How to Make Your App Faster with Free Caching
If your app feels slow, makes the same API calls repeatedly, or you're paying too much for API usage — caching fixes all three. Upstash gives you 10,000 free commands per day.
This guide was written as of April 2026. If anything looks different, let us know.
Before you start
What you'll have at the end
Upstash REST URL and token in your .env file
Free tier
10,000 commands/day, 256MB storage. Next tier: $0.2 per 100K commands.
What is caching?
Caching means saving API responses so you don't fetch the same thing twice. If your app checks keyword rankings every hour, it doesn't need to make a new API call every time someone loads the page — it can show the cached result.
Create an Upstash account
Go to upstash.com and sign up. Free tier, no credit card required.
Create a Redis database
In the Upstash console, click Create Database. Name it after your project. Pick a region close to your users. Choose the free tier.
Get your credentials
After creating the database, you'll see your REST URL and REST Token. Copy both.
Add to your .env file
Add these to your .env file:
UPSTASH_REDIS_REST_URL=your-rest-url
UPSTASH_REDIS_REST_TOKEN=your-rest-token
Verify it works
You should have two new lines in your .env file. Your AI tool can now cache API responses in Upstash.
Tell Your AI Tool
Copy this prompt and paste it into your AI coding tool. It tells your AI exactly what credentials you just set up.
I've set up Upstash Redis for caching. My credentials are in my .env file: - UPSTASH_REDIS_REST_URL - UPSTASH_REDIS_REST_TOKEN Cache all API responses for 1 hour. Use the @upstash/redis package.
Paste the prompt into the chat panel (Cmd+L or Ctrl+L). Cursor can also read your .env file directly — if your credentials are there, it already knows.
YepAPI Tip
Cache your YepAPI responses. Keyword data doesn't change every minute — cache it for an hour. Faster app, fewer calls, lower bill.
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Upstash Caching — FAQ
Caching saves API responses so your app doesn't make the same request twice. It makes your app faster, reduces API costs, and avoids rate limits.
Yes. The free tier gives you 10,000 commands per day and 256MB storage. Enough for most side projects. Beyond that, it's $0.2 per 100,000 commands.
When your app feels slow, when you're making the same API calls repeatedly, or when you're hitting rate limits or spending too much on API calls.
Without caching, every page load makes fresh API calls. With Redis caching, frequently accessed data is stored and served instantly. The difference can be seconds vs milliseconds.
Start vibe coding with one API key.
One API key. 100+ endpoints. Yep, that's it.