# TickerLayer vs Tiingo > TickerLayer scores 71.5 (BB) to Tiingo's 46.2 (D) for market prices. Prices, MCP, x402, uptime and agent notes side by side. - Canonical: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/tickerlayer-vs-tiingo - Markdown: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/tickerlayer-vs-tiingo.md (~5,050 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 .grade.anchorterminal.com (the grade as a DNS TXT record, for a sandbox with no HTTP where names still resolve; also top., best.. and .vs.. 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: 2026-11-11 TickerLayer scores 71.5 (BB) on agent readiness against Tiingo's 46.2 (D), and leads in 6 of 7 scored categories. Tiingo leads on transparency & trust. Both do market prices. TickerLayer accepts x402. Tiingo doesn't. - TickerLayer: grade BB, 71.5/100, rank #160 of 1520. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/tickerlayer.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/tickerlayer.json - Tiingo: grade D, 46.2/100, rank #1193 of 1520. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/tiingo.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/tiingo.json - Best financial market data APIs for AI agents: https://www.anchorterminal.com/best/market-data/index.md - All 78 markets comparisons: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/market-data/index.md ## Which one, for what ### TickerLayer (BB) Good for: An agent that needs latest prices, bars and market hours across stocks, forex, crypto, indices, ETFs, commodities, bond yields and perpetual futures from one schema, and wants to pay per call without an account. Ahead on: - Reliability, 70 against 60 - Schema & documentation, 88 against 39 - Agent ergonomics, 79 against 56 - Security & auth, 49 against 32 - Payments & pricing, 92 against 30 - Maintenance & community, 79 against 50 Also in its favour: - Agent-ready, a grade of BB or better - An agent can pay per call over x402, with no account - Free to start without a card Watch for: The data is derived and indicative from unnamed non-exchange sources, and no page says it is licensed from an exchange ### Tiingo (D) Good for: Agents that need clean US end-of-day composites with dividend and split adjustments, fund fees and news on a cheap plan, and anyone who values a long changelog. Ahead on: - Transparency & trust, 57 against 38 Watch for: The connecting guide documents the token as `?token=` in the URL alongside the header ## Why the edge ### Payments & pricing: TickerLayer +62 - TickerLayer (92): x402 on the vendor's own gateway, x402.tickerlayer.com, for 41 GET routes. That is six routes for each of stocks, forex, crypto, indices, ETFs and commodities, plus bond yields and four market-calendar routes. Perpetuals, Futures CFDs, the add-ons, the symbol catalogue and WebSocket need a key. Between massive's 30 for US stock routes only and financial-datasets' 35 for every documented data endpoint (32 of 40). Per-call x402 prices from 0.01 to 0.10 USDC in the catalogue and docs, and plan prices per feed on the pricing page, all without a login (20). A Free plan of 3,000 REST calls every 30 days with 'no card', per llms.txt (20). An agent with a funded Base wallet pays per call with no account or key (20). 32+20+20+20 = 92. - Tiingo (30): No x402, MPP or L402 (0). Two plan prices public without login, $0 and $30 a month, sold by requests an hour and a day rather than per call; fundamentals and commercial licences by email (10). A free Starter plan at 1,000 requests a day with no card requirement stated (20). The token comes from a browser signup, and the developer programme forbids programmatic registration (0). 0 + 10 + 20 + 0 = 30. ### Schema & documentation: TickerLayer +49 - TickerLayer (88): OpenAPI 3.1 at tickerlayer.com/openapi.json (TickerLayer Market Data API 1.0.0, about 386,000 characters), read in its first 100,000 and last 96,000 characters, with summaries, descriptions, tags and examples on the operations read and shared 400, 401, 403, 404, 429 and 503 responses. The WebSocket is described in prose only and the hosted MCP tool schemas weren't read (23 of 25). llms.txt, llms-full.txt and a Markdown twin of every docs page (10). Operation descriptions state purpose and plan gating, and the vendor's skill says which MCP tool to use for each question and when not to, such as `get_quote` not being the tool for a price. Financial-datasets took 17 (17 of 20). Enums on `interval`, `multiplier`, `timespan` and `sort`, `format: date` on dates, bounded `limit`, required path parameters, as for massive (13 of 15). Examples on most parameters and responses, one Error schema with ten fields and documented codes, but the codes appear only as example values with no enum or table (13 of 15). A dated changelog of the last 50 changes, 8 September to 6 November 2026, but no version in the REST paths ('no /v1/') and the spec at 1.0.0. Above twelve-data's 10 for monthly updates and below massive's 15 for versioned paths (12 of 15). 23+10+17+13+13+12 = 88. - Tiingo (39): No OpenAPI document or MCP server was found (0 of 25). llms.txt and llms-full.txt are served, with product routing and licence notes (10). Each documentation page states the endpoint's purpose and timing, such as prices after 5.30 pm ET with corrections to 8 pm, with little on when not to use it (12 of 20). Parameters and response fields are tabled with names and meanings, but types, defaults and allowed values are partly in prose (8 of 15). Examples in Python, Node and PHP on every page; no error responses documented (7 of 15). A changelog dated by entry since 2017 and a one-year support commitment after breaking changes, with no version in the path (12 of 15). 0 + 10 + 12 + 8 + 7 + 12 = 39. ### Maintenance & community: TickerLayer +29 - TickerLayer (79): Read as a closed service. The newest changelog entry is 6 November 2026, a bond yield curve endpoint (30). 50 dated changelog entries from 8 September to 6 November 2026 (20). A public changelog, a consultation form, info@tickerlayer.com and a support chat, all untested, with no community channel and no issues on the plugin repository read. Massive and twelve-data took 10 (9 of 15). Official clients for JavaScript or TypeScript (npm) and Python (PyPI), both 0.1.0 from 20 October 2026, and an MCP registry entry under the verified namespace `com.tickerlayer` (15). The npm package has no dependencies or install hooks but no repository field, the clients' source isn't public and no CI is visible (5 of 10). 30+20+9+15+5 = 79. - Tiingo (50): Read as a closed service. The changelog's newest entry is 9 October 2026 (30). Entries dated 9 October and 8 September 2026 fall in the last 90 days, with 21 July just outside, and the status page adds a maintenance window on 28 September (12 of 20). A dated changelog, a support address and a blog, with the developer programme promising priority email support (8 of 15). No official SDK (0 of 15). No package to assess (0 of 10). 30 + 12 + 8 + 0 + 0 = 50. ### Agent ergonomics: TickerLayer +23 - TickerLayer (79): Read on the REST API, with the MCP server where a line covers it. Responses are sized by `limit` (bars up to 5,000, catalogue up to 1,000), `sort`, date ranges and batch calls for futures quotes and market status, with no field selection. The MCP server has 12 tools, 11 shown to the model. Massive and financial-datasets took 15 (15 of 25). `limit`, `offset` and `next_offset`, cursors on fundamentals and economic events, `total_count` on bars, `search` on symbols and `updated_since` on signals (18 of 20). Errors carry `statusCode`, `message`, a code, `retryAfterMs`, `resetsAt`, `limitRps`, `plansUrl` and the missing `product` or `market`, and the skill gives an action per status. Above financial-datasets' 16 (17 of 20). Every data call is a GET, and x402 settles only after a valid response with payment identifiers bound to the request, but no readOnlyHint or other annotation was found for the MCP tools. Financial-datasets took 14 without annotations (15 of 20). Data tools need only `asset_class` and `symbol`, with defaults for limit and sort, and official clients exist for JavaScript or TypeScript and Python, both at 0.1.0 from 20 October 2026. Stocks need the `COUNTRY:TICKER` form (14 of 15). 15+18+17+15+14 = 79. - Tiingo (56): `startDate`, `endDate`, `resampleFreq`, `format=csv` and column selection on some endpoints size responses; no field selection on end-of-day prices (15 of 25). Date ranges throughout and limit and offset on news, no cursor (15 of 20). Errors are undocumented; a missing token answered 403 with a JSON `detail` field in our one test call (3 of 20). Every call is a read (16 of 20). Few required parameters, but no official SDK; the docs point to third-party packages (7 of 15). 15 + 15 + 3 + 16 + 7 = 56. ### Transparency & trust: Tiingo +19 - TickerLayer (38): The editorial half. A closed service whose terms of use, user agreement and market data disclaimer (all effective 3 November 2026) set out internal, commercial and redistribution rights by plan and a liability cap. They name no legal entity, address or governing law, so the contracting party is unknown. The plugin and npm client are MIT. Soldfetch took 10 in the same position (10 of 30). The privacy policy keeps WebSocket connection records for 7 days but gives no period for request and tool-call logs or account data after closure, says nothing on model training, names no transfer mechanism and has no DPA (12 of 30). No deprecation policy. The terms allow MCP tools to change 'with reasonable notice where practical' and the user agreement promises notice before a plan is materially reduced, and the changelog records changes after the fact. Kite took 4 (4 of 20). Subprocessors are given only as categories (hosting, authentication, card and crypto payments, email, an AI model for support replies), with analytics vendors deferred to the cookie policy, no data locations, and no named data suppliers (4 of 20). 10+12+4+4 = 30. The provenance half is computed from the provenance block. - Tiingo (57): A closed service whose terms sit on app.tiingo.com, which answered 403 to every request, so they were not read; the pricing and documentation pages define internal, commercial and redistribution licences (8 of 30). The privacy policy is on the same host and was not read (0 of 30). The developer programme commits to a year of continued support after a breaking change, with changes posted in the changelog and emailed to registered developers, and the changelog's 9 October 2026 entry describes a changed default for prevClose (16 of 20). Equinix hosting is named on the about page, with no processor list or data location (4 of 20). 8 + 0 + 16 + 4 = 28. ### Security & auth: TickerLayer +17 - TickerLayer (49): A plain account key with no scopes, shown once and replaced by regenerating it in the dashboard (20). The OpenAPI file defines an `apiKey` query parameter as a 'compatibility fallback', and the WebSocket takes the key only in its URL, so 10 off. The MCP server adds OAuth 2.1 with PKCE S256, dynamic registration, refresh tokens, a revocation endpoint and one scope, `market.read`. Twelve-data took 18 on the same pattern, one less here because the WebSocket has no header option (17 of 30). Every operation reads data, and the OAuth scope is read-only, as for twelve-data and financial-datasets (15 of 20). Responses are prices, bars, symbols, calendars and yields. There is no news feed, and SignalPoint signals are structured fields, so no untrusted text reaches the agent (10 of 15). Rate-limit headers on every response, quota 429s that state the limit and when it renews, and a dashboard list of WebSocket connections with source IP, key and how each ended (24 October 2026). No per-call REST log for the key holder was found, though the privacy policy says request logs are kept (7 of 15). security.txt answered a client error, and no disclosure policy, bug bounty, SOC 2 or ISO 27001 was found (0 of 20). 17+15+10+7+0 = 49. - Tiingo (32): One token per account with no scopes, documented as `?token=` in the URL or an Authorization header, with rotation on the account page since May 2026 (20 less 10 for the query string, plus 2 for rotation, so 12). Every endpoint is a read (15 of 20). News is third-party text and no guidance was found (5 of 15). A usage page shows hourly and daily requests and bandwidth, not a per-call log (0 of 15, no log). security.txt redirects on www and is absent on api, and no disclosure policy, bug bounty or certification was found (0 of 20). 12 + 15 + 5 + 0 + 0 = 32. ## Score by category | Category | Weight | TickerLayer | Tiingo | Edge | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Reliability | 16% (20 this run) | 70 | 60 | TickerLayer +10 | | Performance | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run | | Schema & documentation | 13% (16.2 this run) | 88 | 39 | TickerLayer +49 | | Agent ergonomics | 13% (16.2 this run) | 79 | 56 | TickerLayer +23 | | Security & auth | 14% (17.5 this run) | 49 | 32 | TickerLayer +17 | | Payments & pricing | 10% (12.5 this run) | 92 | 30 | TickerLayer +62 | | Task success | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run | | Maintenance & community | 7% (8.8 this run) | 79 | 50 | TickerLayer +29 | | Transparency & trust | 7% (8.8 this run) | 38 | 57 | Tiingo +19 | | Negative events | ≤15 | 0 | 0 | | | **Total** | | **71.5 · BB** | **46.2 · D** | | ## Facts side by side | Fact | TickerLayer | Tiingo | | --- | --- | --- | | Kind | HTTP API | HTTP API | | Vendor | TickerLayer | Tiingo Inc. | | Hosted endpoint | `https://mcp.tickerlayer.com/mcp` | `https://api.tiingo.com` | | Transports | HTTP, Streamable HTTP, websocket | HTTP, websocket | | Auth | OAuth or key | API key | | Pricing | Freemium | Freemium | | x402 | yes, from $0.01/call | no | | Licence | Proprietary hosted service under the TickerLayer terms of use, user agreement and market data disclaimer (all effective 3 November 2026), which name no legal entity or governing law. Free and Individual plans are for internal use, Business adds use inside the customer's own product, and redistribution needs a written Enterprise agreement. The agent plugin (github.com/tickerlayer/agent-plugin) and the npm client are MIT | none | | Tools exposed | 12 | none | | Read-only variant documented | no | no | | llms.txt | yes | yes | | MCP registry | `com.tickerlayer/market-data` | not listed | | Last release | 2026-11-06 | 2026-10-09 | | Terms last updated | not read yet | couldn't be read | | Privacy policy last updated | not read yet | 2026-02-18 | | Customer content may train models | not read yet | couldn't be read | | Terms restrict automated access | not read yet | couldn't be read | | Terms restrict benchmarking | not read yet | couldn't be read | | Terms or service can change without notice | not read yet | couldn't be read | | Arbitration or class-action waiver | not read yet | couldn't be read | ## Verdicts **TickerLayer.** An agent can read quotes, bars and market hours across eight asset classes through a documented REST API, 12 MCP tools or 41 x402 resources with no account, and 429s carry Retry-After. The data is derived from unnamed non-exchange sources, no operator is named, and the status history couldn't be read. **Tiingo.** A dated changelog since 2017, a one-year support commitment after breaking changes, an Instatus status page and a free token at 1,000 requests a day. The token is documented in the URL, no OpenAPI document, error reference, SDK or MCP server exists, and the terms and privacy policy sit on a host that refused our reader. ## Before you call either ### TickerLayer 1. Write stocks as `COUNTRY:TICKER`, such as `US:KO`, and always pass `asset_class` to the data tools. 2. If a 429 carries `REST_QUOTA_EXCEEDED`, stop and tell the user. Waiting doesn't reset the monthly quota. 3. Present prices as indicative TickerLayer values, never as official exchange prices. 4. Call `get_market_status` before you report a quiet symbol as missing data. 5. Send the key in the `x-api-key` header, never as the `apiKey` query parameter. ### Tiingo 1. Send the token as `Authorization: Token `, not as `?token=` in the URL 2. Ask for `format=csv` on large price pulls; the docs say CSV is 4 to 5 times faster than JSON, and bandwidth counts against the monthly cap 3. Count requests an hour and a day, not per second; 50 an hour on Starter, 10,000 on Power, reset on the hour and at midnight ET 4. Expect 403 `{"detail":"Please supply a token"}` without a token; other error shapes are undocumented, so log the body 5. Use dashes in share classes (BRK-A), and fetch supported_tickers.zip rather than guessing symbols ## Questions ### Which is better for AI agents, TickerLayer or Tiingo? TickerLayer scores 71.5 (BB) on agent readiness against Tiingo's 46.2 (D), and leads in 6 of 7 scored categories. Tiingo leads on transparency & trust. ### Do TickerLayer and Tiingo need an API key? TickerLayer takes an API key or an OAuth sign-in. Tiingo needs an API key. An agent can also pay TickerLayer per call over x402, with no account. ### Can an agent call TickerLayer and Tiingo without installing anything? Yes. TickerLayer has a hosted endpoint at https://mcp.tickerlayer.com/mcp and Tiingo at https://api.tiingo.com. ## For agents - This comparison as JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/tickerlayer-vs-tiingo.json, and with the fewest tokens: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/tickerlayer-vs-tiingo.min.md - Over MCP at https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp (no key): `compare_tools {"a": "tickerlayer", "b": "tiingo"}`. From a terminal: `anchor compare tickerlayer tiingo` - Each listing in full: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/tickerlayer.json and https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/tiingo.json ## Other comparisons with TickerLayer or Tiingo - [Alpha Vantage vs TickerLayer](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/alpha-vantage-vs-tickerlayer.md) - [Alpha Vantage vs Tiingo](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/alpha-vantage-vs-tiingo.md) - [Benzinga vs TickerLayer](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/benzinga-vs-tickerlayer.md) - [Databento vs TickerLayer](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/databento-vs-tickerlayer.md) - [Databento vs Tiingo](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/databento-vs-tiingo.md) - [Finnhub vs TickerLayer](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/finnhub-vs-tickerlayer.md) - [Finnhub vs Tiingo](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/finnhub-vs-tiingo.md) - [Intrinio vs TickerLayer](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/intrinio-vs-tickerlayer.md) - [Intrinio vs Tiingo](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/intrinio-vs-tiingo.md) - [Massive (formerly Polygon.io) vs TickerLayer](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/massive-vs-tickerlayer.md) - [Massive (formerly Polygon.io) vs Tiingo](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/massive-vs-tiingo.md) - [TickerLayer vs Twelve Data](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/tickerlayer-vs-twelve-data.md) - [Tiingo vs Twelve Data](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/tiingo-vs-twelve-data.md) - [Eulerpool Financial Data API vs TickerLayer](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/eulerpool-vs-tickerlayer.md) - [Eulerpool Financial Data API vs Tiingo](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/eulerpool-vs-tiingo.md) - [Financial Datasets vs TickerLayer](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/financial-datasets-vs-tickerlayer.md) - [Financial Datasets vs Tiingo](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/financial-datasets-vs-tiingo.md) - [Financial Modeling Prep vs TickerLayer](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/financial-modeling-prep-vs-tickerlayer.md) - [Financial Modeling Prep vs Tiingo](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/financial-modeling-prep-vs-tiingo.md) - [EODHD vs TickerLayer](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/eodhd-vs-tickerlayer.md) - [EODHD vs Tiingo](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/eodhd-vs-tiingo.md) - [Benzinga vs Tiingo](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/benzinga-vs-tiingo.md) --- Query this catalogue directly over MCP: https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp (Streamable HTTP, no key). How: https://www.anchorterminal.com/agents/#mcp