VOL. XCIV, NO. 247

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Friday, December 26, 2025

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Tool Comparison

FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data) vs OpenBB 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, and Alerts coverage that OpenBB skips.

OpenBB includes Custom Dashboards, News, IPO, Dividends, Splits, Commitment of Traders (COT), Dark Pool & Off-Exchange, Options & Derivatives, Quant, Financials, Transcripts, ETF Overview, ETF Performance, ETF Holdings, Analyst Forecasts, Analyst Price Targets, Regulatory Filings Monitoring, AI, and AI Chat categories that FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data) omits.

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

In depth comparison

FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data)

fred.stlouisfed.org

Free macroeconomic and financial time-series database and tooling operated by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. Access via web UI, iOS/Android apps, a Microsoft Excel add-in, and a REST API. Some features (dashboards, data lists, saved graphs/maps) and API key management require a free FRED account; all API requests require an API key and are rate-limited. Usage is subject to the FRED Services Terms of Use (including restrictions on scraping and on certain copyrighted series).

Platforms

WebMobileAPI

Pricing

Free

Quick highlights

800,000+ economic data series from 100+ sources, covering topics such as GDP, prices/inflation, employment, exchange rates, and interest rates.
Browse and track data via categories, releases, sources, and tags; series pages show metadata like units/frequency and “last updated / next release” fields.
Graphing and sharing options include embeddable graphs and graph-image links.
Economic release calendar with scheduled release dates/times (US Central Time) and a data-provider caveat for availability.
Account tools can provide email notifications for series updates.

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OpenBB

openbb.co

Open-source data and analytics platform with a REST API, Python SDK, and an enterprise workspace for custom dashboards and apps. The free Community plan includes unlimited dashboards and 20 AI Copilot queries per day. Pro adds collaboration features, Excel integration, secure deployment (VPC/on-prem), and export options. Infrastructure is SOC 2 Type II certified, with SSO support and a public status page.

Platforms

WebAPI

Pricing

FreeSubscription

Quick highlights

REST API and Python client with JSON-serializable endpoints; local API deployment supported.
Wide coverage across equities, ETFs, options, fixed income, macroeconomics, news, transcripts, and regulatory filings.
Command-line interface (successor to the legacy OpenBB Terminal) plus Python workflows.
Workspace dashboards and apps with customizable widgets; unlimited dashboards on the Community tier.
OpenBB Copilot AI chat that integrates dashboard widgets as context and supports attachments (PDF, CSV, XLSX).

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Where they differ

FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data)

Distinct strengths include:

Calendar Alerts

800,000+ economic data series from 100+ sources, covering topics such as GDP, prices/inflation, employment, exchange rates, and interest rates.
Browse and track data via categories, releases, sources, and tags; series pages show metadata like units/frequency and “last updated / next release” fields.
Graphing and sharing options include embeddable graphs and graph-image links.
Economic release calendar with scheduled release dates/times (US Central Time) and a data-provider caveat for availability.

OpenBB

Distinct strengths include:

Custom Dashboards News IPO Dividends Splits Commitment of Traders (COT)Dark Pool & Off-Exchange Options & Derivatives

REST API and Python client with JSON-serializable endpoints; local API deployment supported.
Wide coverage across equities, ETFs, options, fixed income, macroeconomics, news, transcripts, and regulatory filings.
Command-line interface (successor to the legacy OpenBB Terminal) plus Python workflows.
Workspace dashboards and apps with customizable widgets; unlimited dashboards on the Community tier.

Feature-by-feature breakdown

Attribute	FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data)	OpenBB
Categories Which research workflows each platform targets	Shared: Inflation Rates, Unemployment Rates, GDP, Interest Rates, Data Visualizations, Data APIs, APIs & SDKs, Sheets / Excel Add-ins Unique: Calendar, Alerts	Shared: Inflation Rates, Unemployment Rates, GDP, Interest Rates, Data Visualizations, Data APIs, APIs & SDKs, Sheets / Excel Add-ins Unique: Custom Dashboards, News, IPO, Dividends, Splits, Commitment of Traders (COT), Dark Pool & Off-Exchange, Options & Derivatives, Quant, Financials, Transcripts, ETF Overview, ETF Performance, ETF Holdings, Analyst Forecasts, Analyst Price Targets, Regulatory Filings Monitoring, AI, AI Chat
Asset types Supported asset classes and universes	Other	Stocks, ETFs, Options, Futures, Bonds, Commodities, Currencies, 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	Web, API
Pricing High-level pricing models	Free	Free, Subscription
Key features Core capabilities called out by each vendor	Unique 800,000+ economic data series from 100+ sources, covering topics such as GDP, prices/inflation, employment, exchange rates, and interest rates. Browse and track data via categories, releases, sources, and tags; series pages show metadata like units/frequency and “last updated / next release” fields. Graphing and sharing options include embeddable graphs and graph-image links. Economic release calendar with scheduled release dates/times (US Central Time) and a data-provider caveat for availability. Account tools can provide email notifications for series updates. FRED API supports REST over HTTPS and returns XML or JSON; it can query both FRED and ALFRED (archival/vintage) datasets.	Unique REST API and Python client with JSON-serializable endpoints; local API deployment supported. Wide coverage across equities, ETFs, options, fixed income, macroeconomics, news, transcripts, and regulatory filings. Command-line interface (successor to the legacy OpenBB Terminal) plus Python workflows. Workspace dashboards and apps with customizable widgets; unlimited dashboards on the Community tier. OpenBB Copilot AI chat that integrates dashboard widgets as context and supports attachments (PDF, CSV, XLSX). Community plan includes 20 Copilot queries/day; Pro adds Excel Add-in, data export, team roles and sharing, and SSO (Azure/Google).
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 OpenBB both support?

Both platforms cover Inflation Rates, Unemployment Rates, GDP, Interest Rates, Data Visualizations, Data APIs, 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.

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

Both FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data) and OpenBB 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 OpenBB focuses on web or desktop access.

What unique strengths set the two platforms apart?

FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data) differentiates itself with 800,000+ economic data series from 100+ sources, covering topics such as GDP, prices/inflation, employment, exchange rates, and interest rates., Browse and track data via categories, releases, sources, and tags; series pages show metadata like units/frequency and “last updated / next release” fields., and Graphing and sharing options include embeddable graphs and graph-image links., whereas OpenBB stands out for REST API and Python client with JSON-serializable endpoints; local API deployment supported., Wide coverage across equities, ETFs, options, fixed income, macroeconomics, news, transcripts, and regulatory filings., and Command-line interface (successor to the legacy OpenBB Terminal) plus Python workflows..

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