diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 8b82aee..a377f8c 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -40,6 +40,7 @@ Every developer accumulates dozens of useful code snippets. A regex that finally
 - Save snippets with title, language, description and tags
 - Full-text search across title and description
 - Filter by language or tag
+- REST API for accessing and searching snippets programmatically
 - Pagination, so the grid stays fast as your stash grows
 - Syntax highlighting via highlight.js
 - Copy to clipboard in one click, from the snippet detail page or straight from the card grid
@@ -188,6 +189,20 @@ Thanks to everyone who has contributed to StashSnip
 
 ---
 
+## REST API
+
+StashSnip exposes a lightweight, public REST API mounted under `/api`:
+
+| Method | Endpoint | Description | Query Parameters |
+|---|---|---|---|
+| `GET` | `/api/snippets` | List all snippets in JSON format | `?q=search_term`, `?language=py`, `?tag=flask` |
+| `GET` | `/api/snippets/<id>` | Get a single snippet document by ID | None |
+
+### Authentication & Scope
+The API is currently open (unauthenticated) for client tools and browser extensions.
+
+---
+
 ## License
 
 MIT — see [LICENSE](LICENSE)
diff --git a/app/__init__.py b/app/__init__.py
index c8c9b0f..f6a5a9a 100644
--- a/app/__init__.py
+++ b/app/__init__.py
@@ -8,6 +8,9 @@ def create_app():
     from app.routes import main
     app.register_blueprint(main)
 
+    from app.api import api
+    app.register_blueprint(api, url_prefix="/api")
+
     @app.errorhandler(404)
     def page_not_found(e):
         return render_template("404.html"), 404
diff --git a/app/api.py b/app/api.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..760fe1c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/app/api.py
@@ -0,0 +1,55 @@
+import re
+from bson import ObjectId
+from bson.errors import InvalidId
+from flask import Blueprint, jsonify, request
+
+from app.db import snippets_collection
+from app.models import format_snippet
+
+api = Blueprint("api", __name__)
+
+
+@api.route("/snippets", methods=["GET"])
+def get_snippets():
+    """
+    GET /api/snippets
+    Optional query parameters: ?q=search_term&language=py&tag=flask
+    Returns a list of snippet documents in JSON format.
+    """
+    query = request.args.get("q", "").strip()
+    tag = request.args.get("tag", "").strip()
+    language = request.args.get("language", "").strip()
+
+    filters = {}
+    if query:
+        escaped_query = re.escape(query)
+        filters["$or"] = [
+            {"title": {"$regex": escaped_query, "$options": "i"}},
+            {"description": {"$regex": escaped_query, "$options": "i"}},
+        ]
+    if tag:
+        filters["tags"] = tag
+    if language:
+        filters["language"] = language
+
+    snippets = list(snippets_collection.find(filters).sort("created_at", -1))
+    formatted_snippets = [format_snippet(dict(s)) for s in snippets]
+    return jsonify(formatted_snippets), 200
+
+
+@api.route("/snippets/<id>", methods=["GET"])
+def get_snippet(id):
+    """
+    GET /api/snippets/<id>
+    Returns a single snippet document by ID or 404 if not found.
+    """
+    try:
+        obj_id = ObjectId(id)
+    except (InvalidId, TypeError):
+        return jsonify({"error": "Snippet not found"}), 404
+
+    snippet = snippets_collection.find_one({"_id": obj_id})
+    if not snippet:
+        return jsonify({"error": "Snippet not found"}), 404
+
+    return jsonify(format_snippet(dict(snippet))), 200
diff --git a/app/models.py b/app/models.py
index 8e6efba..b8a1583 100644
--- a/app/models.py
+++ b/app/models.py
@@ -19,8 +19,12 @@ def make_snippet(title, language, code, description, tags):
 
 def format_snippet(snippet):
     """
-    Converts ObjectId to string so we can safely pass
-    snippets around without MongoDB-specific types.
+    Converts ObjectId and datetime objects so we can safely pass
+    snippets around or return them as JSON without serialization errors.
     """
     snippet["_id"] = str(snippet["_id"])
+    if isinstance(snippet.get("created_at"), datetime):
+        snippet["created_at"] = snippet["created_at"].isoformat()
+    if isinstance(snippet.get("updated_at"), datetime):
+        snippet["updated_at"] = snippet["updated_at"].isoformat()
     return snippet
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/tests/test_api.py b/tests/test_api.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6720878
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/test_api.py
@@ -0,0 +1,97 @@
+import os
+import sys
+import pytest
+from bson import ObjectId
+
+sys.path.insert(0, os.path.abspath(os.path.join(os.path.dirname(__file__), '..')))
+os.environ.setdefault("MONGO_URI", "mongodb://localhost:27017/stashsnip_test")
+
+from app import create_app
+from tests.test_routes import FakeSnippetsCollection, make_test_snippet
+
+
+@pytest.fixture
+def fake_collection(monkeypatch):
+    import app.api as api_module
+    import app.routes as routes_module
+
+    collection = FakeSnippetsCollection()
+    monkeypatch.setattr(api_module, "snippets_collection", collection)
+    monkeypatch.setattr(routes_module, "snippets_collection", collection)
+    return collection
+
+
+@pytest.fixture
+def client(fake_collection):
+    app = create_app()
+    app.config["TESTING"] = True
+    app.config["WTF_CSRF_ENABLED"] = False
+    with app.test_client() as client:
+        yield client
+
+
+def test_get_snippets_empty(client, fake_collection):
+    """GET /api/snippets should return an empty JSON array when no snippets exist"""
+    fake_collection.documents = []
+    response = client.get("/api/snippets")
+    assert response.status_code == 200
+    json_data = response.get_json()
+    assert isinstance(json_data, list)
+    assert len(json_data) == 0
+
+
+def test_get_snippets_populated(client, fake_collection):
+    """GET /api/snippets should return all snippets in JSON format"""
+    fake_collection.documents = [
+        make_test_snippet(1, language="python", tags=["flask"]),
+        make_test_snippet(2, language="javascript", tags=["node"]),
+    ]
+    response = client.get("/api/snippets")
+    assert response.status_code == 200
+    json_data = response.get_json()
+    assert len(json_data) == 2
+    assert json_data[0]["language"] == "javascript"
+    assert json_data[1]["language"] == "python"
+
+
+def test_get_snippets_with_query_filters(client, fake_collection):
+    """GET /api/snippets?language=python should return filtered snippets"""
+    fake_collection.documents = [
+        make_test_snippet(1, language="python", tags=["flask"]),
+        make_test_snippet(2, language="javascript", tags=["node"]),
+    ]
+    response = client.get("/api/snippets?language=python")
+    assert response.status_code == 200
+    json_data = response.get_json()
+    assert len(json_data) == 1
+    assert json_data[0]["language"] == "python"
+
+
+def test_get_snippet_by_id_success(client, fake_collection):
+    """GET /api/snippets/<id> should return a single snippet document"""
+    snippet = make_test_snippet(1, language="python")
+    fake_collection.documents = [snippet]
+    snippet_id = str(snippet["_id"])
+
+    response = client.get(f"/api/snippets/{snippet_id}")
+    assert response.status_code == 200
+    json_data = response.get_json()
+    assert json_data["_id"] == snippet_id
+    assert json_data["title"] == snippet["title"]
+
+
+def test_get_snippet_by_id_not_found(client, fake_collection):
+    """GET /api/snippets/<id> should return 404 for non-existent ID"""
+    fake_collection.documents = []
+    response = client.get("/api/snippets/000000000000000000000000")
+    assert response.status_code == 404
+    json_data = response.get_json()
+    assert "error" in json_data
+
+
+def test_get_snippet_invalid_id_format(client):
+    """GET /api/snippets/<id> should return 404 for invalid ObjectId format"""
+    response = client.get("/api/snippets/invalid-id-string")
+    assert response.status_code == 404
+    json_data = response.get_json()
+    assert "error" in json_data