Short answer: For prices, market caps, volumes and history, Coinranking is one of the best-value options here: 1 million requests and history back to 2010 for $49 a month. CoinGecko and CoinMarketCap are the best-known alternatives. For exchange-level trades and order books, CoinAPI and Kaiko are built for that job.
Disclosure: This guide is published by Coinranking, and we list our own API first. The others follow in alphabetical order. All details come from each provider’s own pricing pages and docs, checked on October 29, 2026. Coverage numbers are the providers’ own claims.
A crypto market data API gives your app prices, market caps, volumes, charts and coin details. The right one depends on four things: coverage, price per call, licence and real-time data.
Three kinds of market data API
Aggregated price APIs
One price per coin, combined from many exchanges. Best for apps, wallets, portfolio trackers and dashboards. Coinranking, CoinGecko, CoinMarketCap, CoinPaprika, CoinCap, CoinStats and LiveCoinWatch work this way.
Exchange-level data APIs
Trades, quotes and order books from each exchange. Best for trading tools and research. CoinAPI, Kaiko and CoinDesk Data (Enterprise) focus here.
On-chain and DEX APIs
Token prices and trades straight from decentralized exchanges and blockchains. Mobula focuses here, and several others now add DEX data.
At a glance
| API | Free plan | Cheapest paid plan | Real-time streaming |
|---|---|---|---|
| Coinranking | 10,000 requests a month | $24 (500,000 requests) | WebSocket and SSE from $199 |
| CoinAPI | $25 in credits | $79 a month | WebSocket on all plans |
| CoinCap | 500 credits a month | $30 (50,000 credits, non-commercial) | WebSocket from $80 |
| CoinDesk Data | Retired in May 2026 | On request | WebSocket from Start-Up |
| CoinGecko | 10,000 calls a month | $35 (100,000 credits) | WebSocket (beta) from $35 |
| CoinMarketCap | 15,000 credits a month | $29 billed yearly (150,000 credits) | Listed from $79 |
| CoinPaprika | 20,000 calls a month, personal use | $99 (400,000 calls) | Enterprise only |
| CoinStats | 20,000 credits a month | $49 (1,000,000 credits) | Not listed |
| Kaiko | No free API plan | Custom quote | Yes, plan not stated |
| LiveCoinWatch | 10,000 requests a day | No paid plans | Not listed |
| Messari | Limited free endpoints | Enterprise only | Not stated |
| Mobula | 10,000 credits a month | $50 (125,000 credits) | WebSocket from $400 |
1. Coinranking
The Coinranking API tracks more than 2 million coins, with prices, market caps, volumes, history, OHLCV, exchanges, markets and DEX data.
- Free: 10,000 requests a month
- Basic, $24: 500,000 requests
- Startup, $49: 1 million requests and full history back to 2010
- Growth, $99: 2 million requests and OHLCV candles
- Professional, $199: 5 million requests, plus streaming over WebSocket and SSE
- Trial: 30 days free on every paid plan
- Attribution: you must show that the data comes from Coinranking
With streaming, opening a stream counts as one request, and the messages you receive are free.
Best for: apps and dashboards that need lots of calls and long history at a low price. See the Coinranking API plans.
2. CoinAPI
CoinAPI collects exchange-level data from “400+ Integrated Exchanges”, by its own count. It offers trades, quotes, OHLCV and order books over REST, WebSocket and FIX.
- Free: $25 in credits on pay-as-you-go
- Paid: Startup at $79 a month
- Streaming: WebSocket on every plan
Best for: trading tools that need order books and trades.
3. CoinCap
CoinCap offers prices, market caps, candles and technical indicators for “over 1,000 cryptocurrencies”.
- Builder, $30 a month: 50,000 credits, but a personal or non-profit licence
- Growth, $80 a month: commercial use and WebSocket
- Credits: larger responses use more credits
Best for: small projects that only need the top coins.
4. CoinDesk Data
CoinDesk Data, formerly CryptoCompare, says it covers “300+ exchanges, 10,000+ coins”. It retired its free API tier in May 2026. Paid plans are priced on request, and order books and trades are on Enterprise.
Best for: larger firms that want an enterprise data contract.
5. CoinGecko
CoinGecko’s API covers prices, market data, NFTs and on-chain DEX data.
- Demo, free: 10,000 calls a month, with attribution required
- Basic, $35: 100,000 credits and 2 years of history
- Streaming: WebSocket from Basic, in beta, at 0.1 credit per message
Best for: projects that need DEX pool data alongside prices.
6. CoinMarketCap
CoinMarketCap’s API has 95 endpoints, by its own count, including a DEX API.
- Basic, free: 15,000 credits a month for one product
- Builder, $29 billed yearly: 150,000 credits and 3 years of history
- Streaming: WebSocket is listed from the $79 Startup plan, but its FAQ still says WebSocket push is under development
Best for: teams that want a well-known brand behind their data.
7. CoinPaprika
CoinPaprika’s API offers prices, OHLCV, markets and exchanges.
- Free: 20,000 calls a month per IP, for personal use only
- Starter, $99: 400,000 calls
- Licence: paid plans are for internal use. Showing the data to your customers requires Enterprise.
Best for: internal tools and research.
8. CoinStats
CoinStats offers prices, OHLCV, wallet balances and DeFi positions.
- Free: 20,000 credits a month
- Starter, $49: 1,000,000 credits
Best for: portfolio apps that also need wallet and DeFi data.
9. Kaiko
Kaiko is an institutional data provider covering trades and order books from “over 100 exchanges”. Pricing is by quote only, and there is no free API plan.
Best for: funds and institutions with a data budget.
10. LiveCoinWatch
LiveCoinWatch offers a free API with 10,000 requests a day and updates every 2 seconds. You must link back to LiveCoinWatch on every page that uses its data. There are no paid plans.
Best for: hobby projects.
11. Messari
Messari covers “13,000+ assets across 150+ exchanges”, plus research data such as token unlocks and governance. It has retired its Lite and Pro plans, so full API access is Enterprise only.
Best for: research teams that want fundamentals with prices.
12. Mobula
Mobula focuses on on-chain and DEX data across “over 90 EVM and non-EVM chains”.
- Free: 10,000 credits a month
- Start-up, $50: 125,000 credits
- Streaming: WebSocket from the $400 Growth plan
Best for: wallets and DEX tools that need on-chain token data.
How to choose
Check the licence
Some cheap plans are for personal or internal use only. If customers will see the data, make sure the plan allows that.
Compare the price per call
Credits are not always calls. Read how each provider counts usage. Our crypto API pricing comparison puts them on the same scale.
Decide how live the data must be
Polling every few seconds uses up calls fast. Streaming sends updates as they happen. Read REST vs WebSocket and our list of real-time crypto price APIs.
Check the history
If you draw charts or run backtests, check how far back each plan goes. See the best historical crypto data APIs.
FAQ
What is the best free crypto market data API?
For testing, Coinranking, CoinGecko and CoinMarketCap all have free plans. Check the licence and attribution rules before you launch.
Which crypto API has the most coins?
Coverage claims vary a lot, because some providers count every DEX token. Coinranking tracks more than 2 million coins, and some providers claim tens of millions of DEX tokens.
Which API is cheapest for high volume?
Coinranking and CoinStats both offer about 1 million calls or credits for $49 a month. Coinranking also includes history back to 2010 on that plan, and 2 million requests for $99.
Are you switching from CoinGecko or CoinMarketCap?
See our guides to CoinGecko API alternatives and CoinMarketCap API alternatives.
Try the Coinranking API
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