VOL. XCIV, NO. 247

★ FINANCIAL TOOLS & SERVICES DIRECTORY ★

PRICE: 5 CENTS

Sunday, October 5, 2025

Head-to-head

Alpha Vantage vs YCharts comparison

Compare pricing, supported platforms, categories, and standout capabilities to decide which tool fits your workflow.

Quick takeaways

Alpha Vantage adds News Sentiment, Calendar, Dividends, Splits, IPO, Delisted, Options & Derivatives, and Transcripts coverage that YCharts skips.

YCharts includes Screeners, Stock Comparison, ETF Comparison, Data Visualizations, Portfolio, Watchlist, Correlation, Risk Metrics (VaR/ES/Drawdown), Performance Attribution, Scenario & Stress Tests, Alerts, Financials, Scores, ETF Overview, ETF Performance, ETF Fundamentals, ETF Overlap, Analyst Forecasts, Short Interest, Yield Curves, and Broker Connectors categories that Alpha Vantage omits.

Alpha Vantage highlights: Equity time series for global stocks (intraday down to 1-minute, plus daily/weekly/monthly) with 20+ years of history, including pre- and post-market support and adjustment toggles for splits and dividends., US options coverage with real-time and historical data spanning over 15 years, including optional greeks and implied volatility outputs in JSON or CSV., and Fundamentals and corporate actions such as company overviews, financials, dividends, splits, plus ETF profiles and holdings..

YCharts is known for: Research workspace with Fundamental Charts, robust screeners, comp tables, scatter plots, scenario tools, and Quickflows to speed common tasks., Portfolio analytics for model and client accounts: optimizer and rebalancing (daily through annual), correlation matrices, attribution and transition analysis, drift/overlap checks, and exposure breakdowns., and Broad data coverage: U.S. and Canadian equities, ETFs and CEFs, plus mutual funds and SMAs as add-ons; 4,000+ fundamental metrics, S&P Global analyst estimates, MSCI ESG datasets, and a large set of macro indicators..

Alpha Vantage has a free tier, while YCharts requires a paid plan.

Alpha Vantage logo

Alpha Vantage

alphavantage.co

Hands-on review

REST APIs delivering global market data in JSON and CSV. The free tier allows 25 requests per day, while premium plans remove limits and unlock real-time and 15-minute delayed US equities plus real-time US options. Entitlements and account management are handled through the Alpha X Terminal.

Platforms

Web
API

Pricing

Free
Subscription

Quick highlights

  • Equity time series for global stocks (intraday down to 1-minute, plus daily/weekly/monthly) with 20+ years of history, including pre- and post-market support and adjustment toggles for splits and dividends.
  • US options coverage with real-time and historical data spanning over 15 years, including optional greeks and implied volatility outputs in JSON or CSV.
  • Fundamentals and corporate actions such as company overviews, financials, dividends, splits, plus ETF profiles and holdings.
  • Corporate calendars: earnings announcements, IPO schedules, listings, and delisting status.
  • Alpha Intelligence datasets with market news and sentiment, earnings call transcripts, insider transactions, and daily gainers/losers.

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YCharts logo

YCharts

ycharts.com

Hands-on review

Advisor-focused research, portfolio analytics, and proposal platform. Lower tiers are more view-only, while add-ons unlock the Excel add-in and broader fund/SMA datasets. Intraday quotes are available on a short delay (about 90–120 seconds).

Platforms

Web
API

Pricing

Subscription

Quick highlights

  • Research workspace with Fundamental Charts, robust screeners, comp tables, scatter plots, scenario tools, and Quickflows to speed common tasks.
  • Portfolio analytics for model and client accounts: optimizer and rebalancing (daily through annual), correlation matrices, attribution and transition analysis, drift/overlap checks, and exposure breakdowns.
  • Broad data coverage: U.S. and Canadian equities, ETFs and CEFs, plus mutual funds and SMAs as add-ons; 4,000+ fundamental metrics, S&P Global analyst estimates, MSCI ESG datasets, and a large set of macro indicators.
  • Monitoring built in: dashboards, watchlists, alerts, and a live news feed (MT Newswires). Intraday quotes update on a short delay (~90–120 seconds).
  • Excel & API: an add-on Excel add-in with dynamic formulas/templates, a REST API with API keys and official Python/R clients, and exports to CSV/Excel/PDF/images.

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Overlap

Shared focus areas

10 overlaps

Mutual strengths include Data APIs, News, and Inflation Rates plus 7 more areas.

Where they differ

Alpha Vantage

Distinct strengths include:

  • Equity time series for global stocks (intraday down to 1-minute, plus daily/weekly/monthly) with 20+ years of history, including pre- and post-market support and adjustment toggles for splits and dividends.
  • US options coverage with real-time and historical data spanning over 15 years, including optional greeks and implied volatility outputs in JSON or CSV.
  • Fundamentals and corporate actions such as company overviews, financials, dividends, splits, plus ETF profiles and holdings.
  • Corporate calendars: earnings announcements, IPO schedules, listings, and delisting status.

YCharts

Distinct strengths include:

  • Research workspace with Fundamental Charts, robust screeners, comp tables, scatter plots, scenario tools, and Quickflows to speed common tasks.
  • Portfolio analytics for model and client accounts: optimizer and rebalancing (daily through annual), correlation matrices, attribution and transition analysis, drift/overlap checks, and exposure breakdowns.
  • Broad data coverage: U.S. and Canadian equities, ETFs and CEFs, plus mutual funds and SMAs as add-ons; 4,000+ fundamental metrics, S&P Global analyst estimates, MSCI ESG datasets, and a large set of macro indicators.
  • Monitoring built in: dashboards, watchlists, alerts, and a live news feed (MT Newswires). Intraday quotes update on a short delay (~90–120 seconds).

Feature-by-feature breakdown

AttributeAlpha VantageYCharts
Categories

Which research workflows each platform targets

Shared: Data APIs, News, Inflation Rates, Unemployment Rates, GDP, Interest Rates, ETF Holdings, Insider Data, APIs & SDKs, Sheets / Excel Add-ins

Unique: News Sentiment, Calendar, Dividends, Splits, IPO, Delisted, Options & Derivatives, Transcripts

Shared: Data APIs, News, Inflation Rates, Unemployment Rates, GDP, Interest Rates, ETF Holdings, Insider Data, APIs & SDKs, Sheets / Excel Add-ins

Unique: Screeners, Stock Comparison, ETF Comparison, Data Visualizations, Portfolio, Watchlist, Correlation, Risk Metrics (VaR/ES/Drawdown), Performance Attribution, Scenario & Stress Tests, Alerts, Financials, Scores, ETF Overview, ETF Performance, ETF Fundamentals, ETF Overlap, Analyst Forecasts, Short Interest, Yield Curves, Broker Connectors

Asset types

Supported asset classes and universes

Stocks, ETFs, Options, Currencies, Cryptos, Commodities, Mutual Funds

Stocks, ETFs, Mutual Funds, Closed-End Funds

Experience levels

Who each product is built for

Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced

Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced

Platforms

Where you can access the product

Web, API

Web, API

Pricing

High-level pricing models

Free, Subscription

Subscription

Key features

Core capabilities called out by each vendor

Unique

  • Equity time series for global stocks (intraday down to 1-minute, plus daily/weekly/monthly) with 20+ years of history, including pre- and post-market support and adjustment toggles for splits and dividends.
  • US options coverage with real-time and historical data spanning over 15 years, including optional greeks and implied volatility outputs in JSON or CSV.
  • Fundamentals and corporate actions such as company overviews, financials, dividends, splits, plus ETF profiles and holdings.
  • Corporate calendars: earnings announcements, IPO schedules, listings, and delisting status.
  • Alpha Intelligence datasets with market news and sentiment, earnings call transcripts, insider transactions, and daily gainers/losers.
  • Coverage across FX and crypto exchange rates (including intraday), commodities (oil, metals, agriculture), and US macro indicators like GDP, CPI, interest rates, and unemployment.

Unique

  • Research workspace with Fundamental Charts, robust screeners, comp tables, scatter plots, scenario tools, and Quickflows to speed common tasks.
  • Portfolio analytics for model and client accounts: optimizer and rebalancing (daily through annual), correlation matrices, attribution and transition analysis, drift/overlap checks, and exposure breakdowns.
  • Broad data coverage: U.S. and Canadian equities, ETFs and CEFs, plus mutual funds and SMAs as add-ons; 4,000+ fundamental metrics, S&P Global analyst estimates, MSCI ESG datasets, and a large set of macro indicators.
  • Monitoring built in: dashboards, watchlists, alerts, and a live news feed (MT Newswires). Intraday quotes update on a short delay (~90–120 seconds).
  • Excel & API: an add-on Excel add-in with dynamic formulas/templates, a REST API with API keys and official Python/R clients, and exports to CSV/Excel/PDF/images.
  • Advisor ecosystem integrations including Addepar, Orion, Redtail, Schwab Advisor Center, iRebal, Pershing, LPL ClientWorks, Black Diamond, and VRGL.
Tested

Verified by hands-on testing inside Find My Moat

Yes

Yes

Editor pick

Featured inside curated shortlists

Standard listing

Standard listing

Frequently Asked Questions

Which workflows do Alpha Vantage and YCharts both support?

Both platforms cover Data APIs, News, Inflation Rates, Unemployment Rates, GDP, Interest Rates, ETF Holdings, Insider Data, APIs & SDKs, and Sheets / Excel Add-ins workflows, so you can research those use cases in either tool before digging into the feature differences below.

Which tool offers a free plan?

Alpha Vantage offers a free entry point, while YCharts requires a paid subscription. Review the pricing table to see how the paid tiers compare.

How can you access Alpha Vantage and YCharts?

Both Alpha Vantage and YCharts prioritize web or desktop access. Investors wanting a mobile-first workflow may need to rely on responsive web views.

What unique strengths set the two platforms apart?

Alpha Vantage differentiates itself with Equity time series for global stocks (intraday down to 1-minute, plus daily/weekly/monthly) with 20+ years of history, including pre- and post-market support and adjustment toggles for splits and dividends., US options coverage with real-time and historical data spanning over 15 years, including optional greeks and implied volatility outputs in JSON or CSV., and Fundamentals and corporate actions such as company overviews, financials, dividends, splits, plus ETF profiles and holdings., whereas YCharts stands out for Research workspace with Fundamental Charts, robust screeners, comp tables, scatter plots, scenario tools, and Quickflows to speed common tasks., Portfolio analytics for model and client accounts: optimizer and rebalancing (daily through annual), correlation matrices, attribution and transition analysis, drift/overlap checks, and exposure breakdowns., and Broad data coverage: U.S. and Canadian equities, ETFs and CEFs, plus mutual funds and SMAs as add-ons; 4,000+ fundamental metrics, S&P Global analyst estimates, MSCI ESG datasets, and a large set of macro indicators..

Curation & Accuracy

This directory blends AI‑assisted discovery with human curation. Entries are reviewed, edited, and organized with the goal of expanding coverage and sharpening quality over time. Your feedback helps steer improvements (because no single human can capture everything all at once).

Details change. Pricing, features, and availability may be incomplete or out of date. Treat listings as a starting point and verify on the provider’s site before making decisions. If you spot an error or a gap, send a quick note and I’ll adjust.