ Beginner's Pick Anime / No Auth Required Beginner HTTPS CORS
Free to Use Varies (check documentation)
74 Score
Grade B
Visit Official Site Compare Alternatives

Overview

Anime News Network exposes its encyclopedia data as a free XML API, covering anime and manga titles, cast, staff, genres, and release information maintained by professional journalists. No API key is required. Use it to build an anime reference tool or to enrich your app with high-quality editorial data.

💡

Beginner Tip

The API returns XML, not JSON. Start with https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/api.php?title=~naruto to search by title — the ~ prefix means "starts with" in their query syntax.

Available Data

article title and content
publication source
published date
article URL
image URL
anime/manga title

Example Response

JSON Response 
{
  "totalArticles": 100,
  "articles": [
    {
      "title": "Tech Industry Sees Record Growth",
      "source": {
        "name": "TechNews",
        "url": "https://technews.com"
      },
      "publishedAt": "2025-01-15T08:00:00Z",
      "description": "The technology sector reported unprecedented growth...",
      "image": "https://example.com/article-image.jpg",
      "url": "https://technews.com/article/123"
    }
  ]
}

Field Reference

ann/anime/@id Unique ANN internal ID for the anime title
ann/anime/@name Official title of the anime as listed on ANN
ann/anime/info[@type=Genres] Comma-separated genre tags such as action or fantasy
ann/anime/info[@type=Vintage] Air date or date range of the series broadcast
ann/anime/ratings/@nb_votes Number of community votes submitted for this title

Implementation Example 

const url = "https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/";
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

Empty ann response element No titles match the search term or the ID does not exist in the encyclopedia
✓ Use the ~ prefix for partial title matches (e.g. ?title=~dragon) or verify the ID on the ANN website first
XML parse error in code Attempting to use a JSON parser on the XML response
✓ Use an XML parser — xml.etree.ElementTree in Python or the fast-xml-parser npm package in Node.js
Rate limited or slow response Sending too many automated requests in quick succession
✓ Add a 1-2 second delay between requests; this API is intended for light, human-paced access

Matrix Score Breakdown

🌐 Reachability 30/30
⚡ Speed 2/20
🔒 Security 15/15
🛠 Developer XP 20/20
✓ Reliability 7/15
Response Time 4336ms

Fully tested on Apr 5, 2026

Technical Specifications

Auth No Auth
HTTPS REQUIRED
CORS YES
Category Anime
Difficulty Beginner
Verified: 2026-04-04

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