CryptoCompare (CoinDesk Data) API alternative
CryptoCompare became CCData, then CoinDesk Data in February 2025. On 21 May 2026 CoinDesk Data retired its free API tier: accounts without a subscription stopped returning data, and the old min-api.cryptocompare.com host now answers 401. Its paid data is deep (funding, open interest, liquidations and options with minute-level history, plus L2 books), but prices aren't published; you book a call. If you need a free or self-serve alternative, here's how Crypto Data API compares.
We build Crypto Data API, so read this as a vendor's comparison. Every competitor fact below comes from that provider's own pricing or documentation pages, linked under Sources, as of 2026-11-04. Prices and limits change, so check their site before you buy. If we got something wrong, email [email protected] and we'll fix it.
Which one should you use?
you need institutional depth: options data, minute-level derivatives history across many venues, L2 book history, or an FCA-authorised benchmark provider.
you were on CryptoCompare's free tier, want published prices and self-serve signup, or need Hyperliquid, ETF-flow and volatility data for a bot or agent.
Side-by-side comparison
| Crypto Data API | CoinDesk Data API | |
|---|---|---|
| Free tier | Yes, with no card. 100 requests/day on a new key, 1,000/day once you confirm your email (10/min). Confirming also switches Pro on for 24 hours. | None since 21 May 2026. Keyless requests return 401. |
| Pricing | Pro $29/mo ($19/mo billed annually): 10,000 requests/day. Pro Plus $99/mo ($79 annually): 50,000/day plus the history and Parquet archives. Enterprise from $299/mo. | Not published. The site offers "Book a call". |
| Coverage | Focused rather than exhaustive: Binance and Hyperliquid market data plus a curated set of sources, not hundreds of exchanges. | 300+ exchanges, 10,000+ coins and 300k pairs, with history back to 2010. |
| Derivatives | Funding, open interest and long/short ratios (Binance, Hyperliquid). Liquidations from OKX, Bybit and Hyperliquid, and a Hyperliquid liquidation map from on-chain positions. | Funding, open interest and liquidations at minute, hour and day granularity, plus futures OHLCV. |
| Options | No options chains. BTC/ETH implied volatility only. | Ticks, OHLCV, trades, open interest and L2 books. |
| Order books | Hyperliquid L2 snapshots (5-minute archive) and depth analytics. No CEX order books. | L2 snapshots and metrics for spot, futures and options. |
| ETF flows / volatility index | Daily BTC, ETH and SOL spot-ETF net flows by trade date, settled days only. Crypto Volatility Index (market-wide realized vol) plus Deribit BTC/ETH implied vol. | No ETF flows in its API spec. |
| News / social | Market-moving news and an event calendar. | News, plus daily social series (X, Reddit, Telegram, Discord, code repos). |
| Delivery | REST (JSON, some endpoints also in markdown), a Server-Sent Events stream (Pro) and Parquet archives. No WebSocket or FIX. | REST (JSON/CSV), WebSocket, and bulk delivery to S3, Azure and GCS. |
| MCP server | Yes, hosted at cryptodataapi.com/mcp (API key or browser login), plus an npm package. | Yes: a Claude connector that needs an active CoinDesk Data API key. |
| Agent pay-per-call | Yes: pay per request, buy a 1-hour to 7-day pass ($1.50–$30) or buy single archive files in USDC over x402 (Base). An agent can also mint its own free key. | Not found. |
If you were on the CryptoCompare free tier
Your integration stopped returning data on 21 May 2026. The nearest free replacements for prices are CoinGecko's Demo and CoinMarketCap's Basic plans. For derivatives, ETF flows and Hyperliquid, Crypto Data API's free tier covers 1,000 requests a day once you confirm your email. See free crypto APIs compared for the full list.
Where CoinDesk Data is the better choice
Options, order-book history and breadth. If you need options ticks and Greeks-adjacent data, minute-level funding and liquidations across many exchanges, or benchmark indices, CoinDesk Data offers more than we do. Expect a sales process and an enterprise price.
More comparisons
Frequently asked questions
- Is the CryptoCompare API still free?
- No. CryptoCompare is now CoinDesk Data, which retired its free API tier on 21 May 2026. Accounts without a subscription stopped returning data, and keyless requests to the legacy hosts return 401.
- What happened to CryptoCompare?
- CoinDesk acquired CCData and CryptoCompare in October 2024, and CCData was renamed CoinDesk Data on 18 February 2025. The legacy API hosts now point developers to developers.coindesk.com.
- How much does the CoinDesk Data API cost?
- CoinDesk Data doesn't publish prices; its site offers a call with sales. Crypto Data API publishes its prices: free, Pro at $29 a month and Pro Plus at $99 a month.
A free key gives you 100 requests a day straight away and 1,000 a day once you confirm your email, with no card. Every endpoint is documented, and the same data is available to AI agents through our MCP server.
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