# Bybit vs HTX trading API

> Bybit scores 57.3 (C) to HTX trading's 43.3 (E) for exchange market data. Prices, MCP, x402, uptime and agent notes side by side.

- Canonical: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bybit-vs-htx
- Markdown: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bybit-vs-htx.md (~4,500 tokens)
- Site index for agents: https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms.txt (the key docs and every listing in one file, at most 16 MB, about 4 million tokens: https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms-full.txt)
- API: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/index.json
- MCP: https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp (the whole catalogue as tools, no key)
- DNS: dig +short TXT <slug>.grade.anchorterminal.com (the grade as a DNS TXT record, for a sandbox with no HTTP where names still resolve; also top., best.<category>. and <a>.vs.<b>. under the zone, and the same under grade.letme.dev)
- Licence: CC BY 4.0, credit Anchor Terminal and link this page (https://www.anchorterminal.com/terms/#data)
- Updated: 2026-11-04

Bybit scores 57.3 (C) on agent readiness against HTX trading API's 43.3 (E), and leads in 6 of 7 scored categories. Both do exchange market data.

- Bybit: grade C, 57.3/100, rank #712 of 1349. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/bybit.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/bybit.json
- HTX trading API: grade E, 43.3/100, rank #1156 of 1349. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/htx.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/htx.json
- Best crypto exchange APIs and MCP servers for AI agents: https://www.anchorterminal.com/best/crypto-exchanges/index.md
- All 210 exchanges comparisons: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/crypto-exchanges/index.md

## Which one, for what

### Bybit (C)

Good for: An agent trading spot, perpetuals, futures and options in a person's Bybit account outside the excluded jurisdictions, with a demo environment to rehearse on.

Ahead on:
- Reliability, 45 against 38
- Schema & documentation, 73 against 40
- Security & auth, 60 against 51
- Payments & pricing, 40 against 15
- Maintenance & community, 66 against 57
- Transparency & trust, 51 against 25

Also in its favour:
- Runs on your own machine

Watch for: No status page, incident history or SLA was found; the terms say the API is not guaranteed to be available

### HTX trading API (E)

Good for: Spot and USDT-margined derivatives for agents that can hold an HTX key, with no MCP server and no testnet.

Watch for: No official MCP server; the only one in the MCP registry is a third party's read-only ticker server


## Why the edge

### Schema & documentation: Bybit +33

- Bybit (73): No OpenAPI or other machine-readable contract for the REST API; the MCP server's 398 tools have zod schemas turned into JSON Schema, so the contract exists for the MCP surface only (12 of 25). No llms.txt; the docs are a public Docusaurus repository (bybit-exchange/docs) whose MDX source an agent can read (5 of 10). The MCP tool descriptions state purpose, rules and an agent hint per tool, and the API reference gives one page per endpoint (15 of 20). Parameters are typed with enums such as category and orderType and required flags (12 of 15). Request and response examples on each endpoint page and an error code page of about 750 codes with text (14 of 15). A dated changelog with 24 entries in the last 90 days, versioned V3 to V5 (15). 73.
- HTX trading API (40): No OpenAPI or other machine-readable contract found in the docs or the GitHub accounts (0). No llms.txt on htx.com, and the readable reference is a static page (0). Each endpoint states its purpose and parameters, without when-to-use guidance (12 of 20). Parameter tables carry types, required flags and enums for order types and states (10 of 15). Request and response examples throughout and error-code tables with messages (11 of 15). Versions v1 and v2 are mixed in one reference whose last changelog entry is 24 June 2022, while HTX's newer docs on htx.com couldn't be read (7 of 15). 0 + 0 + 12 + 10 + 11 + 7 = 40.

### Transparency & trust: Bybit +26

- Bybit (51): The editorial half. A closed hosted service. The terms read are the UAE entity's PDF served from bybit.com, clear on API use and availability, but the global terms page renders by script and was not read; the MCP server is MIT (12 of 30). The privacy policy was not read, so data handling is unscored (5 of 30). The changelog dates removals and response changes but gives no notice period or deprecation policy (10 of 20). No subprocessor list or data location statement was read (0 of 20). 27.
- HTX trading API (25): The editorial half. A closed service whose user agreement exists but couldn't be read (script-drawn pages), so the licence clarity is unknown rather than unclear (10 of 30). The privacy policy was not read (0 of 30, unchecked). The testnet shutdown and the 2022 changelog entries are dated, with no deprecation policy (5 of 20). No subprocessor or data-location statement read (0 of 20). 10 + 0 + 5 + 0 = 15.

### Payments & pricing: Bybit +25

- Bybit (40): No machine payment protocol (0). The fee schedule is public without login, with VIP 0 maker and taker rates per product and the tier criteria (20). Reading market data needs no key and the demo environment costs nothing, no card is asked for at sign-up (20). A person must register, pass identity verification and mint the key in a browser (0). 40.
- HTX trading API (15): No machine payment protocol (0). The fee schedule at htx.com/fee is drawn by script and answered no text, so no price is recorded first-hand (0 of 20, unchecked). Public market data needs no key, card or account; trading needs a verified and funded account. Judgement call (15 of 20). A person must sign up in a browser and pass identity checks (0). 0 + 0 + 15 + 0 = 15.

### Security & auth: Bybit +9

- Bybit (60): API keys scoped by product group with a readOnly flag, a separate Withdraw value, IP binding, a 90-day expiry for unbound keys, HMAC or RSA signing, and revocation on the management page; no OAuth (24 of 30). A read-only key and a withdrawal-free key are first-class, but the MCP server has no read-only mode and relies on the client's approval prompt for writes (14 of 20). Tools return the exchange's own data, not third-party text (10). The API key info endpoint shows permissions, IPs and expiry, and an IP change log exists for institutional accounts, but no per-call audit log was found (7 of 15). No security.txt on bybit.com or the docs host, no disclosure policy or bug bounty found on a page we could read, proof-of-reserves articles in the help centre (5 of 20). 60.
- HTX trading API (51): HMAC-signed keys with Read, Trade and Withdraw permissions, sub-user keys without Withdraw, up to 20 bound IPs, revocation in the account and a 90-day expiry without IP binding. The AccessKeyId and the HMAC signature travel as query parameters; the secret does not, so no deduction for a secret in the URL (24 of 30). Read-only keys and withdraw-free keys exist; no server-side confirmation for orders or withdrawals (14 of 20). The API returns the exchange's own data, no untrusted content (10). No per-call log or key-use history found for the operator (3 of 15). No security.txt, disclosure policy or certification found on the pages that loaded (0 of 20). 24 + 14 + 10 + 3 + 0 = 51.

### Maintenance & community: Bybit +9

- Bybit (66): Read as a hosted service with an open-source MCP server. The MCP package shipped 2.1.26 on 30 October 2026 and the V5 changelog's latest entry is 29 October (30). 31 npm versions since 16 April 2026, 11 of them in the last 90 days, and 24 changelog entries in the same window (20). The trading-mcp repository has 4 open issues and 18 forks; whether issues get answers was not checked, and the API has no public forum we could read (10 of 25). Not in the official MCP registry (0). The package has four dependencies, no install scripts, a publish workflow and no test workflow (6 of 10). 66.
- HTX trading API (57): Read as a closed service. The readable changelog ends on 24 June 2022, but the official contract SDKs were pushed on 21 October 2026 and the spot SDKs in April and July 2026, so the API surface is still being maintained; judgement call (20 of 30). SDK pushes on 30 July, 23 August and 21 October 2026 are commits, not releases (10 of 20). A Telegram group for API support and a support centre, neither tested; GitHub issues not read (8 of 15). Official SDKs in five languages (15). No CI seen, dependencies not checked (4 of 10). 20 + 10 + 8 + 15 + 4 = 57.

### Reliability: Bybit +7

- Bybit (45): Graded with the hosted lines on the V5 API at api.bybit.com. No status page found (status.bybit.com does not resolve, the docs link none), so 0 for the page and 5 for no readable history. Rate limits are published per endpoint and per UID with numbers, plus a 600 per 5 second IP limit (15). Every response carries X-Bapi-Limit, X-Bapi-Limit-Status and X-Bapi-Limit-Reset-Timestamp, retCode 10006 and HTTP 403 are documented with a wait rule, and orders take a unique orderLinkId that amend and cancel accept (15). No SLA (0). V5 is the current production API, not a beta (10). 45.
- HTX trading API (38): Read with the hosted lines. No status page found; status.htx.com does not resolve and nothing on htx.com was readable (0). No readable incident history (5). Rate limits documented per endpoint with numbers, 100 order calls per 2 seconds per UID and so on, with remaining-quota headers (15). No 429 or Retry-After behaviour is documented and the only limit error named is 1006 for conditional orders; a client-order-id unique within 8 hours and an idempotent withdrawal id give safe retries on writes (8 of 15). No SLA found (0). The spot and swap APIs are generally available (10). 0 + 5 + 15 + 8 + 0 + 10 = 38.

## Score by category

| Category | Weight | Bybit | HTX trading API | Edge |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Reliability | 16% (20 this run) | 45 | 38 | Bybit +7 |
| Performance | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Schema & documentation | 13% (16.2 this run) | 73 | 40 | Bybit +33 |
| Agent ergonomics | 13% (16.2 this run) | 66 | 69 | HTX trading API +3 |
| Security & auth | 14% (17.5 this run) | 60 | 51 | Bybit +9 |
| Payments & pricing | 10% (12.5 this run) | 40 | 15 | Bybit +25 |
| Task success | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Maintenance & community | 7% (8.8 this run) | 66 | 57 | Bybit +9 |
| Transparency & trust | 7% (8.8 this run) | 51 | 25 | Bybit +26 |
| Negative events | ≤15 | 0 | 0 | |
| **Total** | | **57.3 · C** | **43.3 · E** | |

## Facts side by side

| Fact | Bybit | HTX trading API |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Kind | HTTP API | HTTP API |
| Vendor | Bybit | HTX |
| Hosted endpoint | no (local only) | no (local only) |
| Transports | stdio |  |
| Auth | API key | API key |
| Pricing | Pay per use | Pay per use |
| x402 | no | no |
| Tools exposed | 398 | 0 |
| Read-only variant documented | yes | no |
| llms.txt | no | no |
| Last release | 2026-10-30 | 2026-10-21 |
| Terms last updated | couldn't be read | no date given |
| Privacy policy last updated | couldn't be read | no document linked |
| Customer content may train models | couldn't be read | not found in the text |
| Terms restrict automated access | couldn't be read | not found in the text |
| Terms restrict benchmarking | couldn't be read | not found in the text |
| Terms or service can change without notice | couldn't be read | yes |
| Arbitration or class-action waiver | couldn't be read | yes |
| Popularity | 43 stars | 684 stars |

## Verdicts

**Bybit.** Bybit publishes per-endpoint rate limits, a demo environment, scoped keys with a read-only flag and IP binding, and an official stdio MCP server whose 398 tools carry read-only and destructive annotations. There is no status page, no OpenAPI file, no SLA, the MCP server has no toolsets, and the global terms and privacy pages are drawn by script.

**HTX trading API.** HTX's API has per-endpoint rate limits, read, trade and withdraw key permissions with IP binding, and SDKs in five languages. No official MCP server exists, the testnet is closed, the public reference is still Huobi's with a 2022 changelog, and the fee schedule, terms and restricted countries are on script-drawn pages we couldn't read.

## Before you call either

### Bybit

1. Create a key with only the permission groups the task needs, set readOnly for research keys, leave Withdraw off and bind an IP, or the key expires after 90 days
2. Send a unique orderLinkId on every order and reuse it when amending or cancelling, since create-order is asynchronous and confirmed over WebSocket
3. Read X-Bapi-Limit-Status before bursts and wait until X-Bapi-Limit-Reset-Timestamp on retCode 10006; on HTTP 403 stop all sessions for at least 10 minutes
4. Test on api-demo.bybit.com with a demo key from the production account, not on testnet demo mode, which the docs call meaningless
5. Run the MCP server with BYBIT_TESTNET=true first, and only in a client that shows a per-call approval, because the server has no read-only mode of its own

### HTX trading API

1. Ask the operator for a key with Read and Trade only and bound to your IP addresses; a key without IP binding expires after 90 days
2. Send a fresh client-order-id of up to 64 characters with every order and reuse it only on retry; a repeat within 8 hours answers invalid.client.order.id
3. Watch X-HB-RateLimit-Requests-Remain and pace at under 100 order calls per 2 seconds per UID; limits are shared by every key on the account
4. There is no testnet; try order logic with the smallest size the market allows
5. Confirm the person's country is served before trading; the restricted list in the user agreement couldn't be read here

## Questions

### Which is better for AI agents, Bybit or HTX trading API?

Bybit scores 57.3 (C) on agent readiness against HTX trading API's 43.3 (E), and leads in 6 of 7 scored categories.

### Do Bybit and HTX trading API need an API key?

Both need an API key.

### Can an agent call Bybit and HTX trading API without installing anything?

Bybit runs on your own machine, with no hosted endpoint listed. No hosted endpoint is listed for HTX trading API.


## For agents

- This comparison as JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bybit-vs-htx.json, and with the fewest tokens: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bybit-vs-htx.min.md
- Over MCP at https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp (no key): `compare_tools {"a": "bybit", "b": "htx"}`. From a terminal: `anchor compare bybit htx`
- Each listing in full: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/bybit.json and https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/htx.json

## Other comparisons with Bybit or HTX trading API

- [Bitfinex API vs Bybit](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bitfinex-vs-bybit.md)
- [Bitfinex API vs HTX trading API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bitfinex-vs-htx.md)
- [Bitget vs Bybit](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bitget-vs-bybit.md)
- [Bitget vs HTX trading API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bitget-vs-htx.md)
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- [Bitstamp API vs Bybit](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bitstamp-vs-bybit.md)
- [Bitstamp API vs HTX trading API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bitstamp-vs-htx.md)
- [Bybit vs Coinbase Advanced Trade API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bybit-vs-coinbase-advanced-trade.md)
- [Bybit vs Coinbase MCP server (Coinbase for Agents)](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bybit-vs-coinbase-mcp.md)
- [Bybit vs Crypto.com Exchange API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bybit-vs-crypto-com-exchange.md)
- [Bybit vs Deribit](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bybit-vs-deribit.md)
- [Bybit vs dYdX](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bybit-vs-dydx.md)
- [Bybit vs Gate](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bybit-vs-gate-io.md)
- [Bybit vs Gemini Exchange API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bybit-vs-gemini-exchange.md)
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- [Bybit vs Kraken API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bybit-vs-kraken.md)
- [Bybit vs KuCoin](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bybit-vs-kucoin.md)
- [Bybit vs MEXC API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bybit-vs-mexc.md)
- [Bybit vs OKX API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bybit-vs-okx.md)
- [Bybit vs Uniswap Trading API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bybit-vs-uniswap.md)
- [Bybit vs Upbit Open API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bybit-vs-upbit.md)
- [Crypto.com Exchange API vs HTX trading API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/crypto-com-exchange-vs-htx.md)
- [Gate vs HTX trading API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gate-io-vs-htx.md)
- [Gemini Exchange API vs HTX trading API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gemini-exchange-vs-htx.md)
- [HTX trading API vs Hyperliquid](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/htx-vs-hyperliquid.md)
- [HTX trading API vs Kraken API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/htx-vs-kraken.md)
- [HTX trading API vs KuCoin](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/htx-vs-kucoin.md)
- [HTX trading API vs MEXC API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/htx-vs-mexc.md)
- [HTX trading API vs OKX API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/htx-vs-okx.md)
- [HTX trading API vs Uniswap Trading API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/htx-vs-uniswap.md)
- [HTX trading API vs Upbit Open API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/htx-vs-upbit.md)
- [Binance API vs Bybit](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/binance-vs-bybit.md)
- [Binance API vs HTX trading API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/binance-vs-htx.md)
- [Coinbase Advanced Trade API vs HTX trading API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/coinbase-advanced-trade-vs-htx.md)
- [Coinbase MCP server (Coinbase for Agents) vs HTX trading API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/coinbase-mcp-vs-htx.md)
- [Deribit vs HTX trading API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/deribit-vs-htx.md)
- [dYdX vs HTX trading API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/dydx-vs-htx.md)

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Query this catalogue directly over MCP: https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp (Streamable HTTP, no key). How: https://www.anchorterminal.com/agents/#mcp