Tool Comparison
Open Payments (CMS) vs OpenCorporates
- Paid from
- —
- Free plan
- Yes
- Platforms
- Web, API
Best if
- You want data visualizations and official sources.
- Paid from
- On request
- Free plan
- Yes
- Platforms
- Web, API
Best if
- You want other.
Pick Open Payments (CMS) if
Open Payments (CMS)
Free · Web · API
- You want data visualizations and official sources.
Pick OpenCorporates if
OpenCorporates
Free • Contact for pricing · Web · API
- You want other.
Skip both if: Neither one clicks with how you research; there are strong third options.
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Our take
The bottom line
Open Payments (CMS) and OpenCorporates cover a lot of the same ground (2 shared categories, APIs & data feeds and regulatory filings monitoring), so for the basics you won't go far wrong with either. Open Payments (CMS) includes data visualizations and official sources, and OpenCorporates includes other.
What readers say
Open Payments (CMS)
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OpenCorporates
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Key differences at a glance
- Global coverage
- OpenCorporates
- Free plan
- Both
What Open Payments (CMS) does best
- Search tools across official Sunshine Act records for payments and ownership interests reported by drug manufacturers, device manufacturers, and group purchasing organizations.
- Comparison tools for General Payments, Research Payments, and Ownership or Investment Interests across program years.
- Lookup tools for physicians, non-physician practitioners, teaching hospitals, manufacturers, products, payment categories, dates, and dollar amounts from the public web tool.
- Charts, filters, and downloadable tables to move from a provider, company, or product question into the underlying records.
- Download support for bulk datasets when healthcare, pharma, medtech, policy, or compliance workflows need repeatable offline analysis.
What OpenCorporates does best
- Search more than 200 million company records collected from official sources, with provenance and source links.
- Use a versioned REST API with API-key authentication and JSON or XML output for company and officer data.
- Match company names to legal identifiers with the OpenRefine Reconciliation API.
- Receive bulk CSV datasets through SFTP for companies, officers, addresses, alternative names, identifiers, and relationships.
- Map subsidiaries, branches, control statements, and shareholdings with the relationships dataset.
Side by side
Pricing comparison
See for yourself
Side by side
Price, platforms, data, and market coverage.ShowHide
Side by side
| Attribute | ||
|---|---|---|
| Pricing & plans | ||
Starting price | Free | Free • Contact for pricing |
Free tier | Yes | Yes |
Free trial | — | — |
Plan limits | — | 9 limits: Essentials (API): api calls per month: 500, Essentials (API): api calls per day: 200 +7 more |
| Platforms & access | ||
Web app | Yes | Yes |
Mobile app | No | No |
API access | Yes | Yes |
Broker sync | — | No |
Integrations | — | OpenRefine |
| Audience & fit | ||
Experience level | Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced | Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced |
Best for | — | — |
Categories covered | 4 | 3 |
Regions | North America | North America, Europe, APAC, LatAm, Middle East, Africa |
| Data & capabilities | ||
Data quality | — | Latency: End of Day and Granularity: EOD |
Security | — | Status page |
| Try it | Visit Open Payments (CMS) | Visit OpenCorporates |
Standout features
The best features of Open Payments (CMS) and OpenCorporates.ShowHide
Standout features
What Open Payments (CMS) does best
- Search tools across official Sunshine Act records for payments and ownership interests reported by drug manufacturers, device manufacturers, and group purchasing organizations.
- Comparison tools for General Payments, Research Payments, and Ownership or Investment Interests across program years.
- Lookup tools for physicians, non-physician practitioners, teaching hospitals, manufacturers, products, payment categories, dates, and dollar amounts from the public web tool.
- Charts, filters, and downloadable tables to move from a provider, company, or product question into the underlying records.
- Download support for bulk datasets when healthcare, pharma, medtech, policy, or compliance workflows need repeatable offline analysis.
What OpenCorporates does best
- Search more than 200 million company records collected from official sources, with provenance and source links.
- Use a versioned REST API with API-key authentication and JSON or XML output for company and officer data.
- Match company names to legal identifiers with the OpenRefine Reconciliation API.
- Receive bulk CSV datasets through SFTP for companies, officers, addresses, alternative names, identifiers, and relationships.
- Map subsidiaries, branches, control statements, and shareholdings with the relationships dataset.
All details
Every attribute we track for Open Payments (CMS) and OpenCorporates.ShowHide
All details
| Attribute | ||
|---|---|---|
| Coverage & fit | ||
Asset types | Other | Other |
Experience | BeginnerIntermediateAdvanced | BeginnerIntermediateAdvanced |
Regions | North America | North AmericaEuropeAPACLatAmMiddle EastAfrica |
Coverage details | Countries: US | Not specified |
| Data | ||
Data freshness | Not specified | End of Day |
Data granularity | Not specified | EOD |
| Access & integrations | ||
API protocols | REST | REST |
API auth & delivery | Auth: None | Auth: APIKey |
Integrations | Not specified | OpenRefine |
Export formats | CSVJSON | CSVJSON |
| Plans & trust | ||
Security & compliance | Not specified | Status page |
Vendor & support | Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), U.S. Department of Health & Human ServicesCountry: USSupport: Email and Phone | OpenCorporates LtdCountry: United KingdomFounded 2010Support: Email |
Curation ratings | Methodology 5/5Reliability 5/5UX 4/5 | Not specified |
Green tags are exclusive to that tool in this comparison.
Pricing
Plans, billing, free trials, and monthly prices.ShowHide
Pricing
| Tier | ||
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Free | Free“Free (personal & public-benefit use)” |
| Entry paid plan | — | £225/mo“Essentials (API)”api calls per month: 500 · api calls per day: 200 · +1 more |
| Tier 2 | — | £660/mo“Starter (API)”api calls per month: 2,500 · api calls per day: 500 · +1 more |
| Top plan | — | £1200/mo“Basic (API)”api calls per month: 5,000 · api calls per day: 1,000 · +1 more |
| Custom / enterprise | — | Contact sales“Enterprise Bulk (SFTP CSV datasets)” |
Questions we keep getting
What's the difference between Open Payments (CMS) and OpenCorporates?
Open Payments (CMS) leans toward APIs & data feeds, data visualizations, and regulatory filings monitoring, while OpenCorporates puts more weight on APIs & data feeds, regulatory filings monitoring, and other. They overlap in 2 categories, so for most people it comes down to workflow preference and price.
How much do Open Payments (CMS) and OpenCorporates cost?
Good news: both Open Payments (CMS) and OpenCorporates have free plans, so you can run them side by side and only pay if you hit a wall.
Do Open Payments (CMS) and OpenCorporates have APIs?
Yes, both offer API access, so developers and quants can pull data programmatically or wire up their own integrations.
Should I choose Open Payments (CMS) or OpenCorporates?
It depends on what you're after. Pick Open Payments (CMS) if data visualizations and official sources matter to you; go with OpenCorporates if you'd rather have other. And if you only need the basics both share, let price decide.
Which covers international markets: Open Payments (CMS) or OpenCorporates?
OpenCorporates has documented international coverage (North America, Europe, APAC, LatAm, and more), so it's the safer bet if you hold non-US stocks. Open Payments (CMS) is more region-specific, mainly North America.
Can I export data from Open Payments (CMS) and OpenCorporates?
Yes, both export to spreadsheets (CSV), which is handy if you like running your own numbers.
Feedback
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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.