VOL. XCIV, NO. 247

★ BEST INVESTING TOOLS COMPARISON ★

Thursday, May 28, 2026

Tool Comparison · Thursday, May 28, 2026

Open Payments (CMS) vs OpenCorporates

Open Payments (CMS) vs OpenCorporates: which investing tool fits your workflow? Compare pricing, features, platforms, and verdict in seconds.

Quick verdict
Open Payments (CMS) logo

Open Payments (CMS)

openpaymentsdata.cms.gov

Best for apis & sdks, and data visualizations

Pricing
Free
Platforms
Web, API
VS
OpenCorporates logo

OpenCorporates

opencorporates.com

Best for other

Pricing
Free
Platforms
Web, API

Outbound links may include affiliate or sponsor codes.

Comparison snapshot

Attribute
Open Payments (CMS)
OpenCorporates
Starting price
Free
Free
Categories covered
5
3
Web app
Yes
Yes
Mobile app
No
No
API access
Yes
Yes
Regions
North America
North America, Europe, APAC, LatAm, Middle East, Africa

Who should choose which?

Choose

Open Payments (CMS) if…

  • You need three core datasets each year: general payments, research payments, and ownership/investment interests.
  • You need web search/explorer with filtering and charts; program year downloads available from the portal.
  • You need open data api (oda) for programmatic access with filtering, querying, and aggregation (soql‑style).
  • You need publication cadence: initial annual publication on/around june 30 for the prior year, plus refresh publication after the calendar-year-end review/re-attestation cycle.

Choose

OpenCorporates if…

  • You need public api portal advertises 200m+ company records, aggregated from official registries with provenance and source links.
  • You need versioned rest api with json (default) or xml output; api keys required. free tier provides up to 200 requests per month (50 per day).
  • You need openrefine reconciliation api allows entity-matching from company names to legal identifiers.
  • You need enterprise bulk access via sftp, with six structured csv datasets (companies, officers, non-registered addresses, alternative names, additional identifiers, and relationships).

Consider alternatives if…

  • You want broader category coverage in one tool.
  • Neither pricing tier fits your budget.
See alternatives

Side-by-side feature breakdown

AttributeOpen Payments (CMS)OpenCorporates
Asset types
Other
Other
Experience
BeginnerIntermediateAdvanced
BeginnerIntermediateAdvanced
Regions
North America
North AmericaEuropeAPACLatAmMiddle EastAfrica
Data freshness
End of Day
End of Day
API access
REST
REST
Export formats
CSVJSON
CSVJSON

Seen enough? Open either tool and try it now.

Pricing breakdown

Pricing details

Tool

Open Payments (CMS)

Starting price

Free tierYes
Free trial

Plans & pricing

FreeFree

Tool

OpenCorporates

Starting price

Free tierYes
Free trial

Plans & pricing

Free (personal & public-benefit use)Free
Essentials (API)Subscription
Starter (API)Subscription
Enterprise Bulk (SFTP CSV datasets)Subscription

Coverage overlap

Shared categories2

Categories where both tools offer overlapping coverage.

Open Payments (CMS) strengths3

Categories covered by Open Payments (CMS) only.

OpenCorporates strengths1

Categories covered by OpenCorporates only.

Community category leaders

Vote sentiment comparison

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Still deciding? Get hands-on with both — most plans offer a free tier or trial.

Frequently Asked Questions

What's the difference between Open Payments (CMS) and OpenCorporates?

Open Payments (CMS) focuses on Data APIs, APIs & SDKs, and Data Visualizations while OpenCorporates specializes in Data APIs, Regulatory Filings Monitoring, and Other. They overlap in 2 categories, so choose based on your preferred workflow and pricing.

How much do Open Payments (CMS) and OpenCorporates cost?

Good news—both Open Payments (CMS) and OpenCorporates offer free plans. You can try each platform without commitment and only pay when you need premium features.

Do Open Payments (CMS) and OpenCorporates have APIs?

Yes, both platforms offer API access for developers and quants who want to build custom integrations or automate their workflows.

Should I choose Open Payments (CMS) or OpenCorporates?

Choose Open Payments (CMS) if you need Three core datasets each year: General Payments, Research Payments, and Ownership/Investment Interests., and Web search/explorer with filtering and charts; program year downloads available from the portal.. Go with OpenCorporates if Public API portal advertises 200M+ company records, aggregated from official registries with provenance and source links., and Versioned REST API with JSON (default) or XML output; API keys required. Free tier provides up to 200 requests per month (50 per day). better fits how you invest.

Can I export data from Open Payments (CMS) and OpenCorporates?

Both platforms let you export data to spreadsheets (CSV, and JSON). This is useful for custom analysis or record-keeping.

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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.