VOL. XCIV, NO. 247

★ FINANCIAL TOOLS & SERVICES DIRECTORY ★

PRICE: 5 CENTS

Sunday, October 5, 2025

Head-to-head

SEC.gov (EDGAR) vs Wayback Machine (Internet Archive) comparison

Compare pricing, supported platforms, categories, and standout capabilities to decide which tool fits your workflow.

Quick takeaways

SEC.gov (EDGAR) adds 13F, 13D/13G, Insider Data, Financials, and Regulatory Filings Monitoring coverage that Wayback Machine (Internet Archive) skips.

Wayback Machine (Internet Archive) includes APIs & SDKs, and Citations & Source Pinning categories that SEC.gov (EDGAR) omits.

SEC.gov (EDGAR) highlights: Full-text EDGAR search across filings since 2001, with filters by company, person, form type, and date., Public data APIs at data.sec.gov provide JSON endpoints for company submissions, XBRL facts, concepts, and frames., and APIs update continuously as filings are made public; nightly bulk ZIPs allow batch ingestion..

Wayback Machine (Internet Archive) is known for: On‑demand archiving via Save Page Now (SPN2) with POST/GET; options include capture_outlinks, capture_all, capture_screenshot, custom UA/cookies, and conditional capture (if_not_archived_within)., Snapshot discovery: Availability API (/wayback/v1/available) returns the closest archived capture to a URL/time; CDX Server API lists/filters captures; Memento TimeGate/TimeMap endpoints enable time‑based content negotiation., and Operational endpoints: user status (remaining/active SPN sessions) and system status (overload/OK) for SPN2..

Wayback Machine (Internet Archive) offers mobile access, which SEC.gov (EDGAR) skips.

SEC.gov (EDGAR) logo

SEC.gov (EDGAR)

sec.gov

Editor’s pick Hands-on review

The official source of U.S. regulatory filings. EDGAR provides free public access through its web portal, JSON data APIs, and structured RSS feeds (updated every 10 minutes). Developers can use the APIs on data.sec.gov for submissions and XBRL datasets, while filers use separate EDGAR Next APIs that require tokens. No email alerting is provided—RSS is the only push channel. Automated access must respect fair-use guidelines, including a descriptive User-Agent.

Platforms

Web
API

Pricing

Free

Quick highlights

  • Full-text EDGAR search across filings since 2001, with filters by company, person, form type, and date.
  • Public data APIs at data.sec.gov provide JSON endpoints for company submissions, XBRL facts, concepts, and frames.
  • APIs update continuously as filings are made public; nightly bulk ZIPs allow batch ingestion.
  • Structured RSS feeds for XBRL disclosures update every 10 minutes during filing hours (Mon–Fri, 6am–10pm ET). Email alerts are not offered.
  • Official downloadable datasets include 13F holdings (as filed), Form D, and Financial Statement Data Sets (both as-filed statements and notes).

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Wayback Machine (Internet Archive) logo

Wayback Machine (Internet Archive)

web.archive.org

General‑purpose web archiving used widely in financial research to cite and compare historical webpages (IR pages, fund fact sheets, product sites). Save Page Now (SPN2) enables on‑demand snapshots with options like outlink capture and full‑page screenshots. Availability and CDX APIs expose snapshot discovery; Memento provides time‑based negotiation. Rate limits/quotas apply to SPN2; crawling and replay behavior may vary by target site robots/policies. Some large platforms (e.g., Reddit) restrict Wayback access to content.

Platforms

Web
API
Mobile

Pricing

Free

Quick highlights

  • On‑demand archiving via Save Page Now (SPN2) with POST/GET; options include capture_outlinks, capture_all, capture_screenshot, custom UA/cookies, and conditional capture (if_not_archived_within).
  • Snapshot discovery: Availability API (/wayback/v1/available) returns the closest archived capture to a URL/time; CDX Server API lists/filters captures; Memento TimeGate/TimeMap endpoints enable time‑based content negotiation.
  • Operational endpoints: user status (remaining/active SPN sessions) and system status (overload/OK) for SPN2.
  • Mobile & extensions: official iOS/Android apps and browser extensions (Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge) for quick saving and lookup.
  • Quotas/limits (SPN2): per‑minute, per‑day, per‑URL, resource size and screenshot size limits; concurrency dampening by host; max outlinks/embeds returned.

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Overlap

Shared focus areas

2 overlaps

Mutual strengths include Data APIs, and Other.

Where they differ

SEC.gov (EDGAR)

Distinct strengths include:

  • Full-text EDGAR search across filings since 2001, with filters by company, person, form type, and date.
  • Public data APIs at data.sec.gov provide JSON endpoints for company submissions, XBRL facts, concepts, and frames.
  • APIs update continuously as filings are made public; nightly bulk ZIPs allow batch ingestion.
  • Structured RSS feeds for XBRL disclosures update every 10 minutes during filing hours (Mon–Fri, 6am–10pm ET). Email alerts are not offered.

Wayback Machine (Internet Archive)

Distinct strengths include:

  • On‑demand archiving via Save Page Now (SPN2) with POST/GET; options include capture_outlinks, capture_all, capture_screenshot, custom UA/cookies, and conditional capture (if_not_archived_within).
  • Snapshot discovery: Availability API (/wayback/v1/available) returns the closest archived capture to a URL/time; CDX Server API lists/filters captures; Memento TimeGate/TimeMap endpoints enable time‑based content negotiation.
  • Operational endpoints: user status (remaining/active SPN sessions) and system status (overload/OK) for SPN2.
  • Mobile & extensions: official iOS/Android apps and browser extensions (Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge) for quick saving and lookup.

Feature-by-feature breakdown

AttributeSEC.gov (EDGAR)Wayback Machine (Internet Archive)
Categories

Which research workflows each platform targets

Shared: Data APIs, Other

Unique: 13F, 13D/13G, Insider Data, Financials, Regulatory Filings Monitoring

Shared: Data APIs, Other

Unique: APIs & SDKs, Citations & Source Pinning

Asset types

Supported asset classes and universes

Stocks, ETFs, Mutual Funds, Closed-End Funds

Other

Experience levels

Who each product is built for

Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced

Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced

Platforms

Where you can access the product

Web, API

Web, API, Mobile

Pricing

High-level pricing models

Free

Free

Key features

Core capabilities called out by each vendor

Unique

  • Full-text EDGAR search across filings since 2001, with filters by company, person, form type, and date.
  • Public data APIs at data.sec.gov provide JSON endpoints for company submissions, XBRL facts, concepts, and frames.
  • APIs update continuously as filings are made public; nightly bulk ZIPs allow batch ingestion.
  • Structured RSS feeds for XBRL disclosures update every 10 minutes during filing hours (Mon–Fri, 6am–10pm ET). Email alerts are not offered.
  • Official downloadable datasets include 13F holdings (as filed), Form D, and Financial Statement Data Sets (both as-filed statements and notes).
  • The ‘Latest Filings’ feed shows real-time submissions entering EDGAR.

Unique

  • On‑demand archiving via Save Page Now (SPN2) with POST/GET; options include capture_outlinks, capture_all, capture_screenshot, custom UA/cookies, and conditional capture (if_not_archived_within).
  • Snapshot discovery: Availability API (/wayback/v1/available) returns the closest archived capture to a URL/time; CDX Server API lists/filters captures; Memento TimeGate/TimeMap endpoints enable time‑based content negotiation.
  • Operational endpoints: user status (remaining/active SPN sessions) and system status (overload/OK) for SPN2.
  • Mobile & extensions: official iOS/Android apps and browser extensions (Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge) for quick saving and lookup.
  • Quotas/limits (SPN2): per‑minute, per‑day, per‑URL, resource size and screenshot size limits; concurrency dampening by host; max outlinks/embeds returned.
  • Timestamps and replay: captures are timestamped (UTC) and replayed with toolbar metadata; screenshot capture available as a separate archived asset.
Tested

Verified by hands-on testing inside Find My Moat

Yes

Not yet

Editor pick

Featured inside curated shortlists

Highlighted

Standard listing

Frequently Asked Questions

Which workflows do SEC.gov (EDGAR) and Wayback Machine (Internet Archive) both support?

Both platforms cover Data APIs, and Other workflows, so you can research those use cases in either tool before digging into the feature differences below.

Do SEC.gov (EDGAR) and Wayback Machine (Internet Archive) require subscriptions?

Both SEC.gov (EDGAR) and Wayback Machine (Internet Archive) keep freemium access with optional paid upgrades, so you can trial each platform before committing.

Which tool has mobile access?

Wayback Machine (Internet Archive) ships a dedicated mobile experience, while SEC.gov (EDGAR) focuses on web or desktop access.

What unique strengths set the two platforms apart?

SEC.gov (EDGAR) differentiates itself with Full-text EDGAR search across filings since 2001, with filters by company, person, form type, and date., Public data APIs at data.sec.gov provide JSON endpoints for company submissions, XBRL facts, concepts, and frames., and APIs update continuously as filings are made public; nightly bulk ZIPs allow batch ingestion., whereas Wayback Machine (Internet Archive) stands out for On‑demand archiving via Save Page Now (SPN2) with POST/GET; options include capture_outlinks, capture_all, capture_screenshot, custom UA/cookies, and conditional capture (if_not_archived_within)., Snapshot discovery: Availability API (/wayback/v1/available) returns the closest archived capture to a URL/time; CDX Server API lists/filters captures; Memento TimeGate/TimeMap endpoints enable time‑based content negotiation., and Operational endpoints: user status (remaining/active SPN sessions) and system status (overload/OK) for SPN2..

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.