Finnhub is a stock, forex and crypto market-data API known for one of the most generous free tiers in finance: ~60 calls a minute with real-time US quotes and company news. Pricing is a flat monthly subscription by data access and rate limit, not per call. Here's the cost, the free tier, and how to get a key.
| Plan | Price | Rate limit / scope |
|---|---|---|
| Free free tier | $0 | 60 calls / min, personal use, US real-time only |
| All-In-One | $3,500 / mo | billed annually ($42,000/yr) · 900 calls/min market data, 300 calls/min fundamentals, global coverage |
The free key gives around 60 API calls per minute for personal, non-commercial projects, with real-time US stock quotes, company news, basic fundamentals, forex and crypto — no credit card. The per-minute ceiling is high enough for live dashboards and small trading experiments, which is why Finnhub is a favourite for hobby finance apps. The catch is the non-commercial licence: the moment your app is monetised or redistributes data, you need a paid plan.
1. Sign up at finnhub.io with your email.
2. Confirm the email and open your dashboard.
3. A free API token is shown immediately — no credit card.
4. Pass it as the token query parameter (or the X-Finnhub-Token header) on every request.
Fetch a real-time stock quote:
Alpha Vantage offers broader data types (50+ technical indicators, FX, fundamentals) on free, but a much tighter ~25 requests/day cap — better for cached backtests than live polling. Polygon.io is the pick for tick-level, options and high-frequency data, priced higher. Twelve Data sits in between. For crypto prices only, CoinGecko is simpler and cheaper. Finnhub wins when you need real-time quotes and news at high free throughput for a personal project.
Yes — ~60 calls/min, no credit card, with real-time US quotes, news, basic fundamentals, FX and crypto. It's for personal, non-commercial use; monetised apps need a paid plan.
Sign up at finnhub.io, confirm your email, and the free token appears on your dashboard. Pass it as the token query parameter or X-Finnhub-Token header.
Finnhub's 60 calls/min free limit is far higher for live quotes; Alpha Vantage gives broader data types but only ~25 requests/day. Use Finnhub for real-time, Alpha Vantage for indicator-heavy backtests.
There are only two plans: free, and a $3,500/month All-In-One plan billed annually ($42,000/year) with global data and institutional-grade limits. There's no self-serve middle tier — if the free plan's US-only, 60-calls/min, personal-use licence doesn't fit, the next step is enterprise pricing.
Not affiliated with Finnhub. Prices are reference estimates — always verify on the official pricing page.