VOL. XCIV, NO. 247

★ FINANCIAL TOOLS & SERVICES DIRECTORY ★

PRICE: 5 CENTS

Sunday, October 5, 2025

View FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data)View MarketXLSBack to Home

Head-to-head

FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data) vs MarketXLS comparison

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

Quick takeaways

FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data) adds Data APIs, Calendar, Data Visualizations, PMI / ISM, Housing & Construction, Retail Sales, Consumer Sentiment, Yield Curves, Real Yields, and APIs & SDKs coverage that MarketXLS skips.

MarketXLS includes Broker Connectors, Screeners, Options & Derivatives, Options, Options P&L, Monte Carlo, Risk Metrics (VaR/ES/Drawdown), Portfolio, Watchlist, Correlation, Financials, ETF Overview, ETF Holdings, ETF Fundamentals, Which ETF includes this Stock?, and Blogs 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..

MarketXLS is known for: Excel add‑in works on Windows, Mac, and Excel Online; updates delivered automatically for Mac/Excel Online/Office 365 users., Built‑in real‑time streaming quotes (with exchange agreements) and default 15‑minute delayed market data; EOD history ~15+ years; intraday historical up to 1‑minute for ~1 year., and Options analytics: live option chains & Greeks, IV tools, order‑flow functions, strategy P&L templates; options symbology converter..

FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data) has a free tier, while MarketXLS requires a paid plan.

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

FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data) logo

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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MarketXLS logo

MarketXLS

marketxls.com

Excel‑first market data & analytics add‑in with 1,000+ functions. Default data is 15‑min delayed (QuoteMedia); real‑time streams and intraday history available with data add‑ons. Web screener, ETF database/overlap tools, options chains & Greeks, and portfolio templates (incl. Efficient Frontier). Direct order‑ticket functions for Thinkorswim, Tradier, Orion, plus IBKR integration via TWS API. No public data API for redistribution; personal use license.

Platforms

Desktop
Web

Pricing

Subscription

Quick highlights

  • Excel add‑in works on Windows, Mac, and Excel Online; updates delivered automatically for Mac/Excel Online/Office 365 users.
  • Built‑in real‑time streaming quotes (with exchange agreements) and default 15‑minute delayed market data; EOD history ~15+ years; intraday historical up to 1‑minute for ~1 year.
  • Options analytics: live option chains & Greeks, IV tools, order‑flow functions, strategy P&L templates; options symbology converter.
  • Portfolio & research templates: Efficient Frontier, correlation/volatility/drawdowns, fundamentals and historical statements via hf_* functions.
  • Web screener with hundreds of metrics; stock ranks (Value/Quality/Technical); spreadsheet builder to generate ready‑made workbooks.

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Overlap

Shared focus areas

5 overlaps

Mutual strengths include Inflation Rates, Unemployment Rates, and GDP plus 2 more areas.

Where they differ

FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data)

Distinct strengths include:

Data APIs
Calendar
Data Visualizations
PMI / ISM
Housing & Construction
Retail Sales
Consumer Sentiment
Yield Curves
  • 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.

MarketXLS

Distinct strengths include:

Broker Connectors
Screeners
Options & Derivatives
Options
Options P&L
Monte Carlo
Risk Metrics (VaR/ES/Drawdown)
Portfolio
  • Excel add‑in works on Windows, Mac, and Excel Online; updates delivered automatically for Mac/Excel Online/Office 365 users.
  • Built‑in real‑time streaming quotes (with exchange agreements) and default 15‑minute delayed market data; EOD history ~15+ years; intraday historical up to 1‑minute for ~1 year.
  • Options analytics: live option chains & Greeks, IV tools, order‑flow functions, strategy P&L templates; options symbology converter.
  • Portfolio & research templates: Efficient Frontier, correlation/volatility/drawdowns, fundamentals and historical statements via hf_* functions.

Feature-by-feature breakdown

AttributeFRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data)MarketXLS
Categories

Which research workflows each platform targets

Shared: Inflation Rates, Unemployment Rates, GDP, Interest Rates, Sheets / Excel Add-ins

Unique: Data APIs, Calendar, Data Visualizations, PMI / ISM, Housing & Construction, Retail Sales, Consumer Sentiment, Yield Curves, Real Yields, APIs & SDKs

Shared: Inflation Rates, Unemployment Rates, GDP, Interest Rates, Sheets / Excel Add-ins

Unique: Broker Connectors, Screeners, Options & Derivatives, Options, Options P&L, Monte Carlo, Risk Metrics (VaR/ES/Drawdown), Portfolio, Watchlist, Correlation, Financials, ETF Overview, ETF Holdings, ETF Fundamentals, Which ETF includes this Stock?, Blogs

Asset types

Supported asset classes and universes

Bonds, Commodities, Currencies, Stocks, Other

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

Experience levels

Who each product is built for

Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced

Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced

Platforms

Where you can access the product

Web, Mobile, API

Desktop, Web

Pricing

High-level pricing models

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

  • Excel add‑in works on Windows, Mac, and Excel Online; updates delivered automatically for Mac/Excel Online/Office 365 users.
  • Built‑in real‑time streaming quotes (with exchange agreements) and default 15‑minute delayed market data; EOD history ~15+ years; intraday historical up to 1‑minute for ~1 year.
  • Options analytics: live option chains & Greeks, IV tools, order‑flow functions, strategy P&L templates; options symbology converter.
  • Portfolio & research templates: Efficient Frontier, correlation/volatility/drawdowns, fundamentals and historical statements via hf_* functions.
  • Web screener with hundreds of metrics; stock ranks (Value/Quality/Technical); spreadsheet builder to generate ready‑made workbooks.
  • Broker/trading connections: Thinkorswim, Tradier (single & multi‑leg), Orion (single‑leg), Interactive Brokers (via TWS API).
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 MarketXLS both support?

Both platforms cover Inflation Rates, Unemployment Rates, GDP, Interest Rates, 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?

FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data) offers a free entry point, while MarketXLS requires a paid subscription. Review the pricing table to see how the paid tiers compare.

Which tool has mobile access?

FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data) ships a dedicated mobile experience, while MarketXLS 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 MarketXLS stands out for Excel add‑in works on Windows, Mac, and Excel Online; updates delivered automatically for Mac/Excel Online/Office 365 users., Built‑in real‑time streaming quotes (with exchange agreements) and default 15‑minute delayed market data; EOD history ~15+ years; intraday historical up to 1‑minute for ~1 year., and Options analytics: live option chains & Greeks, IV tools, order‑flow functions, strategy P&L templates; options symbology converter..

Keep exploring

Stay on top of related tools

Browse the categories and profiles that overlap most with this comparison to round out your shortlist.

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.