Anime News Network Encyclopedia API

Anime News Network's encyclopedia API returns full anime and manga records as XML with no key: staff, cast, genres, themes, ratings and release history. Live example included.

No API key requiredCORS enabledHTTPSFree tier

Endpoint tested and returned HTTP 200 on 2026-08-21

What is the Anime News Network Encyclopedia API?

The Anime News Network Encyclopedia API is a free, key-free endpoint that returns detailed anime and manga records as XML. Each record carries staff and cast credits, genres and themes, user ratings, episode titles and release history, drawn from one of the longest-running anime databases on the web.

This is the deepest free anime dataset available without an account, and the reason is age: Anime News Network has been cataloguing since 1998, and the encyclopedia carries credits at a level the newer APIs simply do not have. Individual voice actors mapped to individual roles, staff by function, alternative titles by language, and a genre-versus-theme distinction that most databases collapse into one field. If your project needs to answer 'who directed this' or 'what else has this seiyuu been in', this is where the answer lives.

The trade-off is the format. Responses are XML, not JSON, and the shape is old-fashioned — nested elements with `type` attributes rather than named fields, so you read `<info type="Genres">` instead of a `genres` array. You will need an XML parser and a mapping layer. The API also asks you to be gentle: it is a small operation serving a large dataset, and the documented etiquette is to cache what you fetch and not to loop over ids. Fetch by id where you can, and use the reports endpoint rather than crawling when you need a bulk list.

Quick facts

Base URL: https://cdn.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia
Authentication: No key or account. The publisher asks that you cache aggressively and identify your client.
Rate limit: No hard limit published, but the documented etiquette is roughly one request per second and heavy caching.
Pricing: Free for reasonable use. The content remains Anime News Network's.
CORS: Enabled — callable directly from browser JavaScript
Official docs: Read the docs

How to use the Anime News Network Encyclopedia API

Every request below was executed against the live API on 2026-08-21, and the response shown is the real body it returned — not an illustration.

1. Fetch one anime record by id

GET https://cdn.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/api.xml?anime=4658

curl

curl 'https://cdn.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/api.xml?anime=4658'

JavaScript (fetch)

const res = await fetch("https://cdn.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/api.xml?anime=4658");
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://cdn.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/api.xml?anime=4658", timeout=20)
res.raise_for_status()
print(res.json())

Response — HTTP 200

<ann><anime id="4658" gid="1097470093" type="TV" name="Jinki:Extend" precision="TV" generated-on="2026-08-21T07:36:42Z">
<related-prev rel="adapted from" id="4199"/>
<info gid="1693214504" type="Picture" src="https://cdn.animenewsnetwork.com/thumbnails/fit200x200/encyc/A4658-7.jpg" width="178" height="200"><img src="https://cdn.animenewsnetwork.com/thumbnails/fit200x200/encyc/A4658-7.jpg" width="1

Parameters

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
`anime`	integer	Optional	Anime id: `api.xml?anime=4658`. Multiple ids can be separated by slashes. `4658`
`manga`	integer	Optional	Manga id, using the same document format. `1234`
`title`	integer	Optional	Fetch by encyclopedia title id regardless of whether it is anime or manga. `4658`
`anime (by name)`	string	Optional	Prefix the value with `~` to search by name instead of id: `?anime=~cowboy`. `~cowboy bebop`

Response fields

<anime> attributesXML attributes: `id`, `gid`, `type` (TV, OVA, movie), `name` and `precision` all live on the element itself, not as child nodes.
<info type="...">element: The workhorse element. `type` distinguishes Picture, Genres, Themes, Plot Summary, Alternative title, Number of episodes, Vintage and more.
<staff>element: Crew credits, each with a `<task>` and a `<person>` carrying that person's own encyclopedia id.
<cast>element: Voice actors mapped to roles, with a `lang` attribute so you can separate Japanese from English casts.
<episode>element: Episode numbers and titles, where the encyclopedia has them.
<related-prev> / <related-next>element: Adaptation and sequel links to other encyclopedia ids, with a `rel` describing the relationship.

What you can build with the Anime News Network Encyclopedia API

Look up full staff and voice cast credits for a series
Trace adaptation chains from manga to anime through the related links
Enrich an anime tracker with credits that JSON APIs do not carry
Separate genres from themes for better recommendation logic
Practise XML parsing against a real, non-trivial document

Common errors and how to fix them

Empty <ann> document

The id does not exist, or the query matched nothing.

Fix: A valid request for a missing id returns an empty envelope rather than a 404. Check for child elements, not the status code.

XML parse failure in a JSON client

The response is XML and the content type says so.

Fix: Use an XML parser. Fetching with a JSON-only HTTP client and calling `.json()` will fail every time.

Fields are missing where you expected them

The `<info>` element carries content by `type` attribute, not by element name.

Fix: Read `<info>` nodes and switch on the `type` attribute. There is no `<genres>` element to find.

Requests start failing after a burst

You have been throttled for crawling.

Fix: Cache everything, space requests about a second apart, and use the reports endpoint for bulk lists rather than walking ids.

Anime News Network Encyclopedia API — frequently asked questions

Is the Anime News Network API free?

Yes, free with no key or account, provided you use it reasonably. The publisher asks for aggressive caching and roughly one request per second rather than bulk crawling.

Does it return JSON?

No — the encyclopedia API is XML only, and has been since it launched. You will need an XML parser and a small mapping layer to get it into the shape your application wants.

What can I get that Jikan or Kitsu do not have?

Depth of credits, mainly. Voice actors mapped to individual roles with a language attribute, staff broken down by task, a genre-versus-theme distinction, and adaptation links between manga and anime entries.

How do I search by title instead of id?

Prefix the value with a tilde: `api.xml?anime=~cowboy bebop`. Without the tilde the value is treated as a numeric id and you will get an empty document back.

Tools that pair with this API

XML to JSON Converter

Convert XML to JSON online. Elements become objects, attributes are prefixed with @, text is preserved, and parse errors are reported clearly — in-browser.

XML Formatter

Format and beautify XML online with proper indentation, or minify it to a single line. Parse errors are reported clearly — free, fast and fully private.

XPath Tester

Test XPath 1.0 expressions against your XML online. See every matched node with its full path, plus the result type and match count, privately.

Anime News Network Encyclopedia is an independent third-party service and is not affiliated with ByteTools or ByteVancer. Details on this page were verified on 2026-08-21; always check the official documentation before relying on this API in production, as terms and limits can change.