USAJOBS API vs TheirStack for AI agents
USAJOBS API is the official REST API for searching public U.S. federal government job announcements on USAJOBS. TheirStack is a job postings data API (with company and technographic data) aimed at sales and market intelligence as well as job search.
The short answer
- USAJOBS API: Authoritative, reusable data on U.S. federal government job openings.
- TheirStack: Bulk, filterable job-posting data for market research and sales signals, with history back to 2021.
Side by side
| USAJOBS API | TheirStack | |
|---|---|---|
| Searches | Public job announcements posted on USAJOBS (status/internal jobs need extra steps); a single employer-side source, not an aggregator. | Aggregated postings from career pages, job boards and ATS platforms across about 363k websites in 195 countries, since 2021. |
| Returns | JSON SearchResult items with PositionTitle, PositionURI, ApplyURI, OrganizationName, PositionLocation (with lat/long) and PositionRemuneration. | JSON jobs with title, description, url, final_url, source_url, company and company_object, location fields, min/max salary (plus annual USD) and salary_string. |
| Before the first call | An API key requested through an application form (name, email, phone, organization, intended use); calls send Host, User-Agent (your email) and Authorization-Key headers. | A TheirStack account and API key (Bearer token); each search must include at least one date or company filter. |
| Free | Not stated on its pages | 200 API credits and 50 company credits every month, free (1 credit per job returned); free tier rate limit 4/second, 10/minute, 50/hour, 400/day. |
| Paid | Not stated on its pages | From $49 per month for 1,500 API credits (1 credit per job). |
| Acting on a result | PositionURI/ApplyURI point to the announcement on usajobs.gov. | url, plus final_url with the original career-page URL when available (filterable with final_url_exists). |
| Limits on keeping or showing results | Public Data may be copied, stored, republished and used commercially; attribution to USAJOBS is encouraged, not required; don't present modified data as official. Max 10,000 rows per query, 500 per page. | Not stated on its pages |
| Coverage | United States federal government jobs (in the U.S. and abroad). | 195 countries. |
| MCP server | No official server listed | Official TheirStack MCP server (search_jobs tool), OAuth or API key; uses the same API credits: https://theirstack.com/en/docs/mcp |
Where Openpath fits
If the agent needs a job to apply for in Austin, Texas, or a remote one, Openpath returns the listings themselves, free and with no key. See Openpath vs USAJOBS API and Openpath vs TheirStack.
Questions people ask
What do I need before I can use USAJOBS API?
An API key requested through an application form (name, email, phone, organization, intended use); calls send Host, User-Agent (your email) and Authorization-Key headers.
Is USAJOBS API free?
Its pages listed no free use when we read them on October 15, 2026.
What do I need before I can use TheirStack?
A TheirStack account and API key (Bearer token); each search must include at least one date or company filter.
Is TheirStack free?
200 API credits and 50 company credits every month, free (1 credit per job returned); free tier rate limit 4/second, 10/minute, 50/hour, 400/day.
Sources
Every line about another company comes from its own pages. Prices and terms change, so check the source before you rely on one.
USAJOBS API, read on October 15, 2026:
- developer.usajobs.gov/guides/authentication: “To request an API Key, please go the the API Request page and fill out an application.”
- developer.usajobs.gov/apirequest: “Only public job information is available through this site.”
- developer.usajobs.gov/guides/rate-limiting: “Maximum of 10,000 rows per query”
- developer.usajobs.gov/guides/terms-of-service: “Public Data may be copied, stored, reformatted, adapted, analyzed, published, redistributed, and used for lawful commercial”
- developer.usajobs.gov/guides/terms-of-service: “OPM encourages users to identify USAJOBS as the source, link to the current official job announcement”
- developer.usajobs.gov/api-reference/get-api-search: “URI to apply for the job offering.”
- usajobs.gov/HiringPath/Public: “the official employment site for the federal government”
TheirStack, read on October 15, 2026:
- theirstack.com/en/job-posting-api: “253M of jobs across 195 countries since 2021”
- theirstack.com/en/job-posting-api: “career pages, job boards, and ATS platforms”
- theirstack.com/en/docs/pricing/plans: “Start exploring with 50 company credits and 200 API credits every month - completely free, forever.”
- theirstack.com/en/docs/api-reference/rate-limit: “4/second, 10/minute, 50/hour, 400/day”
- theirstack.com/en/pricing: “1,500 API credits — $49 per month”
- theirstack.com/en/docs/api-reference/jobs/search_jobs_v1: “1 API credit for each job returned in the response”
- theirstack.com/en/job-posting-mcp: “Your AI assistant calls the search_jobs tool to find jobs by title, location, salary”