GitHub ReadMe Stats API

⭐ Beginner's Pick Open Source Projects / No Auth Required Beginner HTTPS CORS
Free to Use Varies (check documentation)

Overview

GitHub ReadMe Stats is an open-source API that generates dynamic SVG cards showing your GitHub statistics — repos, stars, commits, languages, and more. You embed the image URL in your GitHub profile README and it updates automatically. No authentication is needed for public stats, making it one of the easiest APIs for beginners to try.

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Beginner Tip

You can self-host this API for free on Vercel if the public instance is rate-limited. Just fork the repo and click "Deploy to Vercel" — your own instance handles unlimited requests for your profile.

Available Data

repository name and description
star and fork counts
contributor data
issues and pull requests
commit history
randomly generated data

Example Response

JSON Response
{
  "full_name": "octocat/Hello-World",
  "description": "My first repository on GitHub!",
  "stargazers_count": 1500,
  "forks_count": 320,
  "language": "JavaScript",
  "open_issues_count": 12,
  "created_at": "2011-01-26T19:01:12Z"
}

Field Reference

name GitHub display name of the user
totalStars Total number of stars received across all public repositories
totalCommits Total commit count for the current year across all repositories
totalPRs Total number of pull requests opened by the user
totalIssues Total number of issues opened by the user
contributedTo Number of distinct repositories the user has contributed to

Implementation Example

const url = "https://github.com/anuraghazra/github-readme-stats";
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

SVG shows "Too many requests" The public Vercel instance has a shared rate limit across all users
Deploy your own instance on Vercel using the project's one-click deploy button and use your own GitHub PAT
Stats show 0 or are incomplete The GitHub username is wrong or the account is new with little activity
Double-check the username is correct and that the account has public repositories with recorded activity
SVG not rendering in README The Markdown image syntax is malformed or the URL contains unescaped characters
Use the exact format: ![GitHub Stats](https://github-readme-stats.vercel.app/api?username=YOUR_USERNAME) with no extra spaces

Matrix Score Breakdown

🌐 Reachability 30/30
⚡ Speed 20/20
🔒 Security 15/15
🛠 Developer XP 20/20
✓ Reliability 7/15
Response Time 48ms

Fully tested on Apr 5, 2026

Technical Specifications

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

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