Polygon.io Competitors - Financial Market Data API Comparison
Researched: 2026-02-20
Polygon.io Overview (Baseline)
Polygon.io (recently rebranding to “Massive”) is a purpose-built market data platform targeting developers, quants, and algorithmic traders who need high-quality, low-latency data at scale.
Data Types: US stocks, options (with analytics), forex, crypto, indices, futures Historical Depth: 25 years for US stocks; 30+ years for financials and dividends Real-time: Yes — WebSocket latency <20ms for stocks/options, <40ms for crypto, <200ms for forex Free Tier: 5 API calls/minute; aggregate bars only (no quotes/trades on free) Paid Plans:
- Stocks Developer: ~$7/month
- Stocks Starter: ~$29/month (5 years history, unlimited calls)
- Stocks Advanced: ~$200/month (full real-time, unlimited calls)
- Stocks + Crypto + Forex bundle: ~$249/month
- Options add-on priced separately; full premium stack ~$449/month
Target Users: Developers, algo traders, quants, fintech startups Key Strengths: Best-in-class WebSocket streaming, normalized multi-asset data, tick-level accuracy, strong options coverage, no call limits on paid plans, WebSocket latency <20ms Key Weaknesses: Free tier is nearly unusable (5 req/min, aggregate bars only); cost scales steeply; weak fundamental/financials data vs dedicated providers; primarily US-focused for real-time
Competitor Analyses
1. Alpha Vantage
Website: https://www.alphavantage.co Overview: One of the most widely used budget-friendly APIs, especially popular for retail traders and individual developers. Official NASDAQ-licensed data vendor.
| Dimension | Details |
|---|---|
| Data Types | US/global equities, ETFs, mutual funds, FX, crypto, commodities, US options, 60+ technical indicators, economic indicators |
| Free Plan | 25 API calls/day (was recently reduced from higher limit) |
| Paid Plans | Starting at $49.99/month (75 req/min); scales by req/min rate |
| Rate Limits | Free: 5 req/min, 25/day. Paid: 75–1,200 req/min depending on tier |
| Historical Depth | 20+ years for equities |
| Real-time vs Delayed | 15-minute delayed on free; real-time on paid plans (exchange-approved) |
| Target Users | Retail investors, individual developers, academics, small teams |
Strengths vs Polygon:
- Much lower entry price (
200/month for advanced) - 60+ built-in technical indicators (no need to compute yourself)
- Broad global coverage including international equities
- Good fundamental data and economic indicators
- Official NASDAQ vendor status adds credibility
Weaknesses vs Polygon:
- Free tier 25 calls/day is nearly useless for real development
- No WebSocket/streaming — REST only
- Inferior for high-frequency or real-time trading applications
- Rate limits remain the main constraint; support is sparse
- Not suitable for tick-level or options analytics
2. Alpaca
Website: https://alpaca.markets Overview: Primarily a commission-free brokerage API for algorithmic trading, with a strong market data layer bundled in. Unique in that data and trading are tightly coupled.
| Dimension | Details |
|---|---|
| Data Types | US stocks, ETFs, crypto (no options data, no forex, no futures) |
| Free Plan | Default free tier — IEX exchange feed for stocks only (not consolidated tape), 200 req/min |
| Paid Plans | Algo Trader Plus — ~$99/month (consolidated tape, full market coverage) |
| Rate Limits | Free: 200 req/min. Paid: higher limits |
| Historical Depth | Bars going back several years; limited tick history |
| Real-time vs Delayed | Real-time on paid via consolidated CTA/UTP feeds; IEX-only (limited) on free |
| Target Users | Algorithmic traders, developers building automated trading bots |
Strengths vs Polygon:
- All-in-one data + brokerage execution in a single API
- More efficient multi-symbol queries (1 request = 20 symbols vs 20 requests on Polygon)
- Much better free tier rate limits (200 req/min vs 5 on Polygon)
200–449/month on Polygon for equivalent coverage - Paper trading environment included
Weaknesses vs Polygon:
- No options, no forex, no futures — US stocks/ETFs and crypto only
- Not a pure data provider — tightly coupled to their brokerage infrastructure
- Less historical depth than Polygon
- Less suitable if you don’t also want brokerage functionality
- Lower latency guarantees than Polygon for pure data use
3. Nasdaq Data Link (formerly Quandl)
Website: https://data.nasdaq.com Overview: Acquired by Nasdaq in 2018 from Quandl. Focused on alternative, economic, and curated institutional datasets. Not a typical real-time price feed provider.
| Dimension | Details |
|---|---|
| Data Types | 250+ datasets: macro/economic data, alternative data, commodities, some equities EOD; dataset quality varies widely |
| Free Plan | 40 free datasets; 300 calls/10 seconds, 50,000 calls/day |
| Paid Plans | Per-dataset subscription pricing; varies widely; premium data can be very expensive |
| Rate Limits | Free: 300 calls/10s, 50K/day. Premium: 5,000 calls/10min, 720K/day |
| Historical Depth | Varies by dataset — some go back decades |
| Real-time vs Delayed | Primarily EOD and historical; no real-time price feeds |
| Target Users | Institutional investors, hedge funds, quant researchers, economists |
Strengths vs Polygon:
- Unique alternative and economic datasets not available elsewhere
- Strong institutional credibility (Nasdaq brand)
- High API rate limits on free tier (by calls/day)
- Curated, vetted data quality for research datasets
Weaknesses vs Polygon:
- No real-time market data — primarily historical/EOD
- Pricing for premium datasets can be very high
- Not suitable for trading applications or live feeds
- Dataset quality and availability is inconsistent across the catalog
- No WebSocket streaming
4. Yahoo Finance API (Unofficial)
Website: https://finance.yahoo.com (no official API)
Overview: Yahoo Finance’s official API was discontinued in 2017. What exists today is the yfinance Python library (and similar tools) that scrape Yahoo Finance’s web interface. Also available through RapidAPI third-party wrappers.
| Dimension | Details |
|---|---|
| Data Types | US/global equities, ETFs, mutual funds, options chains, crypto, forex (basic), indices, fundamentals |
| Free Plan | Effectively free via yfinance library (no API key needed); rate limits are informal |
| Paid Plans | Via RapidAPI marketplace; third-party hosted, not official |
| Rate Limits | No official limits; aggressive scraping can result in IP blocks |
| Historical Depth | Substantial — decades of EOD data for major tickers |
| Real-time vs Delayed | 15-minute delayed for most data; no official real-time |
| Target Users | Retail investors, Python developers, students, hobbyists |
Strengths vs Polygon:
- Completely free with no API key via yfinance
- Broad global coverage for EOD data
- Easy to use — massive Python ecosystem
- Options chain data available on free basis
Weaknesses vs Polygon:
- Unofficial — no SLA, no support, can break without warning
- Not suitable for production systems
- No WebSocket / real-time streaming
- Yahoo can block access; pipeline failures can be silent
- No historical tick data
- Not a viable comparison for professional use cases
5. IEX Cloud
Status: SHUT DOWN August 31, 2024
IEX Cloud was a popular developer-friendly platform with a pay-as-you-go credit model. It was officially discontinued when IEX (the exchange operator) decided to refocus on core exchange operations. It is no longer available. Former users migrated to Alpha Vantage, Polygon.io, Twelve Data, and others.
6. Marketstack
Website: https://marketstack.com Overview: A product from the apilayer/iLayer family. Focuses on global EOD stock data across 70+ exchanges. Simple REST API with straightforward pricing tiers.
| Dimension | Details |
|---|---|
| Data Types | US and international equities EOD, intraday (Professional+), historical; no crypto, no options, no forex |
| Free Plan | 100 requests/month |
| Paid Plans | Basic: |
| Rate Limits | Real-time endpoints: 1 API call/minute (Professional+) |
| Historical Depth | Full historical on Professional+; 10 years on Basic |
| Real-time vs Delayed | EOD/delayed on Basic; real-time on Professional+ |
| Target Users | Developers needing global EOD data, small applications, budget-conscious builders |
Strengths vs Polygon:
- Very affordable entry point (
29+ on Polygon) - 30,000+ tickers across 70+ global exchanges
- Simple clean API design, easy to integrate
Weaknesses vs Polygon:
- No streaming/WebSocket
- No options, no crypto, no forex
- 1 call/minute rate limit on real-time endpoints is very restrictive
- Not suitable for algorithmic trading
- Free tier of 100 requests/month is functionally useless
- Data quality and depth inferior to Polygon for US markets
7. Tiingo
Website: https://www.tiingo.com Overview: A data platform with strong EOD coverage and a respected reputation for clean, multi-sourced data. Popular with Python quant researchers. Provides IEX real-time feed as a separate product.
| Dimension | Details |
|---|---|
| Data Types | US/Chinese equities, ETFs, mutual funds (65,000+ tickers), crypto via IEX, fundamentals, news |
| Free Plan | Up to 50 symbols/hour; 30+ years historical EOD data included free |
| Paid Plans | Tiingo Power: unlocks news API, expanded fundamental data (15+ years), higher limits; pricing not fully disclosed publicly |
| Rate Limits | Free: 50 symbols/hour. Paid varies |
| Historical Depth | 50+ years for some tickers on EOD data; 5 years fundamentals (free), 15+ years (paid) |
| Real-time vs Delayed | IEX real-time product available separately; EOD is end-of-day |
| Target Users | Python quant developers, retail traders, researchers, small hedge funds |
Strengths vs Polygon:
- Exceptional historical depth — 50+ years for some tickers (free)
- Data quality is multi-sourced with error-checking (3+ data sources per feed)
- More affordable than Polygon for historical research
- 65,000+ tickers including mutual funds — broader coverage by count
- Solid Python ecosystem
Weaknesses vs Polygon:
- No WebSocket streaming (not a real-time trading data provider)
- No options data
- Limited forex and crypto coverage
- Pricing for paid tiers is not transparent
- Not suitable for HFT or tick-level trading data
- Real-time requires separate IEX product
8. Financial Modeling Prep (FMP)
Website: https://site.financialmodelingprep.com Overview: Specializes in fundamental financial data — income statements, balance sheets, DCF models, analyst ratings, ESG, earnings calendars. Strong for fundamental analysts and valuation-focused developers.
| Dimension | Details |
|---|---|
| Data Types | 70,000+ global securities; financial statements (income/balance/cash flow), real-time quotes, historical prices, crypto, commodities, indices, ETF holdings, ESG, earnings, analyst ratings |
| Free Plan | 500MB trailing 30-day bandwidth; limited endpoints |
| Paid Plans | Starter: 20GB/month, Premium: 50GB, Ultimate: 150GB, Build: 100GB, Enterprise: 1TB+ (prices not publicly listed — contact required for most) |
| Rate Limits | Bandwidth-based model (MB/GB consumed), not per-request |
| Historical Depth | 30+ years across 46 countries, 70,000+ securities |
| Real-time vs Delayed | Real-time quotes available on paid tiers |
| Target Users | Fundamental analysts, valuation modelers, portfolio managers, fintech app developers, screener builders |
Strengths vs Polygon:
- Deepest fundamental data (SEC EDGAR-sourced financials, DCF models, ratios)
- Broadest global coverage: 70,000+ securities across 46 countries
- Historical fundamentals going back 30+ years
- ETF and mutual fund holdings data
- ESG scores, analyst ratings, earnings estimates
- Better suited for equity research than Polygon
Weaknesses vs Polygon:
- Bandwidth-based pricing model is harder to predict/budget
- Opaque pricing — most plans require contacting sales
- Not designed for real-time trading or WebSocket streaming
- Data latency not competitive with Polygon for live feeds
- Less suited for options, tick-level, or HFT applications
9. EOD Historical Data (EODHD)
Website: https://eodhd.com Overview: A well-regarded provider of global historical data and fundamental data. 150,000+ tickers globally. Popular with quants doing backtesting. Also offers real-time feeds.
| Dimension | Details |
|---|---|
| Data Types | Stocks, ETFs, funds, currencies worldwide; 150,000+ tickers; EOD, intraday, fundamentals, technical indicators, real-time feeds |
| Free Plan | 20 API calls/day; EOD data for past 1 year only |
| Paid Plans | EOD Historical All World: |
| Rate Limits | Varies by plan |
| Historical Depth | Extensive — 30+ years for most major markets |
| Real-time vs Delayed | Real-time feeds available on higher tiers |
| Target Users | Quant researchers, systematic traders, institutional/academic users, backtesting platforms |
Strengths vs Polygon:
- Exceptional global breadth — 150,000+ tickers worldwide
- Very affordable entry for historical data ($19.99/month)
- Strong for international market coverage
- Good alternative for post-IEX Cloud users
- 50% student/academic discount
- Real-time feeds available at scale
Weaknesses vs Polygon:
- Free tier (20 calls/day) is barely functional
- No options data analytics (limited options coverage)
- WebSocket streaming less mature than Polygon
- Lower brand recognition / smaller ecosystem vs Polygon
- Business use requires All-In-One Business tier at $299/month
10. Benzinga
Website: https://www.benzinga.com/apis Overview: Primarily a financial news and sentiment data provider, not a price/OHLCV data API. Their core value is real-time news feeds, earnings, and alternative data for systematic trading signals.
| Dimension | Details |
|---|---|
| Data Types | Financial news (real-time), earnings data, options activity, analyst ratings, calendar data, market movers; limited price data |
| Free Plan | Free trial available; AWS Marketplace free tier for basic news |
| Paid Plans | Custom/quote-based — contact licensing@benzinga.com; entry-level plans for developers, enterprise pricing for institutions |
| Rate Limits | Plan-dependent; streaming news feeds available |
| Historical Depth | Historical news archives available; price history is limited |
| Real-time vs Delayed | Real-time news streaming is core offering |
| Target Users | Quant funds using news signals, options traders monitoring unusual activity, fintech apps needing news/sentiment |
Strengths vs Polygon:
- Best-in-class real-time financial news API
- Unique options flow / unusual activity data
- Good for alternative data strategies (sentiment, earnings surprise)
- AWS Marketplace availability for easy procurement
Weaknesses vs Polygon:
- Not a price data provider — very limited OHLCV coverage
- Opaque pricing; must contact sales for most tiers
- Not suitable as a primary market data API
- Largely complementary to rather than competitive with Polygon
11. Tradier
Website: https://tradier.com Overview: A broker-dealer and API platform. Like Alpaca, combines trading execution with market data. Unique in that API access is free for account holders. Focused on options traders.
| Dimension | Details |
|---|---|
| Data Types | US equities, options (strong options focus), streaming quotes |
| Free Plan | API access free for all Tradier Brokerage account holders |
| Paid Plans | Brokerage Pro plan: $10/month (commission-free trades + enhanced features) |
| Rate Limits | API access is per-account; limits tied to account tier |
| Historical Depth | Historical price data available; depth less than dedicated providers |
| Real-time vs Delayed | Real-time quotes for account holders |
| Target Users | Options traders, retail algorithmic traders, fintech apps needing brokerage + data |
Strengths vs Polygon:
- Free API access for any brokerage account holder
- Strong options trading and data focus
- Full execution + data in one API (like Alpaca)
- No per-call charges as a brokerage customer
Weaknesses vs Polygon:
- Must open a brokerage account to access the API
- US equities and options only — no crypto, no forex, no global markets
- Historical depth is limited compared to Polygon
- Not suitable as a standalone data provider without brokerage relationship
- Less scalable for high-volume data applications
12. Twelve Data
Website: https://twelvedata.com Overview: A fast-growing, developer-friendly API covering stocks, forex, ETFs, indices, and crypto with a clean interface and transparent pricing. Frequently cited as a top alternative to IEX Cloud post-shutdown.
| Dimension | Details |
|---|---|
| Data Types | Stocks (global), forex, ETFs, indices, crypto, commodities, 90+ technical indicators |
| Free Plan | 8 API calls/minute, 800 calls/day |
| Paid Plans | Grow: starts at |
| Rate Limits | Free: 8/min, 800/day. Paid: 55–1,597 req/min |
| Historical Depth | Years of historical data; depth varies by asset class |
| Real-time vs Delayed | Real-time data available; WebSocket streaming on paid plans |
| Target Users | Developers, retail traders, fintech startups, API-first applications |
Strengths vs Polygon:
- Transparent pricing with no hidden fees; cancel anytime
- 800 calls/day on free tier — far more usable than Polygon’s 5/min
- Global stock coverage (not just US)
- 90+ technical indicators built-in
- WebSocket streaming available
- 99.95% uptime SLA advertised
- 20% discount for students/startups
Weaknesses vs Polygon:
- No options data
- Less tick-level accuracy and lower latency guarantees vs Polygon
- Smaller ecosystem and community than Polygon
- Top tier at $329/month is comparable to Polygon pricing for serious use
14. Financial Datasets AI
Website: https://www.financialdatasets.ai Overview: A developer-focused financial data API emphasizing clean, well-structured data for building AI financial agents, portfolio management tools, and quantitative trading algorithms. Covers 30,000+ tickers with 30+ years of history. Offers both subscription and pay-as-you-go pricing.
| Dimension | Details |
|---|---|
| Data Types | Stock prices (real-time & historical), financial statements (income/balance/cash flow), insider transactions, institutional ownership, SEC filings (10-K, 10-Q, 8-K), analyst estimates, earnings data, news, business segment breakdowns |
| Free Plan | Pay-as-you-go with some free endpoints (company facts, earnings releases at $0.00) |
| Paid Plans | Developer: |
| Pay-As-You-Go | Stock prices |
| Rate Limits | Developer: 1,000 req/min; Pro: unlimited |
| Historical Depth | 30+ years, 30,000+ tickers, 100% market coverage |
| Real-time vs Delayed | Real-time stock prices available |
| Target Users | AI/ML developers building financial agents, quant traders, fintech startups, portfolio tool builders |
Strengths vs Polygon:
- Strong fundamental data focus (financial statements, SEC filings, insider trades, institutional ownership)
- Pay-as-you-go option — only pay for what you use, no minimum commitment
- Developer: $200/mo gets 1,000 req/min (comparable to Polygon Advanced)
- Clean, well-structured data specifically designed for AI/ML consumption
- Analyst estimates and earnings data included
- Business segment and geographic breakdowns (unique)
Weaknesses vs Polygon:
- No WebSocket streaming — REST only
- No options data
- No forex data
- No tick-level or intraday granularity mentioned
- Pro tier at $2,000/mo is expensive (needed for redistribution rights)
- Smaller/newer player — less ecosystem and community
- No technical indicators built-in
- US equities focused — limited global coverage
Summary Comparison Table
| Provider | Price Entry | Free Tier Quality | Real-Time | WebSocket | Options | Global | Historical Depth | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Polygon.io | $29/mo (Starter) | Poor (5 req/min) | Yes | Yes (<20ms) | Yes | US-focused | 25 years | HFT, algo trading, real-time apps |
| Alpha Vantage | $49.99/mo | Poor (25/day) | Yes (paid) | No | Yes | Good | 20+ years | Budget developers, technicals |
| Alpaca | $99/mo (all-in) | Good (200 req/min) | Yes (paid) | Yes | No | US only | Limited | Algo trading with execution |
| Nasdaq Data Link | Per dataset | Good (50K/day) | No | No | No | Yes | Varies | Alternative/macro data research |
| Yahoo Finance | Free | Excellent | No | No | Basic | Good | Decades | Hobbyists, Python scripts |
| IEX Cloud | SHUT DOWN | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | Defunct (Aug 2024) |
| Marketstack | $9.99/mo | Very Poor (100/mo) | Yes (Pro+) | No | No | Excellent | 10–full years | Global EOD on a budget |
| Tiingo | Freemium | Good (50 sym/hr) | Via IEX | No | No | US+China | 50+ years | Quant research, deep history |
| FMP | Bandwidth-based | Moderate | Yes (paid) | No | Limited | Excellent | 30+ years | Fundamental analysis, valuation |
| EODHD | $19.99/mo | Very Poor (20/day) | Yes (paid) | Limited | Limited | Excellent | 30+ years | Global backtesting, research |
| Benzinga | Custom/contact | Trial only | Yes (news) | Yes (news) | Activity data | US | Limited | News/sentiment/alternative data |
| Tradier | Free w/account | N/A (account req) | Yes | No | Yes | US only | Limited | Options traders using brokerage |
| Twelve Data | $29/mo | Good (800/day) | Yes | Yes (paid) | No | Excellent | Years | Developer-friendly, global stocks |
| Financial Datasets AI | $200/mo or PAYG | Free endpoints | Yes | No | No | US-focused | 30+ years | AI agents, fundamentals, SEC filings |
| Finnhub | $49.99/mo | Excellent (60/min) | Yes | Yes | Limited | Good | Limited | Sentiment, alternative data, free |
Key Takeaways
Use Polygon.io when:
- You need low-latency WebSocket streaming (<20ms)
- Options analytics are required at scale
- You are building algorithmic trading infrastructure
- Tick-level US market data accuracy is critical
- Budget is not the primary constraint
Use Alpha Vantage when:
- You need built-in technical indicators
- Budget is a primary concern
- You need global equity coverage affordably
Use Alpaca when:
- You want data + trade execution in one API
- You are building an automated trading bot
- The
200–449 for your use case
Use Twelve Data when:
- You want Polygon-like capabilities at a lower entry price
- Global stock + forex + crypto coverage matters
- A more generous free tier is important for prototyping
Use FMP when:
- Fundamental analysis is the primary use case
- You need global breadth (70,000+ securities, 46 countries)
- DCF models, earnings, ESG, and analyst data are needed
Use EODHD when:
- You need broad global historical data cheaply
- Backtesting across international markets
- Budget is constrained but professional-grade data is required
Use Tiingo when:
- Deep historical US/China equity data is the focus
- Research-grade data quality is important
- You work primarily in Python
Use Financial Datasets AI when:
- Building AI financial agents or LLM-powered finance tools
- Fundamental data (financials, SEC filings, insider trades) is the primary need
- You want pay-as-you-go flexibility without a monthly commitment
- Clean, structured data for ML pipelines matters more than real-time speed
Use Nasdaq Data Link when:
- Alternative/macro/economic datasets are required
- Institutional-grade curated data matters
- Price feeds are not the primary need
Sources
- Polygon.io Pricing Page
- Polygon.io WebSocket Latency FAQ
- Alpha Vantage Premium Plans
- Alpha Vantage API Limits - Macroption
- Alpaca Market Data Overview
- Alpaca vs Polygon Top 3 Differences
- IEX Cloud Shutdown Analysis - Alpha Vantage
- Nasdaq Data Link Documentation
- Marketstack Pricing
- Marketstack Review - Find My Moat
- Tiingo Pricing
- Tiingo Data Coverage - QuantStart
- FMP Pricing Plans
- FMP Data Coverage - Datarade
- EODHD Pricing
- EODHD Reviews - SourceForge
- Benzinga APIs
- Tradier Pricing
- Twelve Data Pricing
- Finnhub Stock API Pricing
- Financial Data APIs Compared: Polygon vs IEX Cloud vs Alpha Vantage (2026)
- 7 Best Financial APIs 2025 - Medium/Coinmonks
- Beyond yFinance - Trading Dude Medium
- Yahoo Finance API Guide 2025 - WiseSheets
- Financial Datasets AI
- Financial Datasets AI Docs