Image conversion API. Open source.
No $150/month invoice.
PNG, JPG, WebP, AVIF, GIF — convert, compress, and resize via a clean REST API. One header. One endpoint. One response.
No credit card required · API key in 60 seconds · No SDK required
curl -X POST https://pixshift.com/api/v1/convert \
-H "X-API-Key: pxs_live_xxxxxxxxxxxx" \
-F "file=@photo.png" \
-F "target_format=webp" \
--output result.webpBuilt for developers who read the source code before they trust the product
The problem
Your image pipeline
shouldn't look like this.
Manual converters that don't scale
You paste an image into a browser tab, download the result, and repeat. It works for one image. It breaks the moment your app needs to do it programmatically, in bulk, or on a schedule.
Enterprise platforms priced for enterprises
Cloudinary starts at $89/month. Imgix starts at $100/month. They bundle CDN delivery, video transcoding, and AI tagging — none of which you asked for. You're paying for a platform you're using at 5% capacity.
Rolling your own Pillow scripts
You can write a Python script around Pillow. Then you need auth, rate limiting, error handling, logging, and deployment. What started as a one-hour task is now a service you maintain forever.
PixShift is the middle path. A clean, documented, open-source API that does exactly what you need.
Everything you need. Nothing you don't.
Five endpoints. Full format support. API keys you control from a dashboard that doesn't require a tutorial.
Format Conversion
Convert any image format with a single POST request
JPEG, PNG, WebP, AVIF, and GIF as input. JPEG, PNG, WebP, or AVIF as output. Send the file, specify the target format, get the converted binary back. No storage, no CDN, no middleman.
Compression
Control output file size without writing a line of Pillow code
Pass a quality value from 1 to 100. The API compresses the image using Sharp and returns it with the correct Content-Type header. The output stays in the same format as the input — only file size changes.
Resize
Resize images with or without aspect ratio lock — your choice
Set width, height, and whether to lock the aspect ratio. Dimensions cap at 5000px to prevent memory exhaustion. Pass keep_aspect_ratio=true and the API handles the math.
API Key Management
Create multiple keys, name them, revoke them instantly
Production key, staging key, a key for that side project — create as many as you need. Each key tracks its own usage. Revoke any of them with one click. Keys are hashed with SHA-256 — this is how Stripe does it.
Usage Tracking
See exactly how many calls you've made — per key, per hour, per month
The dashboard shows total calls, successful calls, failed calls, and a breakdown by operation. Every call is logged with its format, file size, and duration. See exactly what your API key is doing.
Get started
Up and running in under 60 seconds.
No SDK required. It's just HTTP with a header.
Create your account
Register with your email. No credit card. No onboarding call. You're in.
Generate an API key
From your dashboard, create a named key. Copy it — it's shown once, then hashed. Store it in your environment variables.
Make your first call
POST to /api/v1/convert with your file and target format, and your key in the X-API-Key header. Get the converted binary back in the response.
Ship it
That's your integration. One endpoint, one header, one response. Add /compress or /resize as needed. The full API reference at /docs covers every parameter, error code, and response format.
Your image pipeline is now three lines of curl. The rest is just building your product.
What developers say after their first API call
I've been using Cloudinary for two years and I'm paying for probably 15 features I've never touched. PixShift does the three things I actually use. I migrated our conversion pipeline in an afternoon and cut the bill by 80%.
“I expected the integration to take a day. It took 20 minutes. The docs actually match the API, which is apparently not guaranteed in this industry.”
Indie Developer
Self-employed
“The fact that it's open source was the deciding factor. I can read the auth code, see exactly how keys are hashed, and verify there are no surprises.”
Tech Lead
Early-Stage Startup
FAQ
Questions we actually get.
YourimageconversionpipelineshouldbeanAPIcall,notatodoitem.
Create an account, get your key, and make your first conversion in the next five minutes.
No credit card required · No SDK required · API key in 60 seconds