OMDb API alternative

Pick by the shape of your calls

Choose OMDb when you want one small record per title and its free key covers your volume. Choose amodb when you outgrow that, or when you want the same OMDb request style next to credits, images and translations on one key. OMDb returns JSON or XML, uses an apikey parameter and offers a free key with a daily request cap of 1,000 (check their site) plus a paid supporter tier. amodb is paid only and answers the main OMDb parameters as well as TMDB v3.

What stays the same

The OMDb endpoint is at https://api.amodb.dev/omdb/, and the trailing slash is optional. Your existing parsing code should not need edits for these elements.

What does not carry over

• XML. A request with r=xml returns 400 with {"Response":"False","Error":"Only r=json is supported."}.
• Seasons and episodes. Season and Episode are ignored, and type=episode finds nothing. A request with i=tt0903747&Season=1 returns the series record, not a season. Use /3/tv/{id}/season/{n} for episodes.
• Other parameters. callback is ignored.
• Fields without data. DVD, Production and Website are always "N/A". Series records have totalSeasons and leave out DVD, BoxOffice, Production and Website.
• Posters. The Poster field points to https://img.amodb.dev/t/p/w300/... instead of another host. Swap w300 for w780 to get a larger image from the same path, and no key is needed for images.

The full parameter and error list is on the OMDb endpoint page.

Example response

A request with t=Fight Club returns a flat object. The reply below is real, with only the Plot text shortened.

{
  "Title": "Fight Club",
  "Year": "1999",
  "Rated": "R",
  "Released": "15 Oct 1999",
  "Runtime": "139 min",
  "Genre": "Crime, Drama, Thriller",
  "Director": "David Fincher",
  "Writer": "Chuck Palahniuk, Jim Uhls",
  "Actors": "Brad Pitt, Edward Norton, Meat Loaf",
  "Plot": "A nameless first-person narrator attends support groups in an attempt to subdue his emotional state an...",
  "Language": "English",
  "Country": "United States, Germany",
  "Awards": "Nominated for 1 Oscar. 12 wins & 38 nominations total",
  "Poster": "https://img.amodb.dev/t/p/w300/qkrH7rjYKU4KOwwIl6wF6H3ISvm.jpg",
  "Ratings": [
    {
      "Source": "Internet Movie Database",
      "Value": "8.8/10"
    },
    {
      "Source": "Rotten Tomatoes",
      "Value": "81%"
    },
    {
      "Source": "Metacritic",
      "Value": "67/100"
    }
  ],
  "Metascore": "67",
  "imdbRating": "8.8",
  "imdbVotes": "2,669,989",
  "imdbID": "tt0137523",
  "Type": "movie",
  "DVD": "N/A",
  "BoxOffice": "$38,003,039",
  "Production": "N/A",
  "Website": "N/A",
  "Response": "True"
}

Values are strings, as in OMDb, so parse imdbRating, imdbVotes and Runtime yourself. Each call counts as one request against your per minute limit, however many fields you read.

Feature comparison

Where amodb differs

• Per minute limits. Plans allow 20, 40 or 120 requests per minute in a sliding 60 second window. Each keyed reply has X-RateLimit-Remaining, so a batch job can slow itself down before it sees a 429.
• A way up from single records. An OMDb record has a cast list as text. With the /3 paths you can ask for the same title with credits, videos and translations in one call, and the imdbID finds the record through /3/find.
• Larger images. OMDb style records give one poster link. The image host serves ten size tokens, from w92 to original.
• More rating sources. The /3/movie/{id}/ratings extension adds Kinopoisk, Metacritic, Rotten Tomatoes and TMDB values where known.

Where OMDb is a better fit

• Small or free projects. A free key with a daily cap of 1,000 is enough for a prototype or a hobby site, and amodb has no free tier.
• XML consumers. If a legacy system parses XML, OMDb offers it and amodb does not.
• Season and episode lookups. The amodb /omdb/ route has no season or episode mode, so a client built on it needs the /3 paths instead.
• Simplicity. One endpoint and a handful of parameters is easy to learn. If that is all you need, you gain little by moving.

Migrate to amodb

Only the base URL and the key change. Keep the rest of the request as it is, after you search your code for r=xml, Season, Episode and type=episode.

const OMDB_BASE = process.env.OMDB_BASE_URL; // before: your current OMDb base URL
const AMODB_BASE = 'https://api.amodb.dev/omdb/'; // after

async function lookup(title) {
  const url = new URL(AMODB_BASE);
  url.searchParams.set('apikey', process.env.AMODB_KEY);
  url.searchParams.set('t', title);
  url.searchParams.set('plot', 'short');
  const res = await fetch(url);
  const data = await res.json();
  if (data.Response === 'False') throw new Error(data.Error);
  return data;
}

const movie = await lookup('Fight Club');
console.log(movie.Title, movie.Year, movie.imdbRating, movie.Poster);

Keep checking the Response field, as you did with OMDb. When the value is the string "False", the Error field carries the message. For episodes, map the imdbID once with /3/find and read seasons from the /3 side:

curl -s "https://api.amodb.dev/3/find/tt0903747?external_source=imdb_id&api_key=$AMODB_KEY"
curl -s "https://api.amodb.dev/3/tv/1396/season/1?api_key=$AMODB_KEY"

For the TMDB style side, see authentication and the quickstart.

Pricing

amodb is paid, and it renews only when you buy another period. The three plans differ in rate alone, at 20, 40 or 120 requests per minute, and each returns all data. Periods run 1, 3, 6, 12 or 24 months, and the longer ones take 10 to 40 percent off. Check pricing for current amounts.