Here's a practical overview of the main crypto market data API options, grouped by what each is best at. This is general knowledge (pricing tiers and rate limits change often — always check the provider's current docs), not live verified figures.
Aggregator APIs (broadest coverage, single source for prices across thousands of coins)
- CoinGecko API — free tier is genuinely usable (demo key for market data, ~30 calls/min), paid tiers unlock pro features like historical data depth, on-chain metrics, and higher rate limits. Good coverage of coins and their on-chain/security data. This app's market data is CoinGecko-sourced.
- CoinMarketCap API — the other heavyweight. Free tier is more restricted (limited credits/day) and its historical data and latest-quotes endpoints sit behind paid tiers. Very wide coin coverage, but the free allowance is thinner than CoinGecko's.
- CryptoCompare (CCData) — strong free tier with good history depth, plus a reputation for institutional-grade data quality and indexes (used by many exchanges).
Exchange-native APIs (free, fastest, but only for that exchange's own market)
- Binance / Coinbase / Kraken / Bybit public REST + WebSocket feeds — free, no key needed for market data, real-time tickers and order books. Ideal if you only need trading pairs on one exchange, but zero coverage of coins not listed there.
DeFi / on-chain specific
- DefiLlama API — free, no key, the standard for TVL, protocol fees/revenue, and yield data across thousands of protocols.
- DexScreener API — free, best for DEX pairs and very new/unlisted tokens, with live liquidity and pair data across EVM and Solana.
How to pick:
- Just need prices for a handful of well-known coins → an exchange's own public API is simplest and free.
- Need broad cross-exchange coverage, market cap, and history → CoinGecko or CoinMarketCap (CoinGecko has the more generous free tier).
- Building a DeFi dashboard or tracking on-chain usage → DefiLlama + DexScreener cover what CEX-style APIs miss.
Want me to pull the current trending coins or look up live data for any specific project so you can see what the aggregated data actually looks like?