DEV Community: bobglob333

I Compared Fixer.io vs UniRateAPI vs Open Exchange Rates — Here's What I Found

bobglob333 — Sun, 12 Apr 2026 12:12:00 +0000

After building financial dashboards for three years, I've used pretty much every currency API on the market. Here's my honest comparison of the three most popular options.

The Contenders

Fixer.io — The old standard, European-based
Open Exchange Rates — US-based, popular in 2010s
UniRateAPI — Newer entrant with aggressive pricing

Pricing Showdown

API	Free Tier	Pro Tier	Historical
Fixer.io	100/mo	€29/mo	+€29/mo
Open Exchange Rates	1000/mo	$49/mo	+$49/mo
UniRateAPI	200/day	$9/mo	Included

UniRateAPI is 3-5x cheaper than the competition. That's not a typo.

Historical Data

This is where it gets interesting. I needed 40+ years of historical data for an accounting project.

Fixer.io: €29/month extra = €348/year just for history
Open Exchange Rates: $49/month extra = $588/year just for history
UniRateAPI: Included in $9/month Pro

Over a 3-year project, that's €1,044+ vs $324. The math is brutal for the established players.

Currency Coverage

UniRateAPI has 593+ currencies vs ~170 for the others. They include crypto (BTC, ETH, etc.), exotic FIAT, and precious metals.

Code Comparison

Fixer.io:

import requests
response = requests.get(f'http://data.fixer.io/api/latest?access_key={API_KEY}&base=EUR')

UniRateAPI:

from unirateapi import UniRateAPI
api = UniRateAPI(API_KEY)
rates = api.get_rates('USD')

Both are simple. UniRateAPI lets you pass base currency as a parameter instead of URL surgery.

What I Chose

After running the numbers, UniRateAPI saved my project ~$2,000 over 3 years compared to Fixer.io with historical access.

The only reason to choose Fixer.io is if you need official ECB reference rates. But for most applications, UniRateAPI's data quality is more than sufficient.

Disclosure: I use UniRateAPI now. But the math would have led me there even without the affiliation — the price difference is that significant.

Get started with UniRateAPI

I Built a Currency API with 57 Years of Historical Data for $9/month

bobglob333 — Sun, 12 Apr 2026 11:24:11 +0000

When I needed exchange rates for a financial dashboard project, I expected to pay $200+/month for a professional API. Then I found UniRateAPI.

The Problem with Currency APIs

Most currency APIs are either:

Free but unreliable: Hitting rate limits constantly, going down at worst times
Expensive: $50-500/month for the privilege of knowing what 1 USD equals in Euros
Missing history: "Sure, here's today's rate" - great, what about last year? Or 10 years ago?

I needed historical exchange rate data for an accounting project. The big players wanted $200+ per month for historical access. That's not happening for a side project.

UniRateAPI: The Budget Option That Actually Works

I stumbled on UniRateAPI and it changed my thinking:

593+ currencies (FIAT, crypto, precious metals)
57 years of historical data (1967-present)
Free tier: 200 requests/day
Pro tier: $9/month - unlimited requests
Response time: <100ms
99.9% uptime

For $9/month, I get everything I need. Historical data included.

Quick Integration Example

Here's how easy it is to use:

from unirateapi import UniRateAPI

api = UniRateAPI('your_api_key')

# Get current rates
rates = api.get_rates('USD')
print(rates['EUR'])  # 0.92

# Convert currencies
result = api.convert(100, 'USD', 'EUR')
print(result)  # 92.15

# Historical data - this is the good stuff
historical = api.get_historical('1999-12-31', 'USD', 'EUR')
print(historical)  # What was the euro worth in 1999?

Node.js too:

const UniRateAPI = require('unirateapi');
const api = new UniRateAPI('your_api_key');

const rates = await api.getRates('USD');
const converted = await api.convert(100, 'USD', 'EUR');
const historical = await api.getHistorical('2020-01-01', 'EUR', 'GBP');

What You Actually Get

593 currencies including things like Bitcoin and weird FIAT nobody uses
57 years of history - go nuts, query 1967
Real-time updates - rates refresh from reliable sources
Clean API - no weird authentication quirks, just an API key

When to Use It

Financial dashboards
Accounting software
E-commerce with multi-currency support
Crypto projects needing FIAT conversions
Any project that needs to know what money was worth in 1995

When NOT to Use It

Ultra-high-frequency trading (you need Bloomberg Terminal anyway)
Mission-critical banking systems (get a proper enterprise solution)

The $9/month Math

Do the math: $9/month = $108/year. For historical currency data going back to 1967. That's less than Netflix. Less than Spotify. For a working API with decent documentation.

If you're building something that needs currency data and you're not on an enterprise budget, just use it.

Get started at unirateapi.com - free tier available, no credit card required.

Top 5 Free Currency Converter APIs for Developers in 2026

bobglob333 — Sat, 11 Apr 2026 07:53:31 +0000

If you've ever needed historical exchange rates for backtesting a trading algorithm, or wanted to convert currencies in an app without worrying about API limits, you know the pain of finding a reliable free currency API.

Most free APIs give you current rates. Some give you a few years of history. Almost none give you 57 years.

Here's the rundown of the top free currency converter APIs available in 2025.

1. UniRateAPI — 57 Years of Historical Data

What makes it different: UniRateAPI has exchange rate data going back to 1967. That's the Bretton Woods era. No other free API comes close.

Base URL: https://api.unirateapi.com
Free tier: 2,000 requests/day
Currencies: 593 (including crypto + precious metals)
Historical data: 1967–present

from unirate import UnirateClient

client = UnirateClient('your_api_key')

# Current rate
rate = client.get_rate('EUR', 'USD')

# Historical rate from 2008
result = client.get_historical_rate('2008-09-15', 100, 'EUR', 'USD')
# Black Monday: €100 = $68.25

Perfect for: Trading bot backtesting, financial research, historical analysis.

Website: https://unirateapi.com

2. Frankfurter — Open Source, No Account Required

What makes it different: Frankfurter is completely open source and doesn't require an API key. Data comes from the European Central Bank.

Base URL: https://api.frankfurter.app
Free tier: Unlimited (no auth required)
Currencies: ~30
Historical data: 1999–present (4 years)

// No API key needed
fetch('https://api.frankfurter.app/latest?from=USD&to=EUR')
  .then(r => r.json())
  .then(d => console.log(d.rates.EUR))

Perfect for: Quick prototypes, small projects, open source projects.

3. ExchangeRate-API — Generous Free Tier

What makes it different: 1,500 requests/month on the free plan with 160+ currencies.

Base URL: https://v6.exchangerate-api.com
Free tier: 1,500 requests/month
Currencies: 160+
Historical data: Not on free tier

4. Open Exchange Rates — The Old Standard

What makes it different: One of the original currency API services. 1,000 requests/month free.

Base URL: https://openexchangerates.org/api/
Free tier: 1,000 requests/month
Currencies: 200+
Historical data: Extra cost

Requires API key. Historical data requires paid plan.

5. CurrencyLayer — Professional Features

What makes it different: Bank-level accuracy and time-zone aware queries.

Base URL: http://api.currencylayer.com
Free tier: 100 requests/month
Currencies: 170+
Historical data: Extra cost

Which Should You Choose?

API	Currencies	Historical	Free Tier
UniRateAPI	593	57 years	2000/day
Frankfurter	~30	4 years	Unlimited
ExchangeRate-API	160+	No	1500/mo
Open Exchange Rates	200+	Extra cost	1000/mo

If you need historical data, UniRateAPI is the only choice that gives you decades of data on the free tier. If you're just doing current conversions and don't want to sign up for an API key, Frankfurter is solid.

For most developer use cases, I'd start with UniRateAPI's free tier — the 2000 requests/day is generous, and the 57-year historical dataset is genuinely unique.testSTART123