exchangerate.dev vs forex-python

exchangerate.dev brings intraday FX, daily history, and MCP together in one API.

exchangerate.devReviewed October 2026

Verdict

Choose exchangerate.dev when intraday freshness, per-value provenance, MCP-native access, and free-tier headroom matter. Keep forex-python if you want its Python interface and daily rates meet your needs.

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At a glance

Featureexchangerate.devforex-python
Free tier5,000 requests/monthFree library; backend quota not published
Cheapest paid planBasic · $19/monthNot published
Update speed144 currencies ~60s on trading days; Free 15m lateDaily, around 3 pm CET
HistoryFree 30 days; Basic 1 year; Plus/Pro to 1999From 1999
Coverage144 currencies; any supported baseCurrency count not published
InterfacesREST; MCP; WebSocket on Plus and ProPython library
SDKsNot publishedPython; MIT licence
Commercial use on free tier✓ With a linked creditData licence not published

Price at your usage

The lowest published plans for each monthly request volume, with traffic spread across the month.

Requests a monthexchangerate.devforex-python
1,000Free · $0/monthNot published
10,000Basic · $19/monthNot published
100,000Basic · $19/monthNot published

The Python package is free; its upstream service publishes no request allowance for these monthly volumes.

Switch in a few minutes

Replace CurrencyRates with a plain HTTP request for EUR per USD on your server.

forex-python

from forex_python.converter import CurrencyRates

# Change: library to HTTP
rate = CurrencyRates().get_rate(
    "USD",
    "EUR",
)
print(rate)

exchangerate.dev

import requests

# Change: URL and auth
response = requests.get(
    "https://api.exchangerate.dev/v1/latest/USD",
    params={
        "symbols": "EUR",
    },
    headers={
        "Authorization": "Bearer YOUR_API_KEY",
    },
    timeout=10,
)
response.raise_for_status()
print(response.json())

Why teams switch

Room to test a real workload

5,000 free monthly calls give you room to build around your own traffic pattern, from a small currency converter to a recurring rate lookup. No card is required, and any supported currency can be the base. The usage table maps three monthly volumes to the lowest qualifying plan, making the next step clear as requests grow. Free permits commercial display with linked credit; paid plans need no credit.

Rates with a time and a source

All 144 currencies update about every 60 seconds on trading days, 15 minutes late on Free. Responses include source and market-session fields alongside observation timestamps, so your application can show where a value came from and when it was observed. Daily references remain identifiable as daily data. That context belongs beside the number in a customer interface, an internal report, or an agent answer that explains the rate it used.

One account for apps and agents

Every plan includes REST and MCP. Plus and Pro daily history reaches 1999 for majors; pair starts vary, combining current and dated records. A developer can start with the HTTP examples above, then use MCP for agent queries without adding another subscription. The same base and target currencies carry through the workflow, from fetching a current rate to looking up a historical observation.

When they are the better pick

forex-python is a better fit when you want a Python library and daily rates are enough. It is MIT-licensed and its repository is not archived. Its CurrencyRates interface handles current and historical lookups directly in Python.

Questions

Is there a free forex-python alternative?
Yes. exchangerate.dev offers 5,000 calls per month, 30 days of daily history, and MCP on every plan, with no card required. forex-python is an MIT-licensed Python library with daily rates and history to 1999 for major currencies.
When is forex-python a better fit?
Choose forex-python when you want a Python library and daily rates meet your needs. Its latest release is 1.9.2, dated 22 May 2025. Its repository is not archived.
Why does forex-python raise RatesNotAvailableError?
Its README recommends version 1.6 or newer to avoid that error. A source-not-ready error was also reported in August 2025. That historical report does not indicate a current outage; version and currency support determine the next troubleshooting step.
Can I use exchangerate.dev Free commercially?
Free: commercial display with visible linked credit near rates. Basic: no credit required, $19/month.

Sources and review date

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