Code Detector API
Code Detector is a simple tool for detecting the language of code in text. It returns details such as extension, language, family, and more.
The Code Detector API provides reliable and fast access to code detector data through a simple REST interface. Built for developers who need consistent, high-quality results with minimal setup time.
To use Code Detector, you need an API key. You can get one by creating a free account and visiting your dashboard.
POST Endpoint
https://api.apiverve.com/v1/codedetectorCode Examples
Here are examples of how to call the Code Detector API in different programming languages:
curl -X POST \
"https://api.apiverve.com/v1/codedetector" \
-H "X-API-Key: your_api_key_here" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{
"code": "a = 5\nb = 6\nc = 7\n\n# calculate the semi-perimeter\ns = (a + b + c) / 2\n\n# calculate the area\narea = (s*(s-a)*(s-b)*(s-c)) ** 0.5\nprint('The area of the triangle is %0.2f' %area)"
}'const response = await fetch('https://api.apiverve.com/v1/codedetector', {
method: 'POST',
headers: {
'X-API-Key': 'your_api_key_here',
'Content-Type': 'application/json'
},
body: JSON.stringify({
"code": "a = 5\nb = 6\nc = 7\n\n# calculate the semi-perimeter\ns = (a + b + c) / 2\n\n# calculate the area\narea = (s*(s-a)*(s-b)*(s-c)) ** 0.5\nprint('The area of the triangle is %0.2f' %area)"
})
});
const data = await response.json();
console.log(data);import requests
headers = {
'X-API-Key': 'your_api_key_here',
'Content-Type': 'application/json'
}
payload = {
"code": "a = 5\nb = 6\nc = 7\n\n# calculate the semi-perimeter\ns = (a + b + c) / 2\n\n# calculate the area\narea = (s*(s-a)*(s-b)*(s-c)) ** 0.5\nprint('The area of the triangle is %0.2f' %area)"
}
response = requests.post('https://api.apiverve.com/v1/codedetector', headers=headers, json=payload)
data = response.json()
print(data)const https = require('https');
const url = require('url');
const options = {
method: 'POST',
headers: {
'X-API-Key': 'your_api_key_here',
'Content-Type': 'application/json'
}
};
const postData = JSON.stringify({
"code": "a = 5\nb = 6\nc = 7\n\n# calculate the semi-perimeter\ns = (a + b + c) / 2\n\n# calculate the area\narea = (s*(s-a)*(s-b)*(s-c)) ** 0.5\nprint('The area of the triangle is %0.2f' %area)"
});
const req = https.request('https://api.apiverve.com/v1/codedetector', options, (res) => {
let data = '';
res.on('data', (chunk) => data += chunk);
res.on('end', () => console.log(JSON.parse(data)));
});
req.write(postData);
req.end();<?php
$ch = curl_init();
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_URL, 'https://api.apiverve.com/v1/codedetector');
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_RETURNTRANSFER, true);
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_CUSTOMREQUEST, 'POST');
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_HTTPHEADER, [
'X-API-Key: your_api_key_here',
'Content-Type: application/json'
]);
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_POSTFIELDS, json_encode({
'code': 'a = 5\nb = 6\nc = 7\n\n# calculate the semi-perimeter\ns = (a + b + c) / 2\n\n# calculate the area\narea = (s*(s-a)*(s-b)*(s-c)) ** 0.5\nprint('The area of the triangle is %0.2f' %area)'
}));
$response = curl_exec($ch);
curl_close($ch);
$data = json_decode($response, true);
print_r($data);
?>package main
import (
"fmt"
"io"
"net/http"
"bytes"
"encoding/json"
)
func main() {
payload := map[string]interface{}{
"code": "a = 5
b = 6
c = 7
# calculate the semi-perimeter
s = (a + b + c) / 2
# calculate the area
area = (s*(s-a)*(s-b)*(s-c)) ** 0.5
print('The area of the triangle is %0.2f' %area)"
}
jsonPayload, _ := json.Marshal(payload)
req, _ := http.NewRequest("POST", "https://api.apiverve.com/v1/codedetector", bytes.NewBuffer(jsonPayload))
req.Header.Set("X-API-Key", "your_api_key_here")
req.Header.Set("Content-Type", "application/json")
client := &http.Client{}
resp, err := client.Do(req)
if err != nil {
panic(err)
}
defer resp.Body.Close()
body, _ := io.ReadAll(resp.Body)
fmt.Println(string(body))
}require 'net/http'
require 'json'
uri = URI('https://api.apiverve.com/v1/codedetector')
http = Net::HTTP.new(uri.host, uri.port)
http.use_ssl = true
payload = {
"code": "a = 5\nb = 6\nc = 7\n\n# calculate the semi-perimeter\ns = (a + b + c) / 2\n\n# calculate the area\narea = (s*(s-a)*(s-b)*(s-c)) ** 0.5\nprint('The area of the triangle is %0.2f' %area)"
}
request = Net::HTTP::Post.new(uri)
request['X-API-Key'] = 'your_api_key_here'
request['Content-Type'] = 'application/json'
request.body = payload.to_json
response = http.request(request)
puts JSON.pretty_generate(JSON.parse(response.body))using System;
using System.Net.Http;
using System.Text;
using System.Threading.Tasks;
class Program
{
static async Task Main(string[] args)
{
using var client = new HttpClient();
client.DefaultRequestHeaders.Add("X-API-Key", "your_api_key_here");
var jsonContent = @"{
""code"": ""a = 5\nb = 6\nc = 7\n\n# calculate the semi-perimeter\ns = (a + b + c) / 2\n\n# calculate the area\narea = (s*(s-a)*(s-b)*(s-c)) ** 0.5\nprint('The area of the triangle is %0.2f' %area)""
}";
var content = new StringContent(jsonContent, Encoding.UTF8, "application/json");
var response = await client.PostAsync("https://api.apiverve.com/v1/codedetector", content);
response.EnsureSuccessStatusCode();
var responseBody = await response.Content.ReadAsStringAsync();
Console.WriteLine(responseBody);
}
}Authentication
The Code Detector API requires authentication via API key. Include your API key in the request header:
X-API-Key: your_api_key_hereInteractive API Playground
Test the Code Detector API directly in your browser with live requests and responses.
Parameters
The following parameters are available for the Code Detector API:
Detect Code
| Parameter | Type | Required | Description | Default | Example |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
code | string | required | The code snippet you want to detect the programming language of | - |
Response
The Code Detector API returns responses in JSON, XML, YAML, and CSV formats:
Example Responses
{
"status": "ok",
"error": null,
"data": {
"likelihood": 0.99,
"family": "PYTHON",
"current": "python",
"readable": "Python Code",
"extension": ".py"
}
}<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<response>
<status>ok</status>
<error xsi:nil="true" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance"/>
<data>
<likelihood>0.99</likelihood>
<family>PYTHON</family>
<current>python</current>
<readable>Python Code</readable>
<extension>.py</extension>
</data>
</response>
status: ok
error: null
data:
likelihood: 0.99
family: PYTHON
current: python
readable: Python Code
extension: .py
| key | value |
|---|---|
| likelihood | 0.99 |
| family | PYTHON |
| current | python |
| readable | Python Code |
| extension | .py |
Response Structure
All API responses follow a consistent structure with the following fields:
| Field | Type | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
status | string | Indicates whether the request was successful ("ok") or failed ("error") | ok |
error | string | null | Contains error message if status is "error", otherwise null | null |
data | object | null | Contains the API response data if successful, otherwise null | {...} |
Learn more about response formats →
Response Data Fields
When the request is successful, the data object contains the following fields:
| Field | Type | Sample Value |
|---|---|---|
likelihood | number | |
family | string | |
current | string | |
readable | string | |
extension | string |
Headers
Required and optional headers for Code Detector API requests:
| Header Name | Required | Example Value | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
X-API-Key | required | your_api_key_here | Your APIVerve API key. Found in your dashboard under API Keys. |
Accept | optional | application/json | Specify response format: application/json (default), application/xml, or application/yaml |
User-Agent | optional | MyApp/1.0 | Identifies your application for analytics and debugging purposes |
X-Request-ID | optional | req_123456789 | Custom request identifier for tracking and debugging requests |
Cache-Control | optional | no-cache | Control caching behavior for the request and response |
GraphQL AccessALPHA
Access Code Detector through GraphQL to combine it with other API calls in a single request. Query only the code detector data you need with precise field selection, and orchestrate complex data fetching workflows.
Credit Cost: Each API called in your GraphQL query consumes its standard credit cost.
POST https://api.apiverve.com/v1/graphqlquery {
codedetector(
input: {
code: "a = 5
b = 6
c = 7
# calculate the semi-perimeter
s = (a + b + c) / 2
# calculate the area
area = (s*(s-a)*(s-b)*(s-c)) ** 0.5
print('The area of the triangle is %0.2f' %area)"
}
) {
likelihood
family
current
readable
extension
}
}Note: Authentication is handled via the x-api-key header in your GraphQL request, not as a query parameter.
CORS Support
The Code Detector API supports Cross-Origin Resource Sharing (CORS) with wildcard configuration, allowing you to call Code Detector directly from browser-based applications without proxy servers.
| CORS Header | Value | Description |
|---|---|---|
Access-Control-Allow-Origin | * | Accepts requests from any origin |
Access-Control-Allow-Methods | * | Accepts any HTTP method |
Access-Control-Allow-Headers | * | Accepts any request headers |
Browser Usage: You can call Code Detector directly from JavaScript running in the browser without encountering CORS errors. No proxy server or additional configuration needed.
Rate Limiting
Code Detector API requests are subject to rate limiting based on your subscription plan. These limits ensure fair usage and maintain service quality for all Code Detector users.
| Plan | Rate Limit | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Free | 5 requests/min | Hard rate limit enforced - exceeding will return 429 errors |
| Starter | No Limit | Production ready - standard traffic priority |
| Pro | No Limit | Production ready - preferred traffic priority |
| Mega | No Limit | Production ready - highest traffic priority |
Learn more about rate limiting →
Rate Limit Headers
When rate limits apply, each Code Detector response includes headers to help you track your usage:
| Header | Description |
|---|---|
X-RateLimit-Limit | Maximum number of requests allowed per time window |
X-RateLimit-Remaining | Number of requests remaining in the current window |
X-RateLimit-Reset | Unix timestamp when the rate limit window resets |
Handling Rate Limits
Free Plan: When you exceed your rate limit, Code Detector returns a 429 Too Many Requests status code. Your application should implement appropriate backoff logic to handle this gracefully.
Paid Plans: No rate limiting or throttling applied. All paid plans (Starter, Pro, Mega) are production-ready.
Best Practices for Code Detector:
- Monitor the rate limit headers to track your Code Detector usage (Free plan only)
- Cache code detector responses where appropriate to reduce API calls
- Upgrade to Pro or Mega for guaranteed no-throttle Code Detector performance
Note: Code Detector rate limits are separate from credit consumption. You may have credits remaining but still hit rate limits when using Code Detector on Free tier.
Error Codes
The Code Detector API uses standard HTTP status codes to indicate success or failure:
| Code | Message | Description | Solution |
|---|---|---|---|
200 | OK | Request successful, data returned | No action needed - request was successful |
400 | Bad Request | Invalid request parameters or malformed request | Check required parameters and ensure values match expected formats |
401 | Unauthorized | Missing or invalid API key | Include x-api-key header with valid API key from dashboard |
403 | Forbidden | API key lacks permission or insufficient credits | Check credit balance in dashboard or upgrade plan |
429 | Too Many Requests | Rate limit exceeded (Free: 5 req/min) | Implement request throttling or upgrade to paid plan |
500 | Internal Server Error | Server error occurred | Retry request after a few seconds, contact support if persists |
503 | Service Unavailable | API temporarily unavailable | Wait and retry, check status page for maintenance updates |
Learn more about error handling →
Need help? Contact support with your X-Request-ID for assistance.
Integrate Code Detector with SDKs
Get started quickly with official Code Detector SDKs for your preferred language. Each library handles authentication, request formatting, and error handling automatically.
Available for Node.js, Python, C#/.NET, and Android/Java. All SDKs are open source and regularly updated.
Integrate Code Detector with No-Code API Tools
Connect the Code Detector API to your favorite automation platform without writing code. Build workflows that leverage code detector data across thousands of apps.





All platforms use your same API key to access Code Detector. Visit our integrations hub for step-by-step setup guides.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I get an API key for Code Detector?
How many credits does Code Detector cost?
Each successful Code Detector API call consumes credits based on plan tier. Check the pricing section above for the exact credit cost. Failed requests and errors don't consume credits, so you only pay for successful code detector lookups.
Can I use Code Detector in production?
The free plan is for testing and development only. For production use of Code Detector, upgrade to a paid plan (Starter, Pro, or Mega) which includes commercial use rights, no attribution requirements, and guaranteed uptime SLAs. All paid plans are production-ready.
Can I use Code Detector from a browser?
What happens if I exceed my Code Detector credit limit?
When you reach your monthly credit limit, Code Detector API requests will return an error until you upgrade your plan or wait for the next billing cycle. You'll receive notifications at 80% and 95% usage to give you time to upgrade if needed.



