VOL. XCIV, NO. 247

★ FINANCIAL TOOLS & SERVICES DIRECTORY ★

PRICE: 5 CENTS

Sunday, October 5, 2025

View FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data)View marketstack Back to Home

Head-to-head

FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data) vs marketstack comparison

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

Quick takeaways

FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data) adds Calendar, Data Visualizations, Inflation Rates, Unemployment Rates, GDP, PMI / ISM, Housing & Construction, Retail Sales, Consumer Sentiment, Yield Curves, Real Yields, and Sheets / Excel Add-ins coverage that marketstack skips.

marketstack includes Dividends, Splits, ETF Holdings, Analyst Recommendations, and Analyst Price Targets categories that FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data) omits.

FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data) highlights: Access to over 840,000 time series from more than 100 official and third-party sources, all browsable and downloadable online., Official REST API covering both FRED and ALFRED, with endpoints for categories, releases, series, and sources., and Flexible output formats including JSON, XML, Excel, and CSV for easy integration..

marketstack is known for: RESTful JSON API with secure API key access, HTTPS transport, and a 5 requests/sec global limit., End-of-day data with 15+ years of history across 500,000+ tickers, including MIC-level filtering and adjusted fields (open, close, volume)., and Intraday data for U.S. markets via IEX, with intervals from 1–60 minutes. Real-time reference prices are derived from IEX feeds; some fields require separate entitlements..

FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data) ships a mobile app. marketstack is web/desktop only.

FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data)

fred.stlouisfed.org

One of the most trusted sources of macroeconomic and market data worldwide. FRED offers free access to charts, releases, Excel add-ins, and a public API. An API key (free) is required, with standard rate limits. ALFRED, the companion service, provides vintage datasets so you can see what was known at any point in time.

Platforms

Web

Mobile

API

Pricing

Free

Quick highlights

Access to over 840,000 time series from more than 100 official and third-party sources, all browsable and downloadable online.
Official REST API covering both FRED and ALFRED, with endpoints for categories, releases, series, and sources.
Flexible output formats including JSON, XML, Excel, and CSV for easy integration.
ALFRED (the archival database) provides point-in-time vintages, letting you track historical revisions exactly as they were published.
Maps API delivers regional datasets with GeoJSON shapefiles for states, counties, MSAs, and more.

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marketstack

marketstack.com

A global market data API with free and paid tiers. End-of-day coverage spans 15+ years and 500k+ tickers, while intraday and real-time access are unlocked on higher plans. Rate limits apply: 5 requests per second globally, with some endpoints (like ETF holdings) counting as multiple calls. Premium tiers add features like SEC/EDGAR filings, analyst ratings, and bond/index data. Data is sourced from Tiingo for U.S. markets, and uptime is tracked on a public status page.

Platforms

Web

API

Pricing

Free

Subscription

Quick highlights

RESTful JSON API with secure API key access, HTTPS transport, and a 5 requests/sec global limit.
End-of-day data with 15+ years of history across 500,000+ tickers, including MIC-level filtering and adjusted fields (open, close, volume).
Intraday data for U.S. markets via IEX, with intervals from 1–60 minutes. Real-time reference prices are derived from IEX feeds; some fields require separate entitlements.
Professional and higher tiers include real-time stock prices with minute-level updates (1 API call per minute rate cap).
Corporate actions endpoints for dividends and stock splits.

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Overlap

Shared focus areas

3 overlaps

Mutual strengths include Data APIs, Interest Rates, and APIs & SDKs.

Where they differ

FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data)

Distinct strengths include:

Housing & Construction

Retail Sales

Access to over 840,000 time series from more than 100 official and third-party sources, all browsable and downloadable online.
Official REST API covering both FRED and ALFRED, with endpoints for categories, releases, series, and sources.
Flexible output formats including JSON, XML, Excel, and CSV for easy integration.
ALFRED (the archival database) provides point-in-time vintages, letting you track historical revisions exactly as they were published.

marketstack

Distinct strengths include:

Dividends

Splits

ETF Holdings

Analyst Recommendations

Analyst Price Targets

RESTful JSON API with secure API key access, HTTPS transport, and a 5 requests/sec global limit.
End-of-day data with 15+ years of history across 500,000+ tickers, including MIC-level filtering and adjusted fields (open, close, volume).
Intraday data for U.S. markets via IEX, with intervals from 1–60 minutes. Real-time reference prices are derived from IEX feeds; some fields require separate entitlements.
Professional and higher tiers include real-time stock prices with minute-level updates (1 API call per minute rate cap).

Feature-by-feature breakdown

Attribute	FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data)	marketstack
Categories Which research workflows each platform targets	Shared: Data APIs, Interest Rates, APIs & SDKs Unique: Calendar, Data Visualizations, Inflation Rates, Unemployment Rates, GDP, PMI / ISM, Housing & Construction, Retail Sales, Consumer Sentiment, Yield Curves, Real Yields, Sheets / Excel Add-ins	Shared: Data APIs, Interest Rates, APIs & SDKs Unique: Dividends, Splits, ETF Holdings, Analyst Recommendations, Analyst Price Targets
Asset types Supported asset classes and universes	Bonds, Commodities, Currencies, Stocks, Other	Stocks, ETFs, Bonds, Commodities
Experience levels Who each product is built for	Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced	Intermediate, Advanced
Platforms Where you can access the product	Web, Mobile, API	Web, API
Pricing High-level pricing models	Free	Free, Subscription
Key features Core capabilities called out by each vendor	Unique Access to over 840,000 time series from more than 100 official and third-party sources, all browsable and downloadable online. Official REST API covering both FRED and ALFRED, with endpoints for categories, releases, series, and sources. Flexible output formats including JSON, XML, Excel, and CSV for easy integration. ALFRED (the archival database) provides point-in-time vintages, letting you track historical revisions exactly as they were published. Maps API delivers regional datasets with GeoJSON shapefiles for states, counties, MSAs, and more. Free Excel add-in enables direct downloads, refreshes, frequency conversions, and growth-rate calculations.	Unique RESTful JSON API with secure API key access, HTTPS transport, and a 5 requests/sec global limit. End-of-day data with 15+ years of history across 500,000+ tickers, including MIC-level filtering and adjusted fields (open, close, volume). Intraday data for U.S. markets via IEX, with intervals from 1–60 minutes. Real-time reference prices are derived from IEX feeds; some fields require separate entitlements. Professional and higher tiers include real-time stock prices with minute-level updates (1 API call per minute rate cap). Corporate actions endpoints for dividends and stock splits. ETF holdings data (Basic+ plans and above) with identifiers like ISIN and CUSIP; each request consumes 20 API calls.
Tested Verified by hands-on testing inside Find My Moat	Not yet	Not yet
Editor pick Featured inside curated shortlists	Standard listing	Standard listing

Frequently Asked Questions

Which workflows do FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data) and marketstack both support?

Both platforms cover Data APIs, Interest Rates, and APIs & SDKs workflows, so you can research those use cases in either tool before digging into the feature differences below.

Do FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data) and marketstack require subscriptions?

Both FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data) and marketstack keep freemium access with optional paid upgrades, so you can trial each platform before committing.

Which tool has mobile access?

FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data) ships a dedicated mobile experience, while marketstack focuses on web or desktop access.

What unique strengths set the two platforms apart?

FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data) differentiates itself with Access to over 840,000 time series from more than 100 official and third-party sources, all browsable and downloadable online., Official REST API covering both FRED and ALFRED, with endpoints for categories, releases, series, and sources., and Flexible output formats including JSON, XML, Excel, and CSV for easy integration., whereas marketstack stands out for RESTful JSON API with secure API key access, HTTPS transport, and a 5 requests/sec global limit., End-of-day data with 15+ years of history across 500,000+ tickers, including MIC-level filtering and adjusted fields (open, close, volume)., and Intraday data for U.S. markets via IEX, with intervals from 1–60 minutes. Real-time reference prices are derived from IEX feeds; some fields require separate entitlements..

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