exchangerate.devCompare the options
Monthly USD entry prices are shown where stated. Columns compare free allowances, update frequency, history, and coverage. Entry prices do not establish equivalent freshness or historical query access. A trial is temporary; permanent free tiers still have delays, quotas, and usage terms.
Plans, frequency, historical depth, and currency coverage
| 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 |
| OANDA Exchange Rates API | Lite: $450 or $4,850, two unlabelled price sets on its pricing page; 100,000 quotes/month | 7-day free trial with unlimited quotes | Daily averages on Lite; up to 96 intraday fixings a day; 3 to 5 second spot on Premium plus | Over 32 years advertised; depth per plan not stated | Over 200 currencies and metals; 38,000+ pairs |
| Open Exchange Rates | $12/month Developer; 10,000 requests | Up to 1,000 requests/month; USD base only | Hourly on Free and Developer; 30 minutes Enterprise; 5 minutes Unlimited | End-of-day rates back to 1 January 1999 | Over 200 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 |
| 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; from 1990 for a few currencies, all codes from 2021 | About 165 currencies |
The shortlist
exchangerate.dev
- Best fit: Indicative app rates with a free starting plan
- 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 currency rates, amount conversion, and MCP on a free starting plan. Free includes 5,000 monthly requests across 144 currencies, with commercial display allowed through visible linked credit. Basic provides live rates for $19 per month and 100,000 requests. The trade-off is Free freshness: rates are fifteen minutes late, with 30 days of daily history. Plus extends daily history from 1999-01-04 where available, with later starts for some currencies. Rates remain indicative rather than executable or settlement prices.
Sources: Plans and limits, API reference, Historical data, MCP server.
Narwhal API
- Best fit: FX alongside commodities and economic context
- 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 application combining FX with commodities, economics, and release calendars. Its broader data API provides decimal-safe conversion and stored historical observations through REST, alongside hosted MCP under the same key and quota. Free includes 5,000 successful requests per UTC month. The trade-off is that Free FX uses the previous day’s close; live FX requires Basic at $59 per month. The FX page publishes neither an update interval nor a universal archive start date. Check the required observations before migrating a historical workflow.
Sources: FX API documentation, Pricing.
OANDA Exchange Rates API
- Best fit: Bid and ask data with period averages
- Price from: Lite: $450 or $4,850, two unlabelled price sets on its pricing page; 100,000 quotes/month
- Free tier: 7-day free trial with unlimited quotes
- Update frequency: Daily averages on Lite; up to 96 intraday fixings a day; 3 to 5 second spot on Premium plus
- History: Over 32 years advertised; depth per plan not stated
- Coverage: Over 200 currencies and metals; 38,000+ pairs
- Conversion: Not stated on its pricing page
- MCP: None found; third-party connector only
OANDA Exchange Rates API suits an application needing bid, ask, and mid observations, with period averages or intraday fixings. It advertises over 32 years of data and up to 96 intraday fixings a day. Daily averages appear on every plan; period averages and open and close start on Premium. The trade-off is published historical detail: a start year and depth per plan are not stated. A seven-day trial offers unlimited quotes, but does not establish ongoing free access. Confirm the required currency, interval, and historical dates.
Sources: Exchange Rates API, Pricing. Full comparison: OANDA Exchange Rates API vs exchangerate.dev →
Open Exchange Rates
- Best fit: Hourly rate tables with selectable paid bases
- Price from: $12/month Developer; 10,000 requests
- Free tier: Up to 1,000 requests/month; USD base only
- Update frequency: Hourly on Free and Developer; 30 minutes Enterprise; 5 minutes Unlimited
- History: End-of-day rates back to 1 January 1999
- Coverage: Over 200 currencies
- Conversion: Convert endpoint documented; plan page lists conversion on Unlimited
- MCP: No official MCP server found
Open Exchange Rates suits an application that can retrieve a rate table and calculate amounts locally. Free provides up to 1,000 monthly requests with hourly updates and a USD-only base. Developer adds other bases for $12 per month, and daily history extends to January 1999. The trade-off is direct conversion access: its plan page lists conversion requests on Unlimited at $97 per month. Time-series requests also require higher plans. Check the endpoint and historical query pattern separately from the hourly rate-retrieval workflow.
Sources: Plans, API documentation. Full comparison: Open Exchange Rates vs exchangerate.dev →
currencyapi
- Best fit: Commercial conversion and multi-asset MCP tools
- 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 an application needing currency conversion alongside crypto or precious metals. Small permits commercial use at $9.99 per month with hourly updates and 15,000 requests. Its official MCP server documents 16 tools that count against the plan quota. The trade-off is Free access: it is private use only, with 300 monthly requests and daily updates, and MCP eligibility is not stated. Sixty-second updates start at Medium for $39.99 per month. Compare the plan that meets the application’s freshness and usage requirements.
Sources: Pricing, Homepage, MCP documentation. Full comparison: currencyapi vs exchangerate.dev →
Fixer
- Best fit: Paid base selection and daily historical lookups
- 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 application prepared to pay for selectable bases and amount conversion. Basic includes both at $14.99 per month with hourly updates and 10,000 requests. Its catalogue covers 170 currencies, with history back to January 1999. The trade-off is that Free is non-commercial, fixes the base, and excludes conversion, so it does not reproduce the paid workflow. Time series require Professional at $59.99 per month, while sixty-second updates start at Professional Plus for $99.99. Check historical and conversion entitlements as separate requirements.
Sources: Pricing and plan features. Full comparison: Fixer vs exchangerate.dev →
ExchangeRate-API
- Best fit: Free pair conversion with daily updates
- 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; from 1990 for a few currencies, all codes from 2021
- Coverage: About 165 currencies
- Conversion: Pair conversion with an optional amount, on Free
- MCP: No MCP server found on its site
ExchangeRate-API suits a small converter needing a direct pair request with an optional amount. Free includes that endpoint, 1,500 monthly requests, and daily updates. Pro costs $10 per month for 30,000 requests and hourly updates. The trade-off is historical access: it requires a paid plan. History starts on 1 January 1990 for a few currencies, with all codes from 1 January 2021. A separate keyless open endpoint permits commercial use with attribution, subject to rate limits and a ban on redistribution.
Sources: Plans, Documentation, Free and open access. Full comparison: ExchangeRate-API vs exchangerate.dev →
Compare the required plan and period
Use the update frequency, historical workflow, and billing period the application needs. An entry price alone does not establish a comparable subscription.
| If you need | Start with |
|---|---|
| Billing period | Compare monthly plans with XE’s annual packages over the same period. Include required update add-ons when evaluating the current data subscription. |
| Update frequency | Specify the maximum observation age the application can accept. Match that requirement to the intended plan rather than the fastest advertised update option. |
| Historical workflow | Test the required dates, averages, and range queries separately. An archive start date does not establish complete coverage or every query type. |
| Conversion and tools | Confirm direct amount conversion and MCP access if the application needs them. Check authentication, plan eligibility, and quota accounting for the actual calls. |
How we chose
We compared billing periods, free access, update frequency, historical workflows, conversion endpoints, request allowances, and documented MCP support. Sources were checked on 18 Oct 2026. This is a documented-feature comparison, not a benchmark of accuracy, latency, or uptime. XE Currency Data API is the reference service and is not ranked. exchangerate.dev publishes this comparison and appears under the same criteria. Unstated observation coverage and endpoint entitlements are left qualified rather than treated as equivalents. exchangerate.dev and Narwhal API are owned and operated by Nusantara Ventures, LLC.
Sources checked October 18, 2026. Prices and entitlements can change.
Related comparisons
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- 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
- Open Exchange Rates alternatives (2026): Free bases, amount endpoints, MCP, and billing periods
- Best historical exchange rate APIs (2026): Archive depth, date ranges, and historical plan access
- Best currency APIs with MCP (2026): MCP connections, tool access, quotas, and rate terms
- Exchange rates in Google Sheets and Excel: Sheets formulas, Apps Script, Excel data, and Power Query
- OANDA API alternatives: Observation types, historical depth, and alternatives to OANDA
- Frankfurter alternatives: Daily rates, newer observations, conversion, and keyless access
- Currencylayer alternatives: Commercial terms, source currencies, conversion, and update plans
- exchangerate.host alternatives: Free access, date ranges, and alternatives to exchangerate.host
- XE vs Wise exchange rates: Converter displays, transfer quotes, and rates in code