Compare the options
Prices are monthly USD paid entry plans, except XE, billed yearly, and Frankfurter, which is free. Columns compare free allowances, update frequency, history, and coverage. Conversion access and faster updates can require another plan; a free trial is not a permanent free tier.
| Provider | Price from | Free tier | Update frequency | History | Coverage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| exchangerate.dev | $19/month Basic; 100,000 requests | 5,000 requests/month; commercial use with a visible credit link | About 60 seconds for all 144 currencies on trading days, 15 minutes late on Free; ECB daily fallback | Free 30 days; Basic 1 year; Plus/Pro to 1999 where available | 144 currencies |
| Narwhal API | $59/month Basic; 100,000 requests | 5,000 requests/month; previous day close | Free: end of day (00:00 UTC); paid: live; interval not published | Stored observations by date range; start date not published | 144 currencies |
| ExchangeRate-API | $10/month Pro; 30,000 requests | 1,500 requests/month with a key; keyless open endpoint with attribution | Daily on Free; hourly Pro; 5 minutes Business | Paid plans only; over 30 years advertised on Pro | About 165 currencies |
| currencyapi | $9.99/month Small; 15,000 requests | 300 requests/month; personal use only | Daily on Free; hourly Small; 60 seconds Medium and up | Daily history back to 1999 | 171 fiat currencies, 16 crypto, 4 precious metals |
| Fixer | $14.99/month Basic; 10,000 requests | 100 requests/month; non-commercial; fixed base currency | Hourly on Free and Basic; 10 minutes Professional; 60 seconds Professional Plus | Back to January 1999 | 170 currencies |
| CurrencyFreaks | $9.99/month Starter; 15,000 requests | 1,000 requests/month; USD base only | Every 24 hours on Free; hourly Starter; 10 minutes Growth; 60 seconds Professional | Paid plans only | 1000+ currencies advertised, including crypto |
| Frankfurter | Free; no paid plans; self-hosting with Docker | No key and no quota; abuse rate limits only | Daily | Some series from 1948 | 223 currencies, including legacy codes |
| XE Currency Data API | $799/year Lite; 10,000 requests/month | Free trial only | Daily Lite; hourly Intermediate; 15 minutes Prime; minutely add-on | Back to 1998 | Count stated two ways on its page |
The shortlist
exchangerate.dev
| Best fit | Free supported-base conversion with MCP |
|---|---|
| Price from | $19/month Basic; 100,000 requests |
| Free tier | 5,000 requests/month; commercial use with a visible credit link |
| Update frequency | About 60 seconds for all 144 currencies on trading days, 15 minutes late on Free; ECB daily fallback |
| History | Free 30 days; Basic 1 year; Plus/Pro to 1999 where available |
| Coverage | 144 currencies |
| Conversion | Single-amount and batch conversion endpoints |
| MCP | Yes, nine tools, every plan including Free |
exchangerate.dev suits an application needing any supported base, direct amount conversion, and MCP on a free plan. Free includes 5,000 monthly requests, with commercial display allowed through visible linked credit. Basic provides live rates for $19 per month and 100,000 requests. The trade-off is that Free rates are fifteen minutes late and daily history covers 30 days. The catalogue has 144 currencies, so check the app’s required codes. Rates remain indicative, not executable or settlement prices, on every plan.
Narwhal API
| Best fit | FX conversion within a broader data application |
|---|---|
| Price from | $59/month Basic; 100,000 requests |
| Free tier | 5,000 requests/month; previous day close |
| Update frequency | Free: end of day (00:00 UTC); paid: live; interval not published |
| History | Stored observations by date range; start date not published |
| Coverage | 144 currencies |
| Conversion | Decimal-safe conversion endpoint |
| MCP | Yes, hosted, same key and quota as REST |
Narwhal API suits an app combining amount conversion with commodities, economics, and release calendars. Its broader data API includes a decimal-safe FX conversion endpoint returning the rate, timestamp, and market session. One key and quota cover REST and hosted MCP. The trade-off is that Free FX uses the previous day’s close, with 5,000 successful requests per UTC month. Basic provides live FX at $59 per month. Its FX page does not publish an update interval or a universal historical start date.
ExchangeRate-API
| Best fit | Daily free conversion with an optional amount |
|---|---|
| Price from | $10/month Pro; 30,000 requests |
| Free tier | 1,500 requests/month with a key; keyless open endpoint with attribution |
| Update frequency | Daily on Free; hourly Pro; 5 minutes Business |
| History | Paid plans only; over 30 years advertised on Pro |
| Coverage | About 165 currencies |
| Conversion | Pair conversion with an optional amount, on Free |
| MCP | No MCP server found on its site |
ExchangeRate-API suits an application that wants direct pair conversion on a free plan. Its Pair Conversion endpoint accepts an optional amount, and Free includes 1,500 monthly requests with daily updates. Pro updates hourly at $10 per month. The trade-off is that historical data needs a paid plan, so free conversion does not establish access to dated amounts. No MCP server was found on its site. For rate retrieval without a key, its separate open endpoint supplies daily rates with attribution and prohibits redistribution.
Full comparison: ExchangeRate-API vs exchangerate.dev →currencyapi
| Best fit | Commercial conversion with a multi-asset catalogue |
|---|---|
| Price from | $9.99/month Small; 15,000 requests |
| Free tier | 300 requests/month; personal use only |
| Update frequency | Daily on Free; hourly Small; 60 seconds Medium and up |
| History | Daily history back to 1999 |
| Coverage | 171 fiat currencies, 16 crypto, 4 precious metals |
| Conversion | Convert endpoint |
| MCP | Yes, official, 16 tools; calls count against the plan quota |
currencyapi suits a converter that needs fiat currencies alongside crypto or precious metals. It documents a conversion endpoint, while Small permits commercial use at $9.99 per month with hourly updates. Its official MCP server exposes 16 tools, with calls counting against the plan quota. The trade-off is Free access: the allowance is 300 monthly requests, updates are daily, and use is private only. Sixty-second updates require Medium. The documentation does not state whether Free keys can access the MCP server.
Full comparison: currencyapi vs exchangerate.dev →Fixer
| Best fit | Hourly paid conversion and selectable bases |
|---|---|
| Price from | $14.99/month Basic; 10,000 requests |
| Free tier | 100 requests/month; non-commercial; fixed base currency |
| Update frequency | Hourly on Free and Basic; 10 minutes Professional; 60 seconds Professional Plus |
| History | Back to January 1999 |
| Coverage | 170 currencies |
| Conversion | Basic and up |
| MCP | No official MCP server found |
Fixer suits an app that needs conversion and selectable base currencies on a paid entry plan. Basic includes both for $14.99 per month with hourly updates. Its catalogue covers 170 currencies, and historical rates extend to January 1999. The trade-off is that Free has a fixed base, is non-commercial, and excludes conversion, so it does not solve free base-selection needs. Faster updates require higher tiers: Professional provides ten-minute updates, while Professional Plus starts sixty-second updates at $99.99 per month.
Full comparison: Fixer vs exchangerate.dev →CurrencyFreaks
| Best fit | Paid conversion with historical amount support |
|---|---|
| Price from | $9.99/month Starter; 15,000 requests |
| Free tier | 1,000 requests/month; USD base only |
| Update frequency | Every 24 hours on Free; hourly Starter; 10 minutes Growth; 60 seconds Professional |
| History | Paid plans only |
| Coverage | 1000+ currencies advertised, including crypto |
| Conversion | Paid plans only |
| MCP | Yes, open source, 7 tools; Free gets latest rates and the currency list |
CurrencyFreaks suits a migration that needs current and historical conversion without separating them into different entry plans. Starter includes both, hourly updates, and all base currencies for $9.99 per month. Its open-source MCP server provides conversion and historical tools on Starter and above. The trade-off is that Free remains USD-base only with daily updates, so it does not change that particular free-plan constraint. Free MCP access covers latest rates and the currency list. Check required fiat codes within its advertised crypto-inclusive catalogue.
Full comparison: CurrencyFreaks vs exchangerate.dev →Frankfurter
| Best fit | Daily keyless rates and local amount calculation |
|---|---|
| Price from | Free; no paid plans; self-hosting with Docker |
| Free tier | No key and no quota; abuse rate limits only |
| Update frequency | Daily |
| History | Some series from 1948 |
| Coverage | 223 currencies, including legacy codes |
| Conversion | No conversion endpoint; multiply by the rate |
| MCP | Yes |
Frankfurter suits an application that can work with daily official-source rates and calculate amounts locally. It needs no key, has no quota beyond abuse rate limits, and offers MCP plus Docker self-hosting. Its 223-currency catalogue includes legacy codes, and some historical series extend to 1948. The trade-off is the absence of a conversion endpoint and intraday updates. It therefore changes the access and calculation workflow rather than duplicating a hosted amount-conversion service. Test the required currencies and historical dates directly before migrating.
Full comparison: Frankfurter vs exchangerate.dev →XE Currency Data API
| Best fit | Annual currency data plans with historical coverage |
|---|---|
| Price from | $799/year Lite; 10,000 requests/month |
| Free tier | Free trial only |
| Update frequency | Daily Lite; hourly Intermediate; 15 minutes Prime; minutely add-on |
| History | Back to 1998 |
| Coverage | Count stated two ways on its page |
| Conversion | Not mentioned on its page |
| MCP | Not found |
XE Currency Data API suits an application considering an annual data subscription rather than a monthly entry plan. Lite costs $799 per year for 10,000 monthly requests and daily rates. Higher plans add hourly or fifteen-minute rates, with minutely add-ons available. History extends to 1998. The trade-off is the annual commitment and the absence of a permanent free tier; only a trial is offered. A conversion endpoint is not mentioned on its page, so establish that workflow before choosing it as a direct conversion replacement.
Full comparison: XE Currency Data API vs exchangerate.dev →Check bases and conversion separately
Decide whether your app needs a rate table, an amount endpoint, or both. Then compare the plan that provides the required bases and workflow, including MCP if the integration depends on it.
| Required bases | Test non-USD bases on the intended plan. A broad currency list does not by itself establish permission to choose every supported code as a base. |
|---|---|
| Amount endpoint | Confirm direct conversion access separately from latest-rate retrieval. If the app will calculate locally, preserve rate direction and verify its rounding behaviour. |
| Refresh and history | Request the required historical dates and inspect current observation timestamps. Compare the plan’s update interval with the maximum age your display can accept. |
| Billing and tools | Compare monthly plans with annual commitments over the same period. For MCP, check the actual tools, authentication, and request accounting before replacing the integration. |
How we chose
We compared base selection, direct conversion access, free allowances, update intervals, historical coverage, billing periods, and MCP support. Sources were checked on 17 Oct 2026. This is a documented-feature comparison, not a benchmark of response speed, accuracy, or uptime. The order reflects fit for application rate and amount workflows; Open Exchange Rates is excluded from its alternatives list. exchangerate.dev publishes this comparison and appears under the same criteria. Unpublished conversion access and conflicting coverage totals remain qualified. exchangerate.dev and Narwhal API are owned and operated by Nusantara Ventures, LLC.
Sources checked . Prices and entitlements can change.
Related comparisons
- Best exchange rate APIs for developers: The broader comparison of developer exchange-rate services
- Best currency APIs (2026): Currency coverage and amount conversion in apps
- Best forex APIs (2026): Streaming, candles, history, and execution requirements
- Free exchange rate API comparison: A closer look at free-plan limits and trade-offs
- Best free exchange rate APIs (2026): Free quotas, freshness, keyless access, and commercial terms
- Best currency converter APIs (2026): Amount conversion endpoints, plan access, and app integration
- ExchangeRate-API alternatives (2026): Alternatives for daily rates, conversion, history, and MCP
- currencyapi alternatives (2026): Commercial terms, free access, update plans, and conversion
- Fixer alternatives (2026): Base selection, conversion access, and alternatives to Fixer