★ BEST INVESTING TOOLS COMPARISON ★
VOL. XCIV, NO. 247
Source check: USAspending checked August 4, 2026
Tool Comparison
Open Payments (CMS) vs USAspending
Pick Open Payments (CMS) if
Open Payments (CMS)
Free · Web · API
- You care about regulatory filings monitoring, something USAspending doesn't offer
Pick USAspending if
USAspending
Free · Web · API
- You care about videos and other, things Open Payments (CMS) doesn't offer
Skip both if: Neither one clicks with how you research; there are strong third options.
See alternativesOutbound links may include affiliate or sponsor codes.
Our take
The bottom line
Open Payments (CMS) and USAspending cover a lot of the same ground (3 shared categories, APIs & data feeds, data visualizations, and official sources), so for the basics you won't go far wrong with either. The real difference is focus: only Open Payments (CMS) gives you regulatory filings monitoring, and only USAspending gives you videos and other.
What readers say
Open Payments (CMS)
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USAspending
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See for yourself
How they stack up
The side-by-side table: pricing, platforms, data, and coverage at a glance.ShowHide
How they stack up
The side-by-side table: pricing, platforms, data, and coverage at a glance.| Attribute | ||
|---|---|---|
| Pricing & plans | ||
Starting price | Free | Free |
Free tier | Yes | Yes |
Free trial | — | — |
| Platforms & access | ||
Web app | Yes | Yes |
Mobile app | No | No |
API access | Yes | Yes |
| Audience & fit | ||
Experience level | Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced | Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced |
Best for | — | — |
Categories covered | 4 | 5 |
Regions | North America | North America |
| Data & capabilities | ||
Data quality | Latency: End of Day and Granularity: EOD | Latency: End of Day and Granularity: EOD |
Security | Data residency: US | Data residency: US |
| Try it | Visit Open Payments (CMS) | Visit USAspending |
Where each one shines
What Open Payments (CMS) and USAspending each do best.ShowHide
Where each one shines
What Open Payments (CMS) and USAspending each do best.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 USAspending does best
- Search tools across federal awards, recipients, agencies, federal accounts, contracts, grants, loans, direct payments, insurance, and other assistance records.
- Advanced Search filters such as award type, date, place of performance, NAICS, PSC, Assistance Listing, agency, recipient, and disaster-emergency funding codes.
- Tools for exploring top-down spending through Spending Explorer, agency profiles, and federal-account profiles before drilling into awards and recipients.
- The public REST API V2 with JSON responses for award and account workflows; current endpoint docs say authorization is not required.
- Download support for data through award archives, custom award downloads, custom account downloads, Advanced Search exports, award profile downloads, and the full database download.
Every detail we compared
Every tracked attribute for Open Payments (CMS) and USAspending, side by side.ShowHide
Every detail we compared
Every tracked attribute for Open Payments (CMS) and USAspending, side by side.| Attribute | ||
|---|---|---|
| Coverage & fit | ||
Asset types | Other | Other |
Experience | BeginnerIntermediateAdvanced | BeginnerIntermediateAdvanced |
Regions | North America | North America |
Coverage details | Countries: US | Countries: US |
| Data | ||
Data freshness | End of Day | End of Day |
Data granularity | EOD | EOD |
| Access & integrations | ||
API protocols | REST | REST |
API auth & delivery | Auth: None | Auth: None |
Export formats | CSVJSON | CSVJSON |
| Plans & trust | ||
Security & compliance | Data residency: US | Data residency: US |
Vendor & support | Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), U.S. Department of Health & Human ServicesCountry: USSupport: Email and Phone | U.S. Department of the Treasury – Bureau of the Fiscal ServiceCountry: USSupport: Email |
Curation ratings | Methodology 5/5Reliability 5/5UX 4/5 | Methodology 5/5Reliability 5/5UX 4/5 |
Green tags are exclusive to that tool in this comparison.
What you'll actually pay
Plans, billing, trials, and per-month pricing for both tools.ShowHide
What you'll actually pay
Plans, billing, trials, and per-month pricing for both tools.| Tier | ||
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Free | Free |
Questions we keep getting
What's the difference between Open Payments (CMS) and USAspending?
Open Payments (CMS) leans toward APIs & data feeds, data visualizations, and regulatory filings monitoring, while USAspending puts more weight on APIs & data feeds, data visualizations, and videos. They overlap in 3 categories, so for most people it comes down to workflow preference and price.
How much do Open Payments (CMS) and USAspending cost?
Good news: both Open Payments (CMS) and USAspending have free plans, so you can run them side by side and only pay if you hit a wall.
Do Open Payments (CMS) and USAspending 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 USAspending?
It depends on what you're after. Pick Open Payments (CMS) if regulatory filings monitoring matter to you; go with USAspending if you'd rather have videos and other. And if you only need the basics both share, let price decide.
Can I export data from Open Payments (CMS) and USAspending?
Yes, both export to spreadsheets (CSV), which is handy if you like running your own numbers.
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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.