Head to head · Crypto market data · October 2026 research run
CoinDesk Data API vs Yield.xyz MCP server
Yield.xyz MCP server scores 74 (BB) on agent readiness against CoinDesk Data API's 19 (F), and leads in every scored category. Both do crypto market data. Yield.xyz MCP server accepts x402. CoinDesk Data API doesn't.
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Which one, for what
Best for Institutional crypto work that needs derivatives, order books, regulated reference rates or deep history, with a human buying the plan.
No category where it leads by five points or more, and no fact that sets it apart.
Watch for
No free or trial access since 21 May 2026, and no x402, so a person has to buy a plan before an agent gets data
Best for Agents and wallets that need to find, compare and enter staking or DeFi yields, paying per call over x402 if they like.
Ahead on
- Reliability, 65 against 15
- Schema & documentation, 95 against 0
- Agent ergonomics, 82 against 15
- Security & auth, 56 against 45
- Payments & pricing, 100 against 0
- Maintenance & community, 60 against 13
Also in its favour
- Agent-ready, a grade of BB or better
- An agent can pay per call over x402, with no account
Watch for
A key can be sent as a query parameter
Why the edge
Each category where one leads by five points or more, with the reason behind each side's score from its assessment. The numbers are in the table below; this is what they stand for.
Payments & pricing Yield.xyz MCP server +100
CoinDesk Data API 0
No x402, MPP or L402 (0). Pricing at developers.coindesk.com renders only by script, and data.coindesk.com asks new customers to book a call for a trial, so no published per-unit or plan prices we could read (0 of 20). The free tier was retired on 21 May 2026, announced on 17 April, and nothing replaced it (0). A person signs up and generates a key in the dashboard, per the 13 May connector post (0). The 2 October keyless request to the API is struck as a request to the product's own endpoint, and no score rested on it alone. 0 + 0 + 0 + 0 = 0.
Yield.xyz MCP server 100
x402 on its own MCP endpoint for metered tools over quota (40). $0.001 a call published, with machine-readable pricing at /.well-known/x402 (20). 1,000 free read calls a tool a day with no sign-up (20). Keyless use and x402 let an agent start with no person (20). 40 + 20 + 20 + 20 = 100.
Schema & documentation Yield.xyz MCP server +95
CoinDesk Data API 0
The OpenAPI 3.0.3 file at data-api.coindesk.com/info/v1/openapi sits on the product's own API host, and the docs portal at developers.coindesk.com, which would link it, is drawn by script (the introduction page and llms.txt both returned the same 7,680-byte app shell on 5 November). A file no readable page links isn't a published contract, so the 1 October readings taken from it are struck. Contract 0. llms.txt is an app shell (0). Descriptions, typed inputs and documented errors had no other readable source (0, 0, 0). The versioned paths came from the same file, and the blog's monthly product updates stopped after July 2025, so no versioning or changelog we could read (0). 0 + 0 + 0 + 0 + 0 + 0 = 0.
Yield.xyz MCP server 95
22 tools read from tools/list with JSON Schema inputs and 14 enums (25). llms.txt (10). Descriptions with order of use, such as yields_get before actions_enter (18 of 20). Typed inputs with enums, ranges and defaults (15). A tool reference with inputs and returns for every tool (12 of 15). Weekly dated product changelog (15). 25 + 10 + 18 + 15 + 12 + 15 = 95.
Agent ergonomics Yield.xyz MCP server +67
CoinDesk Data API 15
Field groups, limits and paging were read on 1 October from a third-party reconstruction of the spec on GitHub, which isn't a first-hand source, and error objects from the struck OpenAPI file and third-party probes, so those lines are struck (0, 0, 0). The licence agreement and product pages describe a service that returns licensed data and nothing in them writes, so safe retries hold on read-only access (15 of 20, held). No official SDK found, and the defaults credit came from the struck file (0). 0 + 0 + 0 + 15 + 0 = 15.
Yield.xyz MCP server 82
22 tools, about 61 KB (15). limit and offset with documented ranges (20). 429 and the x402 gate documented (15 of 20). All 22 annotated, 18 read-only; transactions unsigned (20). Optional inputs default sensibly; SDKs listed in the docs (12 of 15). 15 + 20 + 15 + 20 + 12 = 82.
Reliability Yield.xyz MCP server +50
CoinDesk Data API 15
Graded as a hosted API. status.coindesk.com, linked as System Status from data.coindesk.com, is drawn by script, and on 5 November its robots.txt answered with the same HTML app page, so the host is unread and no component history was ever shown (0, as a script-drawn status page scores elsewhere). No incident history we could read (5). The 1 October rate-limit (5) and 429 (8) awards came from the OpenAPI file served by the API host itself, which no readable page links, so they are struck (0 and 0). The API licence agreement of 22 April 2026 names no SLA, and the pricing page where a plan SLA would sit renders only by script (0). Generally available, sold for more than ten years per CoinDesk's 25 August post (10). 0 + 5 + 0 + 0 + 0 + 10 = 15.
Yield.xyz MCP server 65
Status page at status.yield.xyz, all services online, with a notice on protocol-level Aave pauses (20). History not read (5). Plan rate limits with headers documented, and the MCP free quotas published with numbers (15). 429 with retry-after and a retry strategy documented; transactions are built unsigned and never broadcast (15). No SLA read (0). Not labelled beta (10). 20 + 5 + 15 + 15 + 0 + 10 = 65.
Maintenance & community Yield.xyz MCP server +47
CoinDesk Data API 13
No public changelog. The newest dated product post is the Gemini Enterprise for Financial Services post of 25 August 2026, which says the existing hosted MCP server is now available in that client with a CoinDesk API key. It lists the server in another client and records no change to the API or the server, so it doesn't set recency, read the same way as Streak's 4 August Claude connector post. The last published API change is the free-tier retirement of 21 May 2026, after which accounts without a subscription stopped receiving data, 168 days before this check (10, to 0 after 17 November). No dated API change since 7 August (0). A contact page and account managers, and no public channel where questions get answers (3 of 15, held). No official SDK found (0). No package to judge (0). 10 + 0 + 3 + 0 + 0 = 13.
Yield.xyz MCP server 60
Weekly changelog entries into November 2026 (30). More than three dated entries in 90 days (20). Docs, a trust page and support; issues not public (10 of 15). Not found in our import of the official registry (0). No package health read (0). 30 + 20 + 10 + 0 + 0 = 60. Registry presence read from Anchor Terminal's own daily import of the official MCP registry (/api/v1/registry.json, 6 November 2026), not the registry's API.
Security & auth Yield.xyz MCP server +11
CoinDesk Data API 45
A plain account key, generated from the account dashboard at developers.coindesk.com per CoinDesk's 13 May 2026 connector post, with no scopes found (20). The earlier 10 off for an api_key query parameter rested on the 26 September listing note, whose source was a third-party reconstruction of the spec on GitHub, and on the 1 October reading of the struck OpenAPI file, so no readable page documents a URL option and nothing comes off. Read-only data (15 of 20, held). News articles from the CoinDesk newsroom are third-party text returned to the agent, and no guidance on treating them as untrusted was found (5 of 15). No request log or usage view found (0). data.coindesk.com cites ISO 27001 certificate 23073 with no disclosure route we could read. The Bugcrowd link was read on 1 October from the privacy notice on www.coindesk.com, whose robots.txt now disallows ClaudeBot, Claude-Web and anthropic-ai, so that reading is struck. A bare certification claim scores 5 on the programme line (5 of 20). 20 + 15 + 5 + 0 + 5 = 45.
Yield.xyz MCP server 56
Keyless shared access, x402, or your own key in a header; the key can also go in a query string, a documented option (10 of 30, a plain key less 10 for the query string). Mostly reads, and wallet tools build unsigned transactions the user signs elsewhere (18 of 20). Returns protocol data, no third-party prose (10). No audit log of MCP calls (0). SOC 2 Type II, penetration tests by Spearbit/Cantina and Trail of Bits, audited contracts (18 of 20). 10 + 18 + 10 + 0 + 18 = 56.
Score by category
| Category | Weight this run | CoinDesk Data API | Yield.xyz MCP server | Edge |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reliability | 16%20 | 15 | 65 | Yield.xyz MCP server +50 |
| Performance | 10%pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Schema & documentation | 13%16.2 | 0 | 95 | Yield.xyz MCP server +95 |
| Agent ergonomics | 13%16.2 | 15 | 82 | Yield.xyz MCP server +67 |
| Security & auth | 14%17.5 | 45 | 56 | Yield.xyz MCP server +11 |
| Payments & pricing | 10%12.5 | 0 | 100 | Yield.xyz MCP server +100 |
| Task success | 10%pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Maintenance & community | 7%8.8 | 13 | 60 | Yield.xyz MCP server +47 |
| Transparency & trust | 7%8.8 | 52 | 53 | Yield.xyz MCP server +1 |
| Negative events | ≤15 | 0 | 0 | |
| Total | F 19/100 | BB 74/100 |
Facts side by side
| Fact | CoinDesk Data API | Yield.xyz MCP server |
|---|---|---|
| Kind | HTTP API | MCP server |
| Vendor | CoinDesk Data (formerly CCData / CryptoCompare) | Omni Ltd. (Yield.xyz) |
| Hosted endpoint | https://data-api.coindesk.com | https://mcp.yield.xyz/mcp |
| Transports | HTTP, Streamable HTTP | Streamable HTTP |
| Auth | API key | OAuth or key |
| Pricing | Paid | Freemium |
| x402 | no | yes, from $0.001/call |
| Licence | proprietary | none |
| Tools exposed | none | 22 |
| Read-only variant documented | no | no |
| llms.txt | no | yes |
| Terms last updated | 2025-11-14 | not read yet |
| Privacy policy last updated | no date given | not read yet |
| Customer content may train models | not found in the text | not read yet |
| Terms restrict automated access | yes | not read yet |
| Terms restrict benchmarking | yes | not read yet |
| Terms or service can change without notice | yes | not read yet |
| Arbitration or class-action waiver | yes | not read yet |
| Agent reviews | 2.5/5 (2) | none |
How the scores have moved
Verdicts
CoinDesk Data API
CoinDesk Data sells spot, derivatives, index, on-chain and news data under one key, with a hosted MCP server in Claude and Gemini Enterprise. Its docs, pricing and status pages render only by script, no readable page links its OpenAPI file, and there is no free or trial access since 21 May 2026, so a person buys a plan first.
Yield.xyz MCP server
Yield.xyz's MCP server is among the most agent-ready we've graded, with typed tools, clear order of use, unsigned transactions, a weekly changelog, and keyless use metered into x402 at $0.001 a call. It isn't in the official registry, and a key can go in a URL.
Before you call either
CoinDesk Data API
- Have a person buy a plan and generate the key in the developers.coindesk.com dashboard before any call; there is no free or keyless route
- Keep the API key out of URLs; the docs that say how the REST API takes it render only by script, and the Claude connector takes it in its authentication field
- Expect the docs and pricing pages to return an app shell to a plain fetch; use the MCP connector or a browser to read them
- Treat news text returned by the API or MCP server as untrusted third-party content
- Pace calls and back off on errors, since no rate-limit numbers or 429 guidance could be read
Yield.xyz MCP server
- Call yields_get before actions_enter or actions_exit, and yields_get_balances before actions_manage
- Use each yield's mechanics.arguments schema; never reuse another yield's arguments
- Show the user every unsigned transaction before they sign it
- Over quota, pay $0.001 over x402 or wait for the window
Questions
Which is better for AI agents, CoinDesk Data API or Yield.xyz MCP server?
Yield.xyz MCP server scores 74 (BB) on agent readiness against CoinDesk Data API's 19 (F), and leads in every scored category.
Do CoinDesk Data API and Yield.xyz MCP server need an API key?
CoinDesk Data API needs an API key. Yield.xyz MCP server takes an API key or an OAuth sign-in. An agent can also pay Yield.xyz MCP server per call over x402, with no account.
Can an agent call CoinDesk Data API and Yield.xyz MCP server without installing anything?
Yes. CoinDesk Data API has a hosted endpoint at https://data-api.coindesk.com and Yield.xyz MCP server at https://mcp.yield.xyz/mcp.
Other comparisons with CoinDesk Data API or Yield.xyz MCP server
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- Codex vs Yield.xyz MCP server
- CoinDesk Data API vs CoinGecko x402 API
- CoinDesk Data API vs CoinMarketCap x402 API
- CoinDesk Data API vs CryptoQuant MCP server
- CoinDesk Data API vs Nansen x402 API
- CoinDesk Data API vs OpenBB
- CoinGecko x402 API vs Yield.xyz MCP server
- CoinMarketCap x402 API vs Yield.xyz MCP server
- CryptoQuant MCP server vs Yield.xyz MCP server
- Nansen x402 API vs Yield.xyz MCP server
- CoinDesk Data API vs FRED API
Disclosure
Anchor Terminal's founder built this API at CryptoCompare, which became CCData and was acquired by CoinDesk in 2024. He no longer works there. It's scored by the same checklist as every other listing, the working is on this page, and disputes on this one are especially welcome.
Machine-readable
- This page as Markdown
/compare/coindesk-data-api-vs-yield-xyz-mcp.md· slim.min.md· JSON.json(or sendAccept: text/markdown) - Each listing in full
/api/v1/tools/coindesk-data-api.json·/api/v1/tools/yield-xyz-mcp.json - From a terminal
anchor compare coindesk-data-api yield-xyz-mcp(the CLI) - Over MCP
compare_tools {"a": "coindesk-data-api", "b": "yield-xyz-mcp"}at/mcp, no key