In simple English
This tool turns your technical API description file into a clean, professional web page. Readers get a searchable sidebar, clear request examples, and dark mode out of the box. You can drop it into any HTML page with a single script tag or build static files using the command line. It costs nothing to use under its open-source licence, but advanced features like built-in mock servers require paid plans. The community edition is free and maintained by Redocly.
What it is
Redoc is an open-source documentation generator that reads OpenAPI, AsyncAPI, and GraphQL definition files. It renders them into a responsive three-panel web interface that works in any modern browser.
What it is good for
Solo developers building an API who want professional documentation without spending weeks building a custom portal from scratch.
- Renders clean, three-panel layouts automatically from standard API schema files.
- Embeds easily into any existing web page using a single script tag.
- Supports modern specification formats like OpenAPI 3.1 and GraphQL out of the box.
- Requires an existing API specification file written in OpenAPI, AsyncAPI, or GraphQL format.
- Advanced features like a live try-it panel require paid Redocly subscriptions.
- Customising the default visual layout beyond CSS variables takes extra work.
Writing manual API reference pages by hand in HTML or markdown
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npx @redocly/cli build-docs openapi.yaml