Verified factsChecked 2026-10-17
| Price | Free for anyone, for any purpose, including commercial use. The terms say Poly Haven will never require payment, a license or a key to use the API.2 [Verified 2026-10-17] |
| API key / auth | Not required. The API terms do require a unique User-Agent or Referer header that names your software.2 [Verified 2026-10-17] |
| Rate limit | No numeric limit is published. The acceptable-use clause bans anything that degrades the API for others, and responses are cached (cache-control: max-age=43200 on our test).2 [Verified 2026-10-17] |
| Terms | Live API use inside your app, site or service must visibly credit Poly Haven (for example "Powered by Poly Haven"). Downloaded CC0 assets need no attribution.2 [Verified 2026-10-17] |
| Licensing | Every asset is CC0: use it for anything, commercial included, with no attribution required.3 [Verified 2026-10-17] |
| Catalog size | 997 HDRIs, 869 textures and 521 models (counts from /assets?type=… on the check date).4 [Verified 2026-10-17] |
| Status | Provided "as available" with no uptime guarantee; Poly Haven may change or suspend the API without notice.2 [Verified 2026-10-17] |
| Endpoints | /assets, /search?q=…&t=…, /info/{id}, /files/{id}, /taxonomy, /types (OpenAPI spec published).5 [Verified 2026-10-17] |
FeaturesChecked 2026-10-17
YesNoN/ANot published
| Capability | Value |
|---|---|
| StatusThe README says the API is currently live; the terms say it is provided as available with no uptime guarantee. No stage label. | Not published1 [Not published by vendor: checked 2026-10-17 on https://github.com/Poly-Haven/Public-API] |
| API key requiredNo key; send a User-Agent. Calls must carry a unique Referer or User-Agent naming your software. | No2 [Verified 2026-10-17 on https://github.com/Poly-Haven/Public-API/blob/master/ToS.md] |
| Free tierFree for any use. Poly Haven will never require payment, a license or a key. | Yes2 [Verified 2026-10-17 on https://github.com/Poly-Haven/Public-API/blob/master/ToS.md] |
| Rate limitNo numeric limit is published; the acceptable-use clause applies. | Not published2 [Not published by vendor: checked 2026-10-17 on https://github.com/Poly-Haven/Public-API/blob/master/ToS.md] |
| Official MCP serverNo official MCP server is listed. | Not published1 [Not published by vendor: checked 2026-10-17 on https://github.com/Poly-Haven/Public-API] |
| Official SDKNo official SDK is listed; the README links the OpenAPI docs and terms. | Not published1 [Not published by vendor: checked 2026-10-17 on https://github.com/Poly-Haven/Public-API] |
| Data license / termsApps that surface live API results must credit Poly Haven. | CC0 assets; credit for live API use2 [Verified 2026-10-17 on https://github.com/Poly-Haven/Public-API/blob/master/ToS.md] |
| Commercial use allowedYes, including for-profit. Terms section 2.1–2.3. | Yes2 [Verified 2026-10-17 on https://github.com/Poly-Haven/Public-API/blob/master/ToS.md] |
| CORS / browser useAccess-Control-Allow-Origin: *. Returned on a GET with a third-party Origin header. | Yes6 [Verified 2026-10-17 by test request to https://api.polyhaven.com/search?q=brick&t=textures] |
| Freshness / coverageCounts from /assets?type=hdris|textures|models. | 997 HDRIs, 869 textures, 521 models4 [Verified 2026-10-17 by test request to https://api.polyhaven.com/assets?type=hdris] |
What it does
Poly Haven is a free library of HDRIs, PBR textures and 3D models, all released as CC0. Its public API lists every asset with metadata, runs plain-language search, and returns direct download links for each map, resolution and format (JPG, PNG, EXR, glTF, .blend and more), with file sizes and MD5 hashes. That is exactly what a Blender or game-dev agent needs: search for “worn wooden planks”, pick a slug, and fetch the 2K diffuse, normal and roughness maps without scraping the website.
Working exampleRun 2026-10-17
curl -sS -A "my-agent/1.0" "https://api.polyhaven.com/search?q=brick&t=textures"
Response (trimmed)
HTTP 200
{"query":"brick","type":"textures","total":606,
"results":[{"slug":"patterned_brick_wall_03","score":0.6315},
{"slug":"church_bricks_03","score":0.6259},
{"slug":"red_bricks_02","score":0.6245}, ...]}Agent setup
Prompt to give your agent
Use the Poly Haven API (https://api.polyhaven.com, no key; send the header User-Agent: my-blender-agent/1.0). For each material I describe, call /search?q=<words>&t=textures, pick the best slug, then call /files/<slug> and give me the 2k JPG URLs for the diffuse, normal (GL) and roughness maps plus the page link https://polyhaven.com/a/<slug>. Materials: worn wooden floor, mossy stone wall, brushed metal.
Agent / MCP-style tool snippet
// Agent tool definitions (JSON Schema) — implement with HTTP GET
// Always send User-Agent: <your-app-name>/<version>
[
{
"name": "polyhaven_search",
"description": "Search CC0 assets on Poly Haven. Returns slugs, best match first.",
"input_schema": { "type": "object",
"properties": { "q": { "type": "string" },
"t": { "type": "string", "enum": ["hdris", "textures", "models"] } },
"required": ["q"] }
},
{
"name": "polyhaven_files",
"description": "Download URLs for one asset by map, resolution and format.",
"input_schema": { "type": "object",
"properties": { "slug": { "type": "string" } }, "required": ["slug"] }
}
]
// GET https://api.polyhaven.com/search?q={q}&t={t}
// GET https://api.polyhaven.com/files/{slug}Fit and safety
Good for
- Blender or game-dev agents that texture scenes automatically
- Picking HDRI lighting by time of day or weather
- Prototyping 3D scenes with free models
- Building asset browsers inside creative tools
Watch out
- Do not ship an app that shows live Poly Haven results without a visible "Powered by Poly Haven" style credit; the API terms require it.
- Do not call the API with a generic or missing User-Agent from production code; the terms require a header that names your app.
- Do not scrape polyhaven.com pages; the site terms forbid it and the grids are built in JavaScript anyway. Use the API.
- Do not rely on it for a hard SLA. It is a free service with no uptime guarantee, so cache or mirror the assets you depend on.
Alternatives
| Openverse API | Free openly licensed images and audio when you need 2D media or sound, not 3D assets. |
| ambientCG API | Another CC0 library of PBR materials with a public API; run by one person and not meant for enterprise reliability. |
| GitBook docs MCP | Keyless docs access for agents, useful when the agent also needs a tool’s documentation. |
FAQ
Does the Poly Haven API need a key?
No. It is free and keyless for any use, including commercial. Send a User-Agent or Referer header that names your software.
Can I use Poly Haven assets commercially?
Yes. All assets are CC0, so they can be used for anything without attribution. Only apps that surface live API results must credit Poly Haven.
How does an agent get texture download links?
Search with /search?q=…&t=textures to get a slug, then call /files/{slug} for URLs by map, resolution and format.
Compare
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SourcesFootnotes
- 1github.com/Poly-Haven/Public-APIVerified 2026-10-17
- 2github.com/Poly-Haven/Public-API/blob/master/ToS.mdVerified 2026-10-17
- 3polyhaven.com/licenseVerified 2026-10-17
- 4api.polyhaven.com/assets?type=hdrisVerified 2026-10-17
- 5api.polyhaven.com/api-docs/swagger.jsonVerified 2026-10-17
- 6api.polyhaven.com/search?q=brick&t=texturesTested 2026-10-17