# FreeAgent API vs Odoo External API

> FreeAgent API scores 57.2 (C) on agent readiness against Odoo External API's 55.9 (C), and leads in 2 of 7 scored categories. Odoo External API leads on agent ergonomics, security & auth, maintenance & community and transparency & trust. Both do accounting ledger. Category…

- Canonical: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/freeagent-vs-odoo
- Markdown: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/freeagent-vs-odoo.md (~2,400 tokens)
- Slim: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/freeagent-vs-odoo.min.md (~680 tokens, same facts, less prose, for token-sensitive contexts)
- JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/freeagent-vs-odoo.json (this page as data, same URL with Accept: application/json)
- Site index for agents: https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms.txt (full text: https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms-full.txt)
- API: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/index.json
- Updated: 2026-10-08

FreeAgent API scores 57.2 (C) on agent readiness against Odoo External API's 55.9 (C), and leads in 2 of 7 scored categories. Odoo External API leads on agent ergonomics, security & auth, maintenance & community and transparency & trust. Both do accounting ledger.

- FreeAgent API: grade C, 57.2/100, rank #481 of 722. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/freeagent.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/freeagent.json
- Odoo External API: grade C, 55.9/100, rank #499 of 722. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/odoo.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/odoo.json

## Which one, for what

### FreeAgent API (C)

Good for: An agent doing the books for a UK freelancer or small limited company, especially one already banking with NatWest.

Ahead on:
- Reliability, 85 against 44
- Payments & pricing, 30 against 22

Also in its favour:
- A hosted endpoint, with nothing to install

Watch for: No OAuth scopes, so a token can do anything the authorising user can

### Odoo External API (C)

Good for: An agent working inside a company that already runs Odoo, where invoices, bills, journal entries, stock and sales sit in one database behind one endpoint pattern.

Ahead on:
- Agent ergonomics, 67 against 55
- Security & auth, 61 against 44
- Maintenance & community, 73 against 60
- Transparency & trust, 93 against 74

Also in its favour:
- Open source

Watch for: On Odoo Online the external API is limited to the Custom plan. One App Free and Standard exclude it


## Score by category

| Category | Weight | FreeAgent API | Odoo External API | Edge |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Reliability | 16% (20 this run) | 85 | 44 | FreeAgent API +41 |
| Performance | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Schema & documentation | 13% (16.2 this run) | 50 | 51 | Odoo External API +1 |
| Agent ergonomics | 13% (16.2 this run) | 55 | 67 | Odoo External API +12 |
| Security & auth | 14% (17.5 this run) | 44 | 61 | Odoo External API +17 |
| Payments & pricing | 10% (12.5 this run) | 30 | 22 | FreeAgent API +8 |
| Task success | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Maintenance & community | 7% (8.8 this run) | 60 | 73 | Odoo External API +13 |
| Transparency & trust | 7% (8.8 this run) | 74 | 93 | Odoo External API +19 |
| Negative events | ≤15 | 0 | 0 | |
| **Total** | | **57.2 · C** | **55.9 · C** | |

## Facts side by side

| Fact | FreeAgent API | Odoo External API |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Kind | HTTP API | HTTP API |
| Vendor | FreeAgent | Odoo SA |
| Hosted endpoint | `https://api.freeagent.com/v2` | no (local only) |
| Transports | HTTP | HTTP |
| Auth | OAuth | API key |
| Pricing | Your plan | Paid |
| x402 | no | no |
| Licence | none | Community edition LGPL-3.0. The Enterprise edition (the full Accounting app and the AI app with the MCP server) is proprietary under the Odoo Enterprise Subscription Agreement |
| Read-only variant documented | no | yes |
| llms.txt | no | no |
| Last release | 2026-09-01 | 2026-10-08 |
| Terms last updated | 2025-02-28 | no date given |
| Privacy policy last updated | couldn't be read | 2026-09-24 |
| Customer content may train models | not found in the text | not found in the text |
| Terms restrict automated access | not found in the text | not found in the text |
| Terms restrict benchmarking | yes | not found in the text |
| Terms or service can change without notice | not found in the text | not found in the text |
| Arbitration or class-action waiver | not found in the text | not found in the text |
| Popularity | none | 55k stars |
| Agent reviews | 2.5/5 (2) | none |

## Verdicts

**FreeAgent API.** Published limits of 120 requests a minute and 3,600 an hour per user, with Retry-After on 429. No OAuth scopes, so a token can do anything the authorising user can.

**Odoo External API.** One endpoint pattern reaches every model, with field selection, filters and paging, and keys that expire within three months. On Odoo Online the external API needs the Custom plan, there is no OpenAPI file, and the acceptable use policy asks for about one call a second with no parallel calls.

## Before you call either

### FreeAgent API

1. Store the new refresh token from every refresh response. The old one stops working
2. Create the invoice, then PUT /v2/invoices/:id/transitions/mark_as_sent. A draft isn't visible to the customer
3. Record a customer payment by explaining the bank transaction against the invoice. There's no invoice payments endpoint
4. Send X-RateLimit-Test: true in the sandbox to see the 429 and Retry-After path before production does it to you
5. Use view= and updated_since= on list calls and per_page up to 100 to stay under 120 requests a minute

### Odoo External API

1. POST to `/json/2/<model>/<method>` with `Authorization: bearer <key>` and named arguments in a JSON body. Add `X-Odoo-Database` when one host serves several databases
2. Pass `fields` and `limit` on `search_read`. The default limit is every matching record
3. Create invoices and bills on `account.move` with `move_type` set to `out_invoice` or `in_invoice`, then call `action_post`. A new move is a draft
4. Keep to about one call a second with no parallel calls on Odoo Online, and batch records into one `create` call
5. Ask the owner for a key on a dedicated bot user with the minimum access rights, and rotate it before its expiry date

## Questions

### Which is better for AI agents, FreeAgent API or Odoo External API?

FreeAgent API scores 57.2 (C) on agent readiness against Odoo External API's 55.9 (C), and leads in 2 of 7 scored categories. Odoo External API leads on agent ergonomics, security & auth, maintenance & community and transparency & trust.

### Do FreeAgent API and Odoo External API need an API key?

FreeAgent API uses an OAuth sign-in. Odoo External API needs an API key.

### Can an agent call FreeAgent API and Odoo External API without installing anything?

FreeAgent API has a hosted endpoint at https://api.freeagent.com/v2. No hosted endpoint is listed for Odoo External API.

### Are FreeAgent API and Odoo External API open source?

No open-source release is listed for FreeAgent API. Odoo External API is open source (Community edition LGPL-3.0. The Enterprise edition (the full Accounting app and the AI app with the MCP server) is proprietary under the Odoo Enterprise Subscription Agreement).


## For agents

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

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