For students & educators

Building something for class? We've got you covered.

We support students. Whether it's a class project, a dissertation, research or a weekend hackathon, get in touch and we'll give you free or discounted access to our vehicle data APIs.

How to get student access

1 · Create an account

Sign up for a free account so we have somewhere to put your credit or plan.

Create account →

2 · Email us

Write to [email protected] — ideally from your school address — with your name, school, a few lines on the project and the APIs you need.

Send the email →

3 · Start building

We'll reply quickly with free or discounted access matched to your project. Grab your API key from the dashboard and go.

View the docs →

What students build with PlateToVIN

A few ideas — but we'd love to hear yours.

Computer vision

Train or benchmark plate recognition with the License Plate OCR API, then resolve the plate to a vehicle.

Mobile & web apps

Snap a plate, identify the car, show its specs and photos — a classic capstone project.

Data & research

Analyse fleets, model years or safety recall trends using VIN decoding and NHTSA recall data.

Hackathons

Need vehicle data fast for a 48-hour build? Email us and we'll get you going for the weekend.

Student access FAQ

Who counts as a student?

Anyone currently enrolled at a high school, college, university or bootcamp — undergraduate, postgraduate or PhD. Educators running a class project are welcome to get in touch too.

Is it really free?

For most class projects, dissertations and hackathons, yes. Bigger or longer-running projects may get a discounted plan instead. Tell us what you're building and we'll find something that works.

Which APIs can I use?

All of them — License Plate to VIN, VIN Decoding, License Plate OCR, NHTSA Recalls and Vehicle Images. Let us know which ones your project needs.

What should I include in my email?

Your name, your school, a few lines about the project, which APIs you need and a rough idea of how many calls you expect. Emailing from your school address speeds things up.

Can I use it for a commercial product?

Student access is for learning, research and non-commercial projects. If your project turns into a startup, talk to us — we're happy to help you through the early stages.