IGDB

IGDB is a game information database for finding details about games, companies, and characters. Its website supports search results sorted by relevance, title, release date, or rating, and community members can contribute to the database. Developers can use its API to query game data and related entities, choosing fields, filters, sorting, and other options in request bodies. Non-commercial API use is free under the Twitch Developer Service Agreement; commercial use requires a partnership and visible attribution in user-facing products. API access requires a Twitch account with two-factor authentication, an application Client ID and Client Secret, and OAuth2 application credentials. Requests are limited to four per second, eight open requests at a time, and 500 results per request. Documentation offers daily-updated CSV dumps and lists language wrappers. Direct browser requests are unavailable because the API does not provide CORS headers, so the documentation recommends a backend proxy. IGDB provides a guide to deploy one in AWS, where charges may apply. The service is available on the web and through its API.

IGDB combines public game discovery with API access to related data. Its free non-commercial API has request limits, while commercial integration requires a partnership and attribution.

IGDB suits people looking up games and related companies or characters, as well as developers building products around game data. Commercial API users need a partnership and user-facing attribution.

IGDB is a searchable video-game database paired with a developer API, suited to players researching games and to developers building structured game-data features. It is a strong fit for non-commercial projects that can use a backend and respect modest rate limits, but less suitable for browser-only apps or commercial products needing immediate self-service access.

Overview

IGDB brings games, companies, and characters into one community-contributed catalog. Players can use it as a discovery reference, while developers get programmatic access to game records and related entities. The service is free, with no trial or paid tier to weigh against the core offering. Its practical value depends on your intended use: non-commercial integration is straightforward once configured, whereas commercial use requires a partnership and visible attribution in the product.

Key features

Search supports video games, companies, and characters, with sorting by relevance, title, release date, or rating. That combination works for both broad browsing and focused catalog interfaces, letting a reader move from a title search to associated people or companies without changing databases. Community contributions help keep the catalog broad, although material that fails submission criteria or conflicts with Twitch Community Guidelines can be removed or restricted.

The API exposes endpoints for game data and related entities. Request bodies can define fields, filters, sorting, and other options, giving developers control over payloads instead of accepting a fixed response. OAuth2 application credentials are required, along with a Twitch account protected by two-factor authentication and an application Client ID and Client Secret. That security setup is sensible for a production integration but adds friction to a small prototype.

Operational limits are explicit: 4 requests per second, up to 8 open requests at once, and no more than 500 results per request. Those ceilings suit lookup tools, moderate catalog features, and carefully queued jobs; they are a poor match for unthrottled, high-volume live querying. All endpoints are also offered as daily-updated CSV data dumps, and export formats include CSV and Protocol Buffers. Dumps can reduce repeated API calls for teams that can maintain their own data store.

Browser clients cannot call the API directly because IGDB does not provide CORS headers. The recommended solution is a backend proxy. IGDB supplies a guide for deploying that proxy in your AWS account, with token rotation handled by the stack, but AWS charges may apply. Developers can use documented Apicalypse wrappers for NodeJS, JVM/Kotlin/Java, Swift, and Python, alongside third-party wrappers for PHP/Laravel, Go, Ruby, C#/.NET, and Deno. Support is offered by email, while Discord is recommended for API questions and community discussion. The IGDB MCP Server is in beta, so its tools and authentication flows may change.

Pricing

IGDB is free. The IGDB API (non-commercial) plan costs nothing and covers non-commercial usage, with 4 requests per second and up to 8 open requests. There is no free trial because the service is already free, and these quotas are the important trade-off for developers planning sustained traffic.

The IGDB API (commercial partnership) plan is also free, but commercial use requires a partnership and user-facing attribution is expected. The displayed price therefore does not mean commercial access is self-serve or automatically granted; a product business should plan for the partnership process before committing to an integration.

Platforms

IGDB is available through its web interface and API. Its game coverage spans PC (Microsoft Windows), Mac, iOS, Android, PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo Switch, web browser, and arcade platforms. Character data is supported, and exports are available in CSV and Protocol Buffers.

Who it's for

Choose IGDB if you need a broad game catalog, related company and character records, configurable queries, or daily bulk exports for a non-commercial project. It also suits players who want sortable discovery across multiple game platforms. Look elsewhere if your app must query from the browser without infrastructure, if your workload exceeds the published request ceilings, or if you need commercial API access without a partnership and attribution commitment.

Pros and cons

• Pros: Free non-commercial API access keeps entry costs at zero.
• Pros: Fields, filters, sorting, related entities, and daily dumps support both live features and local catalogs.
• Pros: Coverage includes major console, computer, mobile, browser, and arcade platforms, plus character data.
• Cons: The 4-requests-per-second, eight-open-request, and 500-result caps require queueing and pagination planning.
• Cons: No CORS headers force browser applications through a backend proxy, with possible AWS charges.
• Cons: Commercial products must arrange a partnership and show attribution, so the free price is not a complete commercial-access solution.

Alternatives

BoardGameGeek is a free choice on Android, iOS, and the web when you want a registered community site rather than IGDB's API-centered game catalog.

LaunchBox is better for Windows or Android game library management: its free Starter plan is free forever, while the Regular Windows edition costs $30 once for perpetual ownership and includes a year.

Yu-Gi-Oh! Card Database is the narrower free Android, iOS, and web option for Yu-Gi-Oh! card reference.

NostalgiaDB fits free API-and-web access when an API key and a registered account for play or archive downloads meet your needs.

RaiderZ Game Database is a free web and Windows database for readers focused on that game ecosystem.

RAWG is the stronger alternative when a non-commercial project needs a stated allowance of up to 20,000 requests per month and 500,000-plus games, provided you add required backlinks.

YGOPRODeck is preferable for card-data API work with a 20-requests-per-second limit, though exceeding it blocks access for an hour.

The Visual Novel Database suits non-commercial visual-novel API use with 200 requests per five minutes and execution-time rules.

For more options, browse Game Databases.

Verdict

IGDB is an excellent starting point for non-commercial game discovery features and structured catalogs, especially when daily dumps, related-entity data, and configurable queries matter. Choose it for breadth and zero API cost; choose another service if browser-only delivery, higher throughput, or partnership-free commercial access is central to your product.