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Hex.pm API

Free Hex.pm API with no key: Elixir and Erlang package metadata, releases, download counts, dependencies and documentation links. Tested curl example.

No API key requiredHTTPSFree tier

Endpoint tested and returned HTTP 200 on 2026-08-20

What is the Hex.pm API?

The Hex.pm API is the free, key-free registry API for Elixir and Erlang packages, providing package metadata, every release, download statistics, dependencies and documentation links.

Hex is the package manager for the BEAM ecosystem, serving both Elixir and Erlang. Its API exposes package metadata, the full release history and download counts split by period.

The download breakdown into `all`, `recent` and `week` is more useful than a single total: a package with high all-time but low recent downloads is likely being abandoned, which a cumulative figure would hide entirely.

Quick facts

Base URL
https://hex.pm/api
Authentication
No API key for public package reads. Publishing requires an auth key.
Rate limit
100 requests per minute per IP for anonymous access.
Pricing
Free.
CORS
Not enabled — call it from your server
Official docs
Read the docs

How to use the Hex.pm API

Every request below was executed against the live API on 2026-08-20, and the response shown is the real body it returned — not an illustration.

1. Fetch an Elixir package

GET https://hex.pm/api/packages/phoenix

curl
curl 'https://hex.pm/api/packages/phoenix'
JavaScript (fetch)
const res = await fetch("https://hex.pm/api/packages/phoenix");
if (!res.ok) throw new Error(`Request failed: ${res.status}`);
const data = await res.json();
console.log(data);
Python (requests)
import requests

res = requests.get("https://hex.pm/api/packages/phoenix", timeout=20)
res.raise_for_status()
print(res.json())
Response — HTTP 200 (truncated)
{
  "meta": {
    "links": {
      "Changelog": "https://phoenix.hexdocs.pm/changelog.html",
      "GitHub": "https://github.com/phoenixframework/phoenix"
    },
    "description": "Peace of mind from prototype to production",
    "licenses": [
      "MIT"
    ],
    "maintainers": []
  },
  "name": "phoenix",
  "url": "https://hex.pm/api/packages/phoenix",
  "owners": [
    {
      "url": "https://hex.pm/api/users/chrismccord",
      "username": "chrismccord",
      "email": "chris@chrismccord.com"
    },
    {
      "url": "https://hex.pm/api/users/gazler",
      "username": "gazler",
      "email": "gazler@gmail.com"
    },
    {
      "url": "https://hex.pm/api/users/jeregrine",
      "username": "jeregrine",
      "email": "stiebs.81@gmail.com"
    },
    {
      "url": "https://hex.pm/api/users/josevalim",
      "username": "josevalim",
      "email": "jose.valim@gmail.com"
    },
    {
      "url": "https://hex.pm/api/users/steffend",
      "username": "steffend"
    }
  ],
  "inserted_at": "2014-04-21T22:38:32.000000Z",
  "updated_at": "2026-08-18T09:57:44.311616Z",
  "repository": "hexpm",
  "releases": [
    {
      "version": "1.8.11",
      "url": "https://hex.pm/api/packages/phoenix/releases/1.8.11",
      "has_docs": true,
      "inserted_at": "2026-08-12T07:56:12.292729Z"
    },
    {
      "version": "1.8.10",
      "url": "https://hex.pm/api/packages/phoenix/releases/1.8.10",
      "has_docs": true,
      "inserted_at": "2026-08-10T16:26:27.166240Z"
    },
    {
      "version": "1.8.9",
      "url": "https://hex.pm/api/packages/phoenix/releases/1.8.9",

Parameters

ParameterTypeRequiredDescription
packages/<name>pathRequiredPackage name. phoenix
packages?search=stringOptionalSearch packages by name or description. http client
packages/<name>/releases/<version>pathOptionalA specific release with its dependencies. releases/1.7.0
sortstringOptionaldownloads, recent_downloads, inserted_at or updated_at. recent_downloads

Response fields

namestring
Package name.
meta.descriptionstring
Package description.
meta.licensesarray
Licence identifiers.
meta.linksobject
GitHub, docs and homepage links.
downloadsobject
all, recent and week download counts.
releasesarray
Every published version with its release date.
latest_stable_versionstring
Current stable release.
docs_html_urlstring
HexDocs documentation URL.

What you can build with the Hex.pm API

  • Show the current version of an Elixir dependency
  • Compare BEAM libraries by recent download activity
  • Audit licences across a mix.exs dependency tree
  • Link straight to a package's HexDocs from your tooling

Common errors and how to fix them

404

Package name not found.

Fix: Hex package names are lowercase with underscores, matching the Elixir convention.

429

Exceeded 100 requests per minute.

Fix: Throttle and cache; package metadata changes infrequently.

Misleading download totals

`all` is cumulative and favours old packages.

Fix: Compare `recent` downloads to judge whether a package is actively used.

Hex.pm API — frequently asked questions

Is the Hex.pm API free?

Yes, reading public package data requires no API key. Publishing packages requires an auth key.

Does it cover Erlang as well as Elixir?

Yes, Hex is the package manager for the whole BEAM ecosystem, so Erlang packages are included alongside Elixir ones.

Which download figure should I look at?

`recent` rather than `all`. Cumulative totals favour older packages, while recent downloads show whether something is still actively used.

How do I find a package's documentation?

The docs_html_url field links directly to its HexDocs page, which is generated automatically for every published package.

Tools that pair with this API

JSON Formatter

Format, beautify and minify JSON online with 2-space, 4-space or tab indentation. Sort keys alphabetically and catch syntax errors instantly — free and private.

JSON Validator

Free online JSON validator: validate JSON and find syntax errors with the exact line and column. See root type, key counts and depth — instant and 100% private.

Hex.pm is an independent third-party service and is not affiliated with ByteTools or ByteVancer. Details on this page were verified on 2026-08-20; always check the official documentation before relying on this API in production, as terms and limits can change.