Currencylayer API
Accurate real-time forex data from 15 authoritative sources
Freemium
✓ Verified
🇪🇺 European
Currencylayer aggregates exchange rate data from 15 reliable sources including financial data providers and banks, covering 168 world currencies. Updated hourly (or in real-time on paid plans). Features include historical rates, time-series data, currency conversion, and fluctuation tracking. Used widely in e-commerce, travel, finance apps, and ERP systems. Part of APILayer’s financial data suite. Paid plans start at $9.99/month for 10,000 requests/month with hourly updates.
API Details
Auth Method
API Key
Pricing Model
Freemium
Free Tier
Yes — 100 requests/month, USD base only
Rate Limit
Plan-based
Format
REST / JSON
Versioning
v1
SLA / Uptime
99.9%
Compliance
Standard
Geographic Restrictions
Global (168 currencies)
Last Verified
2026-02-20
Categories
Frequently Asked Questions
Currencylayer provides real-time and historical exchange rates for 168 world currencies via a simple REST API. Common use cases include e-commerce currency conversion, SaaS billing in local currencies, financial dashboards, travel apps, and accounting software. It is one of the most widely adopted currency APIs due to its simplicity and reliability.
Currencylayer has a free plan with USD base currency, hourly updates, 100 requests per month u2014 useful only for development. Paid plans start at $9.99/month (Basic) for all base currencies and 10,000 monthly requests. The $39.99/month plan adds minute-level update frequency and 100,000 requests.
All three offer similar core functionality at similar price points. Currencylayer is often cited as having the cleanest API design. Open Exchange Rates has better documentation and a more generous free tier. Fixer is backed by APILayer (same company as Currencylayer) and uses ECB data as its source. Choice often comes down to specific feature needs and existing integrations.
Yes. Currencylayer includes BTC, ETH, XRP, LTC, and other major cryptocurrencies in its exchange rate data alongside fiat currencies. However, for dedicated crypto data with full order book depth, market cap, and volume data, a specialised crypto API like CoinGecko is more appropriate.