OpenAPI Specification
openapi: 3.0.3
info:
title: Unsplash Collections Photos API
description: 'The Unsplash API provides access to the world''s largest open collection of high-quality, freely usable photos. Build photo-powered applications with search, random photos, user profiles, collections, topics, and statistics. Authentication uses Client-ID for public access or OAuth 2.0 Bearer tokens for user-authenticated operations. Rate limits: 50 req/hr (demo), 1000 req/hr (production). Downloads must be tracked via the /photos/:id/download endpoint per Unsplash API guidelines.'
version: 1.0.0
contact:
name: Unsplash Developers
url: https://unsplash.com/developers
termsOfService: https://unsplash.com/api-terms
servers:
- url: https://api.unsplash.com
description: Unsplash API
security:
- ClientID: []
tags:
- name: Photos
description: Photo browsing and management operations
paths:
/photos:
get:
operationId: listPhotos
summary: List Editorial Photos
description: Get a single page of the editorial photo feed. Requires public authentication (Client-ID).
tags:
- Photos
parameters:
- name: page
in: query
schema:
type: integer
minimum: 1
default: 1
description: Page number to retrieve
- name: per_page
in: query
schema:
type: integer
minimum: 1
maximum: 30
default: 10
description: Number of items per page
- name: order_by
in: query
schema:
type: string
enum:
- latest
- oldest
- popular
default: latest
description: Order results by latest, oldest, or popular
responses:
'200':
description: A list of photos
content:
application/json:
schema:
type: array
items:
$ref: '#/components/schemas/Photo'
'401':
$ref: '#/components/responses/Unauthorized'
/photos/{id}:
get:
operationId: getPhoto
summary: Get a Photo
description: Retrieve a single photo by ID.
tags:
- Photos
parameters:
- $ref: '#/components/parameters/PhotoId'
responses:
'200':
description: A photo object
content:
application/json:
schema:
$ref: '#/components/schemas/Photo'
'401':
$ref: '#/components/responses/Unauthorized'
'404':
$ref: '#/components/responses/NotFound'
put:
operationId: updatePhoto
summary: Update a Photo
description: Update a photo's metadata. Requires write_photos scope.
tags:
- Photos
security:
- OAuth2:
- write_photos
parameters:
- $ref: '#/components/parameters/PhotoId'
requestBody:
content:
application/json:
schema:
type: object
properties:
description:
type: string
description: New description for the photo
show_on_profile:
type: boolean
description: Show or hide the photo on the user's profile
tags:
type: array
items:
type: string
description: Tags to apply to the photo
location:
type: object
properties:
latitude:
type: number
format: float
longitude:
type: number
format: float
name:
type: string
city:
type: string
country:
type: string
responses:
'200':
description: Updated photo object
content:
application/json:
schema:
$ref: '#/components/schemas/Photo'
'401':
$ref: '#/components/responses/Unauthorized'
'404':
$ref: '#/components/responses/NotFound'
/photos/random:
get:
operationId: getRandomPhoto
summary: Get a Random Photo
description: Retrieve one or more random photos. Optionally filter by orientation, color, topic, collection, featured status, username, or search query.
tags:
- Photos
parameters:
- name: collections
in: query
schema:
type: string
description: Comma-separated collection IDs to filter by
- name: topics
in: query
schema:
type: string
description: Comma-separated topic IDs or slugs to filter by
- name: username
in: query
schema:
type: string
description: Limit to photos by a specific user
- name: query
in: query
schema:
type: string
description: Search query to filter random photos
- name: orientation
in: query
schema:
type: string
enum:
- landscape
- portrait
- squarish
description: Filter by photo orientation
- name: content_filter
in: query
schema:
type: string
enum:
- low
- high
default: low
description: Content safety filter level
- name: count
in: query
schema:
type: integer
minimum: 1
maximum: 30
default: 1
description: Number of random photos (returns array if count > 1)
responses:
'200':
description: A random photo or array of photos
content:
application/json:
schema:
oneOf:
- $ref: '#/components/schemas/Photo'
- type: array
items:
$ref: '#/components/schemas/Photo'
'401':
$ref: '#/components/responses/Unauthorized'
/photos/{id}/statistics:
get:
operationId: getPhotoStatistics
summary: Get Photo Statistics
description: Retrieve statistics for a photo (downloads, views, likes) over time.
tags:
- Photos
parameters:
- $ref: '#/components/parameters/PhotoId'
- name: resolution
in: query
schema:
type: string
enum:
- days
default: days
description: Time resolution for statistics
- name: quantity
in: query
schema:
type: integer
minimum: 1
maximum: 30
default: 30
description: Number of data points to return
responses:
'200':
description: Photo statistics
content:
application/json:
schema:
$ref: '#/components/schemas/PhotoStatistics'
'401':
$ref: '#/components/responses/Unauthorized'
'404':
$ref: '#/components/responses/NotFound'
/photos/{id}/download:
get:
operationId: trackPhotoDownload
summary: Track a Photo Download
description: Track a photo download event. Must be called when a user downloads a photo to comply with Unsplash API guidelines. Returns the photo's download URL.
tags:
- Photos
parameters:
- $ref: '#/components/parameters/PhotoId'
responses:
'200':
description: Download tracking response with download URL
content:
application/json:
schema:
type: object
properties:
url:
type: string
format: uri
description: The URL to download the photo
'401':
$ref: '#/components/responses/Unauthorized'
'404':
$ref: '#/components/responses/NotFound'
components:
schemas:
PhotoStatistics:
type: object
properties:
id:
type: string
downloads:
type: object
properties:
total:
type: integer
historical:
$ref: '#/components/schemas/StatHistorical'
views:
type: object
properties:
total:
type: integer
historical:
$ref: '#/components/schemas/StatHistorical'
likes:
type: object
properties:
total:
type: integer
historical:
$ref: '#/components/schemas/StatHistorical'
Photo:
type: object
description: An Unsplash photo object
properties:
id:
type: string
description: Unique photo identifier
example: Dwu85P9SOIk
created_at:
type: string
format: date-time
description: When the photo was uploaded
updated_at:
type: string
format: date-time
description: When the photo was last updated
promoted_at:
type:
- string
- 'null'
format: date-time
description: When the photo was promoted to editorial feed
width:
type: integer
description: Photo width in pixels
example: 5616
height:
type: integer
description: Photo height in pixels
example: 3744
color:
type: string
description: Dominant color hex code
example: '#6E633A'
blur_hash:
type: string
description: BlurHash for placeholder preview
example: L~I64nofRjof%MQZWBS$Mxnhx]t6
description:
type:
- string
- 'null'
description: Photographer-provided description
alt_description:
type:
- string
- 'null'
description: Auto-generated alt text for accessibility
likes:
type: integer
description: Number of likes
downloads:
type: integer
description: Total download count
views:
type: integer
description: Total view count
liked_by_user:
type: boolean
description: Whether the current authenticated user liked this photo
urls:
type: object
description: Image URLs at different sizes
properties:
raw:
type: string
format: uri
description: Original image URL with no transformations
full:
type: string
format: uri
description: Full-quality image (large width, no compression)
regular:
type: string
format: uri
description: 1080px wide image
small:
type: string
format: uri
description: 400px wide image
thumb:
type: string
format: uri
description: 200px wide thumbnail
small_s3:
type: string
format: uri
description: Small S3-hosted image
links:
type: object
description: API and site links for the photo
properties:
self:
type: string
format: uri
html:
type: string
format: uri
download:
type: string
format: uri
download_location:
type: string
format: uri
user:
$ref: '#/components/schemas/UserSummary'
location:
type: object
description: Location where the photo was taken
properties:
name:
type:
- string
- 'null'
city:
type:
- string
- 'null'
country:
type:
- string
- 'null'
position:
type: object
properties:
latitude:
type:
- number
- 'null'
longitude:
type:
- number
- 'null'
tags:
type: array
items:
type: object
properties:
type:
type: string
title:
type: string
exif:
type: object
description: Camera EXIF metadata
properties:
make:
type:
- string
- 'null'
model:
type:
- string
- 'null'
name:
type:
- string
- 'null'
exposure_time:
type:
- string
- 'null'
aperture:
type:
- string
- 'null'
focal_length:
type:
- string
- 'null'
iso:
type:
- integer
- 'null'
StatHistorical:
type: object
properties:
change:
type: integer
description: Change in the period
average:
type: integer
description: Average over the period
resolution:
type: string
description: Time resolution (days)
quantity:
type: integer
description: Number of data points
values:
type: array
items:
type: object
properties:
date:
type: string
format: date
value:
type: integer
Error:
type: object
properties:
errors:
type: array
items:
type: string
description: Array of human-readable error messages
UserSummary:
type: object
description: Abbreviated user object for embedding in photo/collection responses
properties:
id:
type: string
username:
type: string
name:
type: string
portfolio_url:
type:
- string
- 'null'
format: uri
bio:
type:
- string
- 'null'
location:
type:
- string
- 'null'
total_likes:
type: integer
total_photos:
type: integer
total_collections:
type: integer
profile_image:
type: object
properties:
small:
type: string
format: uri
medium:
type: string
format: uri
large:
type: string
format: uri
links:
type: object
properties:
self:
type: string
format: uri
html:
type: string
format: uri
photos:
type: string
format: uri
likes:
type: string
format: uri
responses:
Unauthorized:
description: Missing or invalid authentication
content:
application/json:
schema:
$ref: '#/components/schemas/Error'
NotFound:
description: Resource not found
content:
application/json:
schema:
$ref: '#/components/schemas/Error'
parameters:
PhotoId:
name: id
in: path
required: true
schema:
type: string
description: Photo ID
securitySchemes:
ClientID:
type: apiKey
in: header
name: Authorization
description: 'Use `Authorization: Client-ID {YOUR_ACCESS_KEY}` for public API access. Alternatively pass as query param: `?client_id={YOUR_ACCESS_KEY}`'
OAuth2:
type: oauth2
flows:
authorizationCode:
authorizationUrl: https://unsplash.com/oauth/authorize
tokenUrl: https://unsplash.com/oauth/token
scopes:
public: Read public data (default)
read_user: Read user profile data
write_user: Write user profile data
read_photos: Read photo data
write_photos: Write photo data (update metadata)
write_likes: Like/unlike photos
write_collections: Create, update, delete collections
read_collections: Read collection data