### [The Profanity API](https://free.ilovefree.com/)

**Published:** 2026-06-09T09:24:00

**Author:** ilovefree

**Excerpt:** Freemium + From $0.00/unit. The Profanity API provides intelligent, context-aware profanity detection for developers, using a 5-layer analysis pipeline to filter user-generated content.

Most profanity filters are just word blacklists. They flag "Scunthorpe" and let "f/u" pass. [The Profanity API](https://the-profanity-api.com/?ref=ilovefree&utm_source=ilovefree&utm_medium=referral) runs a **5-layer pipeline** ending with an LLM for intent classification — **300 free requests/month**, then **$0.002/request** ($0.005 with the LLM layer).

## Quick Reference

| Spec | Detail |
| :--- | :--- |
| Detection Layers | 5 (blocklist → dictionary → semantic word → semantic phrase → LLM) |
| Context Types | 12 recognized categories |
| Input Length | 3–1,250 characters |
| Authentication | Bearer token in Authorization header |
| Free Tier | 300 requests/month, 60 req/min rate limit |
| Paid Pricing | $0.002/base request, +$0.003 for LLM layer |
| Data Retention | 30 days (free tier) |
| Response Fields | Blocked flag, confidence score, classified intent |
| Customization | Custom blocklists + allowlists |

### The 5-Layer Pipeline

1.  **L0 — Custom blocklist**: User-defined words and phrases. You control what’s always flagged.
2.  **L1 — Static dictionary**: Exact matches plus leetspeak variants ("a$$", "f\*\*k").
3.  **L2 — Semantic word matching**: Catches misspellings and morphological variations.
4.  **L3 — Semantic phrase-level**: Understands context at the sentence level — distinguishes "this is f_**ing good" (positive) from "f**_ you" (attack).
5.  **L4 — LLM intent classification**: Handles edge cases, sarcasm, and ambiguous language.

The key distinction from simpler APIs (WebPurify, PurgoLink): layers L2–L4 interpret meaning, not just strings. This reduces the false-positive rate that plagues keyword-only filters.

## Pricing Model

The pay-as-you-go structure means costs scale with usage. At **$0.002/request**, processing 100K comments costs $200. With the LLM layer active ($0.005 total), the same volume costs $500. The free tier’s 300 requests cover testing and low-traffic side projects. No subscriptions, no commitments — but also **no refunds**.

### Known Issues

-   **Tiny footprint**: Only **689 views** and **9 saves** since February 2026. The tool doesn’t appear in major "best content moderation API" comparisons (which list OpenAI, Google, Azure, AWS, Hive).
-   **Text-only**: No image, video, or audio moderation. For multi-modal content, you’d need a separate tool like Hive Moderation or AWS Rekognition.
-   **1,250-character limit**: Each API call processes one text segment. Long forum posts or articles need to be chunked client-side.
-   **LLM layer cost doubles the price**: At $0.005/request with LLM, the API is no longer cheap compared to OpenAI’s Moderation API (free for most use cases).
-   **No published accuracy benchmarks**: The company claims context-aware detection but doesn’t publish false-positive/false-negative rates for independent evaluation.
-   **No Refunds policy**: If the API doesn’t meet your needs after the free tier, you’re out whatever you’ve spent.

**Visit [The Profanity API](https://the-profanity-api.com/?ref=ilovefree&utm_source=ilovefree&utm_medium=referral)** — https://the-profanity-api.com/

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