PyPI API
A PyPI API looks up Python packages by name and returns one row each: the latest version, the summary, the author, the license, the Python version required, the supported Python versions from the classifiers, the homepage and repository links, the declared keywords and the release count. It is keyless, and it takes a list of names in a single call.
$0.0003 per delivered package · $2 free every month · Failed runs never billed
$ curl $QD/pypi_packages/run \
-H "Authorization: Bearer $QD_API_KEY" \
-d '{"packages": ["requests", "numpy", "fastapi"], "max_results": 3}'
{ "status": "done", "count": 3,
"results": [
{
"name": "…",
"version": "…",
"summary": "…",
"author": "…" } ],
"cost": 0.0009 }
# 3 packages × $0.0003 · nothing delivered, nothing charged
What a PyPI API does
PyPI has no clean JSON search endpoint, so this is a lookup by exact package name rather than a keyword search. Hand it the names you already have — from a requirements file, a dependency graph, a shortlist — and any name that does not resolve comes back under failed rather than being silently dropped from the result.
The metadata that decides whether a package is safe to adopt is buried in PyPI's classifiers and JSON, formatted for a project page. This lifts the latest version, the requires-python spec and the supported Python versions out as their own fields, so a dependency table carries the compatibility columns without you parsing "Programming Language :: Python :: 3.11" strings by hand.
What one package looks like
Every delivered package carries these fields. Nullable means the source did not publish it — the field stays empty instead of being guessed.
| Field | Type | What it holds |
|---|---|---|
rank | integer | 1-based position. |
name | string | Package name. |
version | string · nullable | Latest version. |
summary | string · nullable | Short summary. |
author | string · nullable | Author. |
license | string · nullable | License. |
requires_python | string · nullable | Required Python version spec. |
homepage | string · nullable | Homepage URL. |
repository | string · nullable | Source repository URL. |
keywords | string[] | Declared keywords. |
python_versions | string[] | Supported Python versions (classifiers). |
release_count | integer · nullable | Number of releases. |
url | string | PyPI project URL. |
Inputs
The whole request. Anything you leave out falls back to the default shown in the catalog.
| Input | Type | Required | What it does |
|---|---|---|---|
packages | array | yes | PyPI package names, e.g. requests, numpy. |
max_results | integer | no | How many packages to deliver at most (1–50). You pay only for delivered packages. |
Pricing
PyPI API pricing
$0.0003 per delivered package. A run that delivers nothing costs nothing: blocked pages, challenges and retries are on us, and the $2 monthly allowance covers about 6,666 packages before you spend anything.
Pay as you go
- $2 free credit / month
- 60 requests / min
- List unit prices
Starter
- $15 free credit / month
- 300 requests / min
- 10% off unit prices
Growth
- $50 free credit / month
- 600 requests / min
- 20% off unit prices
Scale
- $250 free credit / month
- 1,200 requests / min
- 30% off unit prices
Same wallet, same key and same $2 monthly allowance as every other Data API. Prices are launch pricing read live from the billing config — GET /v1/scraper/collectors returns the price your key actually pays.
Integration
One POST, typed rows
Base URL https://api.quanticdata.io/v1, Bearer auth, the same key as every other Data API. Endpoint: POST /v1/.
curl -X POST https://api.quanticdata.io/v1/scraper/collectors/pypi_packages/run \
-H "Authorization: Bearer $QD_API_KEY" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{"packages":["requests","numpy","fastapi"],"max_results":3}'
What people build with the PyPI API
Three shapes of work this endpoint was designed around.
Dependency audits
Feed a requirements list in and get the latest version, license and Python support for each package as a row — the table an upgrade or compliance review starts from.
License inventories
The license field across a package list turns a dependency tree into a license column, so a review can flag the ones that need a closer look.
Version monitoring
Look up the packages you ship on a schedule and the latest version on each row tells you which dependencies have moved since the last check.
PyPI API versus rolling your own
The differences that actually cost time when you build this in-house.
| DIY scraper | This collector | |
|---|---|---|
| Query | Hope for a keyword search PyPI does not offer | A lookup by exact name, a whole list at a time |
| Compatibility | Parse Python support out of classifier strings | requires-python and versions as their own fields |
| Missing names | A silent gap in the results | Reported under failed, never dropped quietly |
Can I search PyPI by keyword?
No — PyPI exposes no clean JSON search endpoint, so this is a lookup by package name. You pass the names you already have and each resolves to a row of metadata; it does not discover packages from a topic word.
How do I get the latest version of a package?
Pass the package name and the version field on the returned row is its latest release, alongside release_count so you can see how many versions preceded it.
What happens if a package name does not exist?
It is reported under failed rather than dropped, so a lookup over a list tells you exactly which names resolved and which did not.
Is there a free PyPI API?
Every account gets $2 of credit every month with no card, which is about 6,666 delivered packages on this endpoint at $0.0003 each. It renews monthly, and a run that delivers nothing is never billed — so a failed or blocked attempt does not eat the allowance.
How much does one run cost?
Multiply the rows you actually receive by $0.0003. A run capped at 50 packages — the maximum for this collector — costs $0.015 if every row comes back, and less when the source has fewer. Volume tiers take up to 30% off, and GET /v1/scraper/collectors returns the price your key actually pays.
Run the PyPI API now
$2 of free credit every month, no card. Your key returns its own prices from GET /v1/scraper/collectors.