specification: FinOps Framework
specificationVersion: '1.0'
schema: https://www.finops.org/framework/
provider: The Guardian
providerId: guardian
created: '2026-06-13'
modified: '2026-06-13'
reconciled: true
tags:
  - FinOps
  - Cost Management
  - News
  - Media
description: 'FOCUS-aligned FinOps for The Guardian Content API. The API is free for non-commercial developer use with a daily quota model. Commercial access requires a negotiated contract with The Guardian Open Platform team. Costs are primarily driven by commercial licensing agreements rather than per-call metering.'
sources:
  - https://open-platform.theguardian.com/access/
alignedWith:
  framework: FinOps Foundation Framework
  frameworkUrl: https://www.finops.org/framework/
  dataSpec: FOCUS
  dataSpecVersion: '1.3'
  dataSpecUrl: https://focus.finops.org/focus-specification/v1-3/
publisherName: Guardian News & Media Limited
serviceCategory: News & Media Content
billingModel:
  pricingCategory: Freemium + Commercial License
  billingFrequency: Annual or Negotiated
  billingCurrency: GBP
  chargeCategories:
    - Usage
    - License
focusColumns:
  ServiceName: Guardian Content API
  ServiceCategory: News & Media
  ProviderName: Guardian News & Media
  PublisherName: Guardian News & Media Limited
  InvoiceIssuerName: Guardian News & Media Limited
  BillingCurrency: GBP
meters:
  - name: api_requests
    unit: request
    aggregation: sum
    dimensions:
      - endpoint
      - plan
      - api_key
  - name: content_items_retrieved
    unit: article
    aggregation: sum
    dimensions:
      - section
      - type
      - edition
skus:
  - id: guardian-developer-free
    name: Developer API Key (Free)
    description: Free non-commercial API access. 5,000 requests/day, 12 requests/second.
    pricingModel: free
    unit: api-key
    price: 0
    currency: GBP
  - id: guardian-commercial-license
    name: Commercial API License
    description: Commercial access to Guardian content including images and video. Pricing negotiated with Guardian Open Platform team.
    pricingModel: negotiated
    unit: license
    price: negotiated
    currency: GBP
costOptimization:
  - name: Cache responses locally
    description: Cache API responses to stay within the 5,000 daily request limit on the free tier.
  - name: Use pagination efficiently
    description: Request up to 50 items per page to minimize total API calls for bulk content retrieval.
  - name: Filter by section and tag
    description: Use section and tag filters to retrieve targeted results rather than broad searches that return unwanted content.
  - name: Request only needed fields
    description: Use the show-fields parameter to return only required article fields, reducing payload size.
  - name: Monitor daily quota
    description: Track daily request counts against the 5,000 limit to avoid unexpected throttling.