specification: FinOps Framework
specificationVersion: '1.0'
schema: https://www.finops.org/framework/
provider: TheMealDB
providerId: mealdb
created: '2026-06-13'
modified: '2026-06-13'
reconciled: false
tags:
  - FinOps
  - FOCUS
  - Food
  - Recipes
  - Open Data
  - Freemium
description: >-
  FOCUS-aligned FinOps for TheMealDB: a freemium open-data recipe API with a zero-cost shared
  V1 tier and a one-time £10 lifetime supporter upgrade for V2 premium access. The dominant
  cost driver is the optional one-time upgrade rather than recurring usage-based charges. FinOps
  practice centers on deciding when to upgrade, caching static data to reduce request volume,
  and tracking any indirect hosting or bandwidth costs incurred by downstream consumers who
  cache and serve meal data.
sources:
  - https://www.themealdb.com/api.php
  - https://www.themealdb.com/docs_api_guide.php
  - https://www.themealdb.com/
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: TheMealDB
serviceCategory: Open Data
billingModel:
  pricingCategory: Freemium / One-Time Purchase
  billingFrequency: One-time (supporter upgrade); free otherwise
  billingCurrency: GBP
  chargeCategories:
    - Purchase
focusColumns:
  ServiceName: TheMealDB Recipe API
  ServiceCategory: Open Data
  ServiceSubcategory: Food and Recipe Data
  ProviderName: TheMealDB
  PublisherName: TheMealDB
  InvoiceIssuerName: TheMealDB
  BillingCurrency: GBP
  ChargeCategory: Purchase
meters:
  - name: supporter_upgrade
    unit: one-time
    aggregation: sum
    dimensions:
      - upgrade_type
    description: >-
      One-time £10 lifetime supporter upgrade charge that unlocks V2 API endpoints and a
      personal production API key. This is the only direct monetary cost of TheMealDB.
  - name: api_requests
    unit: request
    aggregation: sum
    dimensions:
      - endpoint
      - api_version
      - key_type
    description: >-
      API requests made against V1 (free) or V2 (supporter) endpoints. No per-request
      charge is levied; tracking is useful for rate governance and capacity planning.
  - name: cached_meal_data
    unit: record
    aggregation: max
    dimensions:
      - resource_type
    description: >-
      Count of meal records, ingredient records, or category records cached locally by the
      consumer. Caching reduces API call volume and downstream latency.
principles:
  - name: Visibility
    description: >-
      Log all outbound API requests with endpoint, response time, and HTTP status to an
      observability stack. Track daily request volume per endpoint to identify caching
      opportunities and spot unexpected traffic spikes.
  - name: Allocation
    description: >-
      If multiple teams or products consume TheMealDB, assign a distinct supporter key per
      team to enable clean cost and usage allocation. The one-time £10 upgrade cost should
      be tagged to the consuming team or product in your FinOps ledger.
  - name: Optimization
    description: >-
      Cache semi-static data (categories, area lists, ingredient catalog, meal details by
      ID) with a 24-hour TTL. Use the random.php endpoint sparingly; prefer cached meal
      sets for non-personalized recommendations. Upgrade to a supporter key before
      deploying to production to avoid shared test-key contention.
  - name: Accountability
    description: >-
      Assign a platform owner for each supporter API key. Track the one-time upgrade cost
      in your software spend ledger under Open Data / Food. Alert if request error rates
      rise, indicating potential key misuse or service degradation on the shared free tier.