If the world that the blockchain ecosystem and Web 3 have in stock for us entices you, you’re probably eager to contribute to such a world. But to do that, you’ll need tools.
The blockchain ecosystem is so developed today that we don’t have to build everything from scratch. Instead, we use APIs as our primary tools to access the data with which we build the future.
And if you find it hard to choose a cryptocurrency API from the sandful out there, this piece is for you. We took the initiative to research the five best cryptocurrency APIs for developers.
Then we did a little more. We also studied what makes the best crypto APIs what they are so that you can use their standards to judge other APIs you may want to use in the future.
Here’s a full report of our findings:
The Top Cryptocurrency APIs For Developers
The list below comprises the 5 best cryptocurrency APIs for developers for various project types, including crypto portfolio data aggregation, payment processing, automated trading, market data, and non-market data.
Vezgo: Best API For Crypto Portfolio Data Aggregation
Disclaimer: That’s us!
Vezgo is a platform that allows you to track all your financial investments, including stocks and local bank savings, in one place. Vezgo powers portfolio tracking dashboards like Wealthica, Assetdash and Exirio. Vezgo was developed as a the Plaid for Crypto to serve clients in the cryptocurrency ecosystem.
How so?
Vezgo API allows developers to build solutions that aggregate data from centralized and decentralized exchanges, wallets, blockchains, and NFTs. The best part is that there’s just one API for these functionalities, helping you save 80% integration time!
With Vezgo, developers can build financial dashboards, digital banking apps, lending and auth platforms, crypto insurance solutions, and so much more.
However, super-easy integrations are only the beginning of what Vezgo can do. Many things go on in the background that make Vezgo the best cryptocurrency API for building portfolio asset aggregation apps.
For instance, Vezgo ensures every data in transit from any crypto exchange or wallet is encrypted with the latest TLS 1.2. And as for the encryption keys, they are kept away in archives so safe that even our database administrators don’t have access to them.
Vezgo API takes things a step further by organizing every bit of data, regardless of how complex, in a simple format that is easily understandable and usable for the developer.
If you’re interested in trying out Vezgo and cutting your workload by almost 100%, you can simply get your Vezgo API key here.
BitPay: Best For Processing Crypto Payments
BitPay API is one of the best cryptocurrency APIs for processing crypto payments. This feature is especially useful for developers building eCommerce apps accepting crypto payments. ECommerce platforms the API integrates with are Wix, Shopify, Drupal commerce, and Ubercart.
To ease developers’ tasks, BitPay offers code libraries in six programming languages, including Java, PHP, Node Js, Ruby, Python, and C# .NET. With these code libraries, developers can concentrate more on integration and payment flow instead of server-side jargon.
One of the best things about BitPay is that it does not collect sensitive customer information. What it simply does is that it receives payments on a client’s behalf and converts to their local currency withdrawable to their bank. And if they choose, they can leave their funds in crypto.
With Bitpay, developers can build online payment apps, donations, and billings.
Coinbase: Best Crypto API for Trading Apps
Coinbase Cloud excels at a lot of things. It conveniently offers a market data API, an exchange API, and a wallet API. The Exchange API is what most stands out to us.
Through the Coinbase Exchange & Pro API, developers can build apps that execute trades in an instant. Users can also access market data from the platform to help traders make informed decisions.
Another thing the Coinbase Cloud APIs have going for them is their customizability, through which developers can build custom functionalities that Coinbase doesn’t directly offer.
Nomics: Best API For General Crypto Market Data
Nomics is wonderful as a crypto data aggregator API but more excellent as a market data API. It offers access to trade and order infos from over 517 active cryptocurrency exchanges. Nomics API also gives developers access to a hub of data for close to 60,000 cryptocurrencies.
One of its most outstanding features is how it provides accurate raw market data from which it calculates its own tickers or candlesticks. This feature is perfect for developers who want to build enterprise-level apps that rely on the most accurate data. Nomics also provides historical data for in-depth analysis.
Besides the general crypto market data Nomics provides, the API also offers portfolio analysis tools that help users understand and analyze their crypto portfolios.
Nomics offers the free version of its API strictly for personal use. As such, the developer can only get a maximum of 1 request per second. However, the enterprise version of the API handles way more requests per second.
Coingecko: Best Cryptocurrency API For Non-Market Data Apps
Like many other crypto APIs on this list, Coingecko offers market data. It, in fact, does so with great effectiveness, allowing users access to data on about 13,000 cryptocurrencies and 500-plus exchanges. With this market data access, it could easily be a worthy alternative to the Nomics crypto market data API.
However, one unique feature of the Coingecko API that helps it stand out among the rest is how developers can access non-market data from the platform. Global cryptocurrency market updates are an example of such non-market data.
The Coinbase API has a free plan for developers just testing the product. This free version offers a generous maximum of 50 requests per minute. But Coeckecko has other pricing plans that provide more requests per minute.
How To Choose A Crypto API For Your Project
The cryptocurrency ecosystem is exploding, and so are the APIs with which you can tap into its unlimited data and possibilities for your project. Let’s look into some things to consider when choosing one:
- Number of Relevant Features
Emphasis on “relevant”!
Innovative features are great. They help you get the cryptocurrency API to do impressive things with ease. But here, more isn’t always better.
Many of the best APIs are paid. While some have free versions, you might have to pay to enjoy some features. And the more features an API has, the higher the price it goes for. So, why pay for a feature if you don’t need it?
We recommend you stick to a crypto API that has just the number of features you need, not the one that has features you may or may not need.
- Capacity
Cryptocurrency APIs often have a maximum number of requests they can process simultaneously.
For instance, a crypto API for automating trades may only be able to handle 50 transactions at a time. So if your product has so many users that you easily crush the 50 transactions per second, you may need to turn to another API.
If your project is just in the early stages, the chances are that you don’t need an API that handles a lot of requests yet. But it makes sense to think ahead into the future and plan for an API that can handle your growing number of requests.
- Ease of Use
“Keep It Simple, Stupid!”
That’s the KISS principle, and it applies to everything the developer does. But if a cryptocurrency API violates this principle, we advise you to tread carefully with such API.
The reason you’re using an API is to help you receive data from a service without having to code it. When the data comes, you want to be able to use, organize, and integrate it. The best APIs offer this. If an API makes this process complicated, consider using another API.
- Update Frequency
When an API is constantly updated, it shows that the provider is interested in improving the API. This is good because you can concentrate on your project and trust the API provider to offer you the best and most improved tool.
However, if there are too many updates within a short period, this might be a negative sign. This is especially true if the update requires that the API goes offline for some time. Such APIs could do more harm than good to your product, as they could cause you to lose users due to constant downtimes.
- Scalability
Every developer wants that project to grow, which is a good thing. But if your tools are not robust enough to handle your growth, it might be limiting for you and your project. Therefore, consider the crypto API’s robustness before using it in your project. And if it isn’t already so massively robust yet, research how likely it is to expand. If it has a history of expansions and upgrades, then there are chances they can scale with your business.
- Pricing
Some API providers offer free pricing plans among their pricing packages. These free versions are often great for testing the API before investing too much in them. But for whichever API you want to go for, ensure you can keep up with the price of its paid versions.
Track All Your Digital Assets From One Place
For developers looking to build an app that involves crypto portfolio data aggregation, Vezgo offers one of the best services. Already, over 100 cryptocurrencies and Web3 companies use the Vezgo API, and the number keeps rising.
Vezgo API offers access to portfolio data from over 40 top exchanges and blockchains, including Coinbase, Kucoin, Binance, and the Bitcoin blockchain.
Vezgo was built with developers in mind, and you can take advantage of this by getting your API key here.
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