AISStream

AISStream.io is a free service that streams global real-time AIS (Automatic Identification System) vessel-tracking data over a WebSocket. Clients register for a free API key, open a secure WebSocket to "wss://stream.aisstream.io/v0/stream", and send a JSON subscription message declaring one or more geographic bounding boxes plus optional MMSI and message-type filters. The server then pushes a continuous stream of AIS messages - PositionReport, ShipStaticData, and the full set of ITU-R M.1371 message types - each wrapped in an envelope carrying MessageType, MetaData, and the decoded Message. There is no REST API; the service is WebSocket-only.

AISStream publishes 1 API on the APIs.io network: AIS Stream API. Tagged areas include Vessel Tracking, AIS, Maritime, Ship Tracking, and Real-Time Data.

The AISStream catalog on APIs.io includes 1 event-driven AsyncAPI specification and 1 Spectral governance ruleset.

AISStream’s developer surface includes authentication, documentation, and 6 more developer resources.

🌐 Visit website 📡 Source on GitHub
35.1/100 thin ▬ flat Agent 22/100 agent aware Full breakdown ↓
scored 2026-07-23 · rubric v0.5
AccessFreeSelf serve⚡ Free to try
1 APIs
Vessel TrackingAISMaritimeShip TrackingReal-Time DataWebSocketStreamingShipsMaritime DataLocation

Kin Score

Kin Score Kin Score How this is scored →
scored 2026-07-23 · rubric v0.5
Composite quality — 35.1/100 · thin
Contract Quality 8.3 / 25
Developer Ergonomics 3.9 / 20
Commercial Clarity 5.8 / 20
Operational Transparency 4.8 / 13
Governance 6.3 / 12
Discoverability 6.0 / 10
Agent readiness — 22/100 · agent aware
Machine-Readable Contract 0 / 18
Agentic Access Contract 0 / 15
MCP Server 0 / 12
Machine-Readable Auth 10 / 10
Idempotency 0 / 9
Stable Error Semantics 0 / 8
Request/Response Examples 0 / 7
Rate-Limit Signaling 7 / 7
Typed Event Surface 6 / 6
Agent Skills 0 / 5
Well-Known Catalog 0 / 4
Consent & Bot Identity 0 / 3
Improve this rating by publishing the missing artifacts — every area above can be raised, and the full rubric is at apis.io/rating/. This rating is computed from github.com/api-evangelist/aisstream: open an issue to ask a question, or submit a pull request to add artifacts. Want it done for you? Prioritized profiling — $2,500 →

APIs 1

Individual APIs this provider publishes, each with its own machine-readable definition.

AISStream AIS Stream API

Real-time global AIS vessel-tracking stream delivered over a single WebSocket at "wss://stream.aisstream.io/v0/stream". The client connects, sends a JSON subscription message (A...

Open Collections 1

Open, tool-agnostic API collections (OpenAPI-derived and Bruno).

AISStream AIS Stream API (WebSocket)

OPEN COLLECTION

Pricing Plans 1

Published pricing tiers and plan structures.

Aisstream Plans Pricing

1 plans

PLANS

Rate Limits 1

Documented rate limits and quota policies.

Aisstream Rate Limits

3 limits

RATE LIMITS

FinOps 1

Cost, billing, and metering signals for API financial operations.

Aisstream Finops

FINOPS

Event Specifications 1

AsyncAPI definitions for this provider's event-driven and streaming APIs.

AISStream Real-Time AIS Stream (WebSocket)

AsyncAPI 2.6 description of **AISStream.io**, a free service that streams global real-time AIS (Automatic Identification System) vessel-tracking data over a **WebSocket**. This ...

ASYNCAPI

Spectral Rules 1

Spectral governance rulesets for linting and validating these APIs.

AISStream API Rules

5 rules · 1 errors 4 warnings

SPECTRAL

Security Posture 2

Authentication, domain security, vulnerability disclosure, and trust-center signals.

Aisstream Authentication

apiKey · 1 scheme

SECURITY

Aisstream Domain Security

TLSv1.3 · DMARC

SECURITY

Resources

Documentation 1

Reference material describing how the API behaves

Documentation
Documentation

Build 1

SDKs, sample code, and the tooling you integrate with

GitHubOrganization
GitHubOrganization

Access & Security 2

Authentication, authorization, and security posture

DomainSecurity
DomainSecurity
 Authentication
Authentication

Operate 1

Status, limits, changes, and where to get help

RateLimits
RateLimits

Commercial 2

Pricing, plans, and the legal terms of use

Plans
Plans
 FinOps
FinOps

Company 1

The organization behind the API

Website
Website

Source (apis.yml)

apis.yml Raw ↑ 
opencollection: 1.0.0
info:
  name: AISStream AIS Stream API (WebSocket)
  version: '0'
items:
- info:
    name: AIS Stream
    type: folder
  items:
  - info:
      name: Connect and subscribe to the real-time AIS stream.
      type: websocket
    websocket:
      url: wss://stream.aisstream.io/v0/stream
      subprotocols: []
      messages:
      - name: Subscription message (world-wide)
        direction: send
        type: json
        data: '{"APIKey":"<YOUR API KEY>","BoundingBoxes":[[[-90.0,-180.0],[90.0,180.0]]]}'
      - name: Subscription message (filtered)
        direction: send
        type: json
        data: '{"APIKey":"<YOUR API KEY>","BoundingBoxes":[[[25.835302,-80.207729],[25.602700,-79.879297]]],"FiltersShipMMSI":["368207620"],"FilterMessageTypes":["PositionReport","ShipStaticData"]}'
      - name: AIS message envelope (received)
        direction: receive
        type: json
        data: '{"MessageType":"PositionReport","MetaData":{"MMSI":368207620,"ShipName":"EXAMPLE VESSEL","latitude":25.702,"longitude":-80.101,"time_utc":"2026-07-12
          12:00:00.000000000 +0000 UTC"},"Message":{"PositionReport":{"UserID":368207620,"Latitude":25.702,"Longitude":-80.101,"Sog":12.3,"Cog":180.5}}}'
    docs: AISStream is WebSocket-only. Connect to wss://stream.aisstream.io/v0/stream and send one JSON subscription message
      within 3 seconds. APIKey and BoundingBoxes are required; FiltersShipMMSI and FilterMessageTypes are optional. The server
      then pushes a stream of AIS message envelopes - check MessageType to know which decoded payload is under Message. Authentication
      is the free API key placed in the APIKey field, not an HTTP header.
bundled: true