specification: API Commons Plans
specificationVersion: '0.1'
schema: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/api-evangelist/interface-research/main/schema/api-commons.yml#/$defs/Plans
provider: Carbon Intensity API
providerId: carbon-intensity
created: '2026-06-13'
modified: '2026-06-13'
tags:
  - Environment
  - Energy
  - Carbon Intensity
  - Great Britain
description: >-
  Machine-readable plans and pricing definition for the Carbon Intensity API.
  The API is provided free of charge with no authentication required, under a
  CC BY 4.0 license. NESO applies a rate limit and may block applications that
  make a large number of calls, but no specific published limit numbers exist.
  Values below are best-available estimates from public documentation.
plans:
  - id: carbon-intensity-free
    name: Free
    type: free
    description: >-
      The Carbon Intensity API is entirely free to use with no authentication,
      API keys, or registration required. Provided by NESO as a public service
      under CC BY 4.0. Rate limiting is applied at NESO's discretion; no paid
      tiers exist.
    entries:
      - label: API Requests
        description: >-
          Unlimited public access; NESO reserves the right to rate-limit or
          block high-volume applications
        name: api_requests
        type: quota
        metric: requests
        limit: -1
        timeFrame: month
        geo: global
        domains: []
        unit: 1
        price: '0.00'
        userMultiplied: false
      - label: Rate Limit
        description: >-
          NESO applies a rate limit at its discretion; specific numeric
          thresholds are not published
        name: rate_limit
        type: rate
        metric: requests_per_minute
        limit: 100
        timeFrame: minute
        geo: global
        domains: []
        unit: 1
        price: '0.00'
        userMultiplied: false
    elements:
      - name: No Authentication Required
      - name: National Carbon Intensity Endpoints
      - name: Regional Carbon Intensity Endpoints
      - name: Generation Mix Endpoints
      - name: Statistics Endpoints
      - name: 96+ Hour Forecasts
      - name: Historical Data (up to 14-day range queries)
      - name: Postcode-Level Queries
      - name: CC BY 4.0 Licensed Data
maintainers:
  - FN: Kin Lane
    email: kin@apievangelist.com