VOL. XCIV, NO. 247

★ A CURATED DIRECTORY OF FINANCIAL TOOLS AND RESOURCES ★

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Saturday, December 27, 2025

Tool Comparison

FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data) vs Trading Economics 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 Visualizations, APIs & SDKs, and Sheets / Excel Add-ins coverage that Trading Economics skips.

Trading Economics includes News, Central Bank Watcher, PMI / ISM, Housing & Construction, Retail Sales, Consumer Sentiment, Yield Curves, Credit Ratings & Outlooks, and Real Yields categories that FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data) omits.

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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Trading Economics

tradingeconomics.com

Hands-on review

Trading Economics provides economic indicators, financial market data, forecasts, and news for over 150 countries. Its web and mobile Analytics plans bundle site features, alerts, and research dashboards, while API access is offered separately with usage-based pricing. Streaming feeds for calendars, markets, and earnings require API credentials. Plans range from free website access to professional subscriptions for institutional workflows.

Platforms

WebMobileAPI

Pricing

FreeSubscription

Quick highlights

REST and WebSocket API delivering data in JSON, CSV, or XML formats.
Coverage spans six API domains: Indicators, Calendar, Forecasts, Markets, Earnings, and News.
Economic calendar with ~1,600 monthly events across 150+ countries, refreshed in near real time.
Streaming support for calendar releases and earnings data via persistent WebSocket channels.
Market data includes real-time/delayed quotes for FX, commodities, stock indexes, and bonds, plus downloadable historical series.

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Where they differ

FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data)

Distinct strengths include:

Data Visualizations APIs & SDKs Sheets / Excel Add-ins

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.

Trading Economics

Distinct strengths include:

News Central Bank Watcher PMI / ISM Housing & Construction Retail Sales Consumer Sentiment Yield Curves Credit Ratings & Outlooks

REST and WebSocket API delivering data in JSON, CSV, or XML formats.
Coverage spans six API domains: Indicators, Calendar, Forecasts, Markets, Earnings, and News.
Economic calendar with ~1,600 monthly events across 150+ countries, refreshed in near real time.
Streaming support for calendar releases and earnings data via persistent WebSocket channels.

Feature-by-feature breakdown

Attribute	FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data)	Trading Economics
Categories Which research workflows each platform targets	Shared: Inflation Rates, Unemployment Rates, GDP, Interest Rates, Calendar, Alerts, Data APIs Unique: Data Visualizations, APIs & SDKs, Sheets / Excel Add-ins	Shared: Inflation Rates, Unemployment Rates, GDP, Interest Rates, Calendar, Alerts, Data APIs Unique: News, Central Bank Watcher, PMI / ISM, Housing & Construction, Retail Sales, Consumer Sentiment, Yield Curves, Credit Ratings & Outlooks, Real Yields
Asset types Supported asset classes and universes	Other	Commodities, Currencies, Bonds, Stocks, 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, Mobile, 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 and WebSocket API delivering data in JSON, CSV, or XML formats. Coverage spans six API domains: Indicators, Calendar, Forecasts, Markets, Earnings, and News. Economic calendar with ~1,600 monthly events across 150+ countries, refreshed in near real time. Streaming support for calendar releases and earnings data via persistent WebSocket channels. Market data includes real-time/delayed quotes for FX, commodities, stock indexes, and bonds, plus downloadable historical series. Global company financials and earnings fundamentals dataset.
Tested Verified by hands-on testing inside Find My Moat	Not yet	Yes
Editor pick Featured inside curated shortlists	Standard listing	Standard listing

Frequently Asked Questions

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

Both platforms cover Inflation Rates, Unemployment Rates, GDP, Interest Rates, Calendar, Alerts, and Data APIs 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 Trading Economics require subscriptions?

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

How can you access FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data) and Trading Economics?

Both FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data) and Trading Economics support web and mobile access, making it easy to keep tabs on research away from the desk.

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 Trading Economics stands out for REST and WebSocket API delivering data in JSON, CSV, or XML formats., Coverage spans six API domains: Indicators, Calendar, Forecasts, Markets, Earnings, and News., and Economic calendar with ~1,600 monthly events across 150+ countries, refreshed in near real time..

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