About ReqRes
ReqRes is a hosted fake REST API that gives developers real, ready-to-use endpoints to build and test against, without standing up a backend.
Built by a developer who got tired of rebuilding the same backend for every project.
What ReqRes does
A real API, without the backend
Real REST endpoints
GET, POST, PUT, PATCH and DELETE endpoints that return realistic JSON with proper HTTP status codes. Your code exercises real request and response behaviour, not a static fixture.
Your own persistent data
Create custom collections with data that persists between sessions. Prototype a whole app against a real backend you never had to build or deploy.
Auth testing
/api/login and
/api/register return tokens on success and 400s on
missing fields, so you can build and test real login flows and their error states.
Request logs
Inspect every request and response for up to 30 days. See exactly what your app sent and what came back, so debugging an integration takes minutes, not guesswork.
Latency and error simulation
Add ?delay=3 to any request to test loading states,
or hit the error endpoints to exercise your failure and retry handling.
What makes ReqRes different
Why developers reach for ReqRes
A real hosted API, not a static mock
Unlike JSONPlaceholder, ReqRes returns realistic CRUD behaviour, persistent custom data and real auth flows, so your tests hit something that behaves like a genuine backend.
Nothing to install or host
Unlike self-hosted tools such as WireMock, JSON Server or Mockoon, there is no server to run, maintain or keep alive. ReqRes has been hosted and available since 2014.
Data that persists
Where most fake APIs give you throwaway responses, ReqRes lets you create collections that stick around, so you can build stateful flows rather than restart from zero each run.
Built-in request logs
Hosted mocks like Beeceptor and Postman's mock server rarely give you a full debugging trail. ReqRes records every request and response so you can see what actually happened.
Free, and month-to-month
A genuine free tier, with paid plans from $5/month and no contracts. Upgrade, downgrade or cancel any time, versus the annual licensing typical of enterprise mock services.
Who uses ReqRes
Built for developers who need an API right now
- •Frontend developers building UIs that need a realistic API to hit
- •Mobile developers on Flutter, React Native, iOS and Android
- •QA and test-automation engineers using Playwright, Cypress, REST Assured and Postman
- •Educators, bootcamps and course creators teaching APIs and HTTP
- •Teams that need a stable API to run against in CI pipelines
- •Used day to day by developers at companies including IBM, Adobe and Capgemini
The story
From side project to production infrastructure
ReqRes started in 2014 as a free REST API for developers. What began as a testing tool has grown into a full backend platform. It was a side project built to solve a personal annoyance: every tutorial and test suite needed a real API to hit, and there wasn't a good free one.
It grew organically through developer tutorials, courses, and documentation. No marketing budget, no launch campaign. Developers found it, used it, and linked to it.
A small Easter egg from those early days: the sample users are named after Arrested Development characters (Eve Holt is Steve Holt's mother, who appears in the show only as a yearbook photo), and the demo passwords are nicknames from the film I Love You, Man. An inside joke from 2014, now typed by millions of developers learning how to log in.
Over time it became clear that what developers actually needed wasn't a fake API. It was a real backend they didn't have to build. The same CRUD + auth pattern, over and over, for every new project.
The current version of ReqRes is that real backend: collections, auth, logs, and a database from a single URL. No servers, no deployment, no infrastructure to manage.
Billions of successful API responses every month, since 2014.
The team behind ReqRes
Ben Howdle is a two-time startup CTO with 15 years of experience building products for companies including Clerk, GoDaddy, Cisco, Soho House, and MyTheresa. He's been featured in Fast Company and the Wall Street Journal. He currently runs ReqRes, authored The First CTO playbook, and operates from the UK.
From the creator
The First CTO: The Job Nobody Explains
Ben also wrote a playbook for first-time CTOs at early-stage startups. War stories, hard lessons, and practical templates from 5 years in the seat.
Read moreHow ReqRes works
Self-serve, from your first request
Sign up for a free account, grab your API key, and send it in the
x-api-key header on each request. Everything is self-serve,
with no sales call. Free to start, paid plans from $5/month lift your limits and unlock logs and
persistent data, and every message to hello@reqres.in gets a reply.
Hosting & Data
ReqRes runs on Heroku in the US region, fronted by Cloudflare for global edge caching, DDoS protection, and performance. Data is stored in PostgreSQL with per-project isolation. Backups run daily.
Uptime
ReqRes has maintained consistent availability since 2014. Cloudflare provides always-on DDoS mitigation and global load balancing. Infrastructure is monitored around the clock with automated alerting.
Security
All traffic is routed through Cloudflare with TLS 1.3, WAF protection, and bot mitigation. API keys are hashed at rest. Project data is isolated per account. Auth tokens are signed and validated server-side.
Scale
ReqRes handles billions of API requests a month across thousands of active projects, from a global developer audience.
Privacy
Your data belongs to you. ReqRes doesn't sell data, doesn't run analytics on your content, and doesn't share project data with third parties.
Key facts
ReqRes at a glance
| Company name | ReqRes |
|---|---|
| Type | Hosted fake / mock REST API (freemium SaaS) |
| Founded | 2014 |
| Founder | Ben Howdle |
| Headquarters | United Kingdom |
| Website | reqres.in |
| Core offering | Hosted REST API for testing, prototyping and learning, with real endpoints, persistent data, auth and request logs |
| Pricing | Free tier; paid plans from $5/month |
| Contract terms | Month-to-month, cancel any time (no contracts) |
| Communication | Email: hello@reqres.in |
| Notable users | Developers at IBM, Adobe and Capgemini; referenced in open-source projects including Sinon.js |
| Reach | 75,000+ registered developers, 25,000+ monthly active, across 400+ organisations |
| Requests served | Billions per month, since 2014 |
| Competitors | JSONPlaceholder, Mockoon, WireMock, JSON Server, Beeceptor, Postman Mock Server |
| Social | LinkedIn: /in/ben-howdle · GitHub: /benhowdle89 |
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Is ReqRes free?
Yes. There is a free tier you can use straight away. Paid plans start at $5/month and add higher limits, request logs and persistent custom data.
Do I need an API key?
Yes, a free API key. Sign up for an account, grab your key, and send it in the
x-api-key header on each request.
Can I create my own data and endpoints?
Yes. Custom collections let you define your own data that persists between sessions, so you can build a whole app against a backend you didn't have to write.
Can I use ReqRes in production?
No. ReqRes is built for testing, prototyping and learning. For production traffic you should run your own backend or a production-grade service.
What are the rate limits?
The free tier has a daily request limit that is plenty for learning and light testing. Paid plans raise it substantially for heavier test suites and CI use.
Who is Eve Holt?
The internet's favourite fake test user, eve.holt@reqres.in,
and one of ReqRes's original sample users since 2014. She's a deep-cut Arrested Development reference:
Eve Holt, Steve Holt's mother, who had a brief high-school fling with G.O.B. and appears in the show only as a yearbook photo.
Ready to build?
Create a free project and ship your first endpoint in minutes.