Is there a free meme API?

Yes! The justmeme.wtf API is completely free with no authentication required. It provides access to 2000+ meme templates, search, trending memes, categories, and AI meme generation. Rate limited to 60 requests per minute.

How do I use a meme generator API?

Make GET requests to https://justmeme.wtf/api/v1/templates to browse templates, /api/v1/templates/search?q=drake to search, or POST to /api/v1/ai-generate with a prompt to generate memes with AI. All responses are JSON with CORS headers.

Do I need an API key for the meme API?

No. The justmeme.wtf API requires no API key, no signup, and no authentication. Just start making requests. Rate limited to 60 requests per minute per IP.

What meme templates are available in the API?

The API provides access to 2000+ meme templates including Drake Hotline Bling, Distracted Boyfriend, Two Buttons, Expanding Brain, Surprised Pikachu, and many more. New templates are added regularly.

Can I generate memes with AI using the API?

Yes! POST to /api/v1/ai-generate with a JSON body containing a prompt field. The AI will pick the best template and generate text. Example: {prompt: 'something funny about coding'}.

justmeme.wtf API

Free meme API for developers. 2000+ templates, search, trending, AI generation. No API key needed.

Base URL: https://justmeme.wtf/api/v1
All responses are JSON with Content-Type: application/json and full CORS support.

Rate Limit: 60 requests per minute per IP. No authentication required. If you need higher limits, open an issue.

Quick Start

JavaScript (fetch)

// Get trending memes
const res = await fetch('https://justmeme.wtf/api/v1/trending');
const data = await res.json();
console.log(data.trending);

// Search for templates
const search = await fetch('https://justmeme.wtf/api/v1/templates/search?q=drake');
const results = await search.json();
console.log(results.templates);

// AI meme generation
const ai = await fetch('https://justmeme.wtf/api/v1/ai-generate', {
  method: 'POST',
  headers: { 'Content-Type': 'application/json' },
  body: JSON.stringify({ prompt: 'something funny about coding' })
});
const meme = await ai.json();
console.log(meme);

Python (requests)

import requests

# Get trending memes
res = requests.get("https://justmeme.wtf/api/v1/trending")
data = res.json()
print(data["trending"])

# Search for templates
search = requests.get("https://justmeme.wtf/api/v1/templates/search", params={"q": "drake"})
results = search.json()
print(results["templates"])

# AI meme generation
ai = requests.post("https://justmeme.wtf/api/v1/ai-generate",
    json={"prompt": "something funny about coding"})
meme = ai.json()
print(meme)

cURL

# Get trending memes
curl https://justmeme.wtf/api/v1/trending

# Search templates
curl "https://justmeme.wtf/api/v1/templates/search?q=drake"

# AI generate
curl -X POST https://justmeme.wtf/api/v1/ai-generate \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"prompt": "something funny about coding"}'

Endpoints

GET /api/v1/templates List all templates (paginated)

Query Parameters

Param	Type	Description
page	integer	Page number (default: 1)
limit	integer	Results per page (default: 20, max: 100)
category	string	Filter by category slug (optional)

Example Request

curl "https://justmeme.wtf/api/v1/templates?page=1&limit=5"

Example Response

{
  "success": true,
  "templates": [
    {
      "id": "drake-hotline-bling",
      "name": "Drake Hotline Bling",
      "slug": "drake-hotline-bling",
      "url": "https://i.imgflip.com/30b1gx.jpg",
      "categories": ["reaction", "comparison"]
    }
  ],
  "total": 2358,
  "page": 1,
  "limit": 5
}

GET /api/v1/templates/search?q= Search templates by name

Query Parameters

Param	Type	Description
q required	string	Search query (min 2 chars)

Example Request

curl "https://justmeme.wtf/api/v1/templates/search?q=drake"

Example Response

{
  "success": true,
  "templates": [
    {
      "id": "drake-hotline-bling",
      "name": "Drake Hotline Bling",
      "slug": "drake-hotline-bling",
      "url": "https://i.imgflip.com/30b1gx.jpg",
      "categories": ["reaction", "comparison"]
    }
  ],
  "total": 3
}

GET /api/v1/templates/:slug Get single template details

URL Parameters

Param	Type	Description
slug required	string	Template slug (e.g. "drake-hotline-bling")

Example Request

curl https://justmeme.wtf/api/v1/templates/drake-hotline-bling

Example Response

{
  "success": true,
  "template": {
    "name": "Drake Hotline Bling",
    "slug": "drake-hotline-bling",
    "url": "https://i.imgflip.com/30b1gx.jpg",
    "categories": ["reaction", "comparison"],
    "page_url": "https://justmeme.wtf/meme/drake-hotline-bling"
  }
}

GET /api/v1/trending Top 20 trending templates

Example Request

curl https://justmeme.wtf/api/v1/trending

Example Response

{
  "success": true,
  "trending": [
    {
      "id": "drake-hotline-bling",
      "name": "Drake Hotline Bling",
      "slug": "drake-hotline-bling",
      "url": "https://i.imgflip.com/30b1gx.jpg",
      "categories": ["reaction"]
    }
  ]
}

GET /api/v1/categories List all categories with counts

Example Request

curl https://justmeme.wtf/api/v1/categories

Example Response

{
  "success": true,
  "categories": [
    { "slug": "reaction", "name": "reaction", "count": 342 },
    { "slug": "comparison", "name": "comparison", "count": 198 },
    { "slug": "animal", "name": "animal", "count": 156 }
  ]
}

POST /api/v1/ai-generate AI meme generation (rate limited)

Request Body (JSON)

Field	Type	Description
prompt required	string	What the meme should be about (3-300 chars)

Example Request

curl -X POST https://justmeme.wtf/api/v1/ai-generate \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"prompt": "something funny about coding"}'

Example Response

{
  "success": true,
  "template": "drake-hotline-bling",
  "top_text": "Writing tests",
  "bottom_text": "console.log debugging",
  "editor_url": "https://justmeme.wtf/?template=drake-hotline-bling"
}

GET /api/v1/random Get a random template

Example Request

curl https://justmeme.wtf/api/v1/random

Example Response

{
  "success": true,
  "template": {
    "name": "Distracted Boyfriend",
    "slug": "distracted-boyfriend",
    "url": "https://i.imgflip.com/1ur9b0.jpg"
  }
}

Error Responses

All errors follow a consistent format:

{
  "success": false,
  "error": "Description of what went wrong"
}

Status	Meaning	When
400	Bad Request	Missing or invalid parameters
404	Not Found	Template or endpoint not found
429	Too Many Requests	Rate limit exceeded (60/min)
500	Server Error	Something went wrong on our end
503	Service Unavailable	AI service temporarily down

FAQ

Do I need an API key?

No. The API is completely free and requires no authentication. Just start making requests.

What are the rate limits?

60 requests per minute per IP address. The AI generation endpoint shares this limit. If you need more, open an issue on GitHub.

Can I use this in commercial projects?

Yes. The API is free for personal and commercial use. Please include attribution to justmeme.wtf when possible.

Is there a client library?

Not yet. The API uses standard REST conventions so any HTTP client works. Check GitHub for community wrappers.

How often are templates updated?

Trending templates are refreshed every 6 hours from imgflip. New templates can be added via the submit endpoint or by the community.

Links

GitHub Make a Meme Browse Templates