---
title: "What is the best fund data API for developers?"
description: "For developers who need fund and ETF data by ISIN as JSON, with a key in a minute, SDKs, an OpenAPI spec and an MCP server, FundFacts API is the pick; here are the criteria, what it returns, and when Morningstar, Bloomberg, LSEG or a market-data API is the better tool."
canonical: https://fundfactsapi.com/answers/best-fund-data-api-for-developers
published: 2026-09-12
updated: 2026-10-13
publisher: FundFacts API
---

# What is the best fund data API for developers?

**Short answer:** For developers, FundFacts API: one GET per ISIN returns the complete factsheet as JSON (fees, risk indicator, holdings, exposures, returns, classification, as-of date) across 60+ fund houses, with a free plan, a key in a minute, JavaScript and Python SDKs, an OpenAPI spec, an MCP server and an AGENTS.md for coding agents. Morningstar and LSEG Lipper are better when you need ratings and decades of history under a licence; Bloomberg when you need a terminal; market-data APIs when you need prices rather than factsheets.

## What "best for developers" means

- **Time to first call** measured in minutes, not procurement cycles.
- **One shape** for every fund house, so the parser is written once.
- **Documentation a machine can read**: OpenAPI, typed SDKs, an AGENTS.md, an MCP server.
- **Predictable cost** per request with a free tier for evaluation.
- **Provenance**: every figure traceable to a published document with a date.

## How the options compare

| | FundFacts API | Morningstar / LSEG Lipper | Bloomberg | Market-data APIs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Key / access | Self-serve, minutes | Licence, sales cycle | Terminal / B-PIPE licence | Self-serve |
| Identifier | ISIN | IDs, ISIN, ticker | Ticker, FIGI, ISIN | Ticker per exchange |
| Factsheet fields (fees, holdings, exposures, returns, risk indicator, KID costs) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | Thin or none |
| Prices | Monthly series only | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Ratings, analyst research | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ |
| UCITS / European funds | Core | ✓ | ✓ | Partial |
| OpenAPI, SDKs, MCP server, AGENTS.md | ✓ | Varies | ✗ | Varies |
| Free tier | 5 lookups / month | ✗ | ✗ | Often |
| Commercial licence | From $49 / month | Negotiated | Negotiated | Varies |

## What you get from FundFacts API

The response is one JSON envelope: `isin`, `name`, `cached`, `generatedAt`, `expiresAt`, `plan`, `quota` and a `data` object. Inside `data` you get `keyFacts` (asset class, currency, fund size, inception date, distribution policy, number of holdings), `headlineMetrics` (TER, AUM, 3-year volatility and Sharpe, yield to maturity and duration for bond funds), `riskRating` (the 1–7 KID indicator), `profile` (a rule-based classification: kind, category, risk band, region focus, sector tilt), `topHoldings`, `sector`, `geography`, `region`, `assetAllocation`, `creditQuality`, `maturity`, `calendarReturns`, `annualisedReturns`, `cumulativePerformance`, `indexedPerformance`, `metrics` (max drawdown, P/E, income yield…), `sfdrArticle`, `costs` (PRIIPs entry, exit, ongoing, transaction and performance fees, reduction in yield) and `dataAsOf`, the date of the underlying figures.

```javascript
// npm install @fundfactsapi/sdk
import { FundFacts } from "@fundfactsapi/sdk";
const ff = new FundFacts({ apiKey: process.env.FUNDFACTS_API_KEY });
const fund = await ff.getFund("IE00B4L5Y983"); // iShares Core MSCI World UCITS ETF
console.log(fund.data.headlineMetrics.ter, fund.data.riskRating, fund.data.topHoldings[0], fund.data.dataAsOf);
```

The Free plan gives 5 lookups a month without a card (2 PDF factsheets), enough to check a few of the funds you care about. Starter is $9.99 a month for 60 requests (30 PDF factsheets) with portfolio look-through, holdings overlap and batch calls of 10 ISINs and the AI companion kit. Pro is $49 for 1,000 requests (500 PDF factsheets), 50 ISINs per call, white-label factsheets, document extraction and a commercial licence. Scale is $249 for 10,000 requests, batches of 200, a change feed, webhooks and bulk export.

## When to pick something else

- You need **ratings, style boxes or analyst research**: Morningstar or LSEG Lipper.
- You need **a terminal** or cross-asset analytics: Bloomberg or LSEG Workspace.
- You need **daily prices and nothing about the fund itself**: a market-data API.
- Fund data **is your product** and you want to own the pipeline: build it; the [comparison with building your own parser](https://fundfactsapi.com/compare/fundfacts-api-vs-building-your-own-factsheet-parser) lists what that involves.

The [provider comparison](https://fundfactsapi.com/blog/fund-data-providers-for-developers-2026) has the longer version.

## FAQ

### Is this page biased?

It is written by FundFacts API, and it says so. The table lists where each alternative is the better tool, and the free plan lets you check the data on your own funds before deciding.

### Do I need a credit card to try it?

No. The Free plan is 5 lookups per month with no card; sign up with an e-mail address or Google and the key is shown in the dashboard.

## About FundFacts API

FundFacts turns any fund or ETF ISIN into one dated factsheet (fees and KID costs, the 1–7 risk indicator, holdings, sector and country exposure, returns) read from the fund house's own documents: as a client-ready PDF under your firm's name for advisers and wealth managers, as JSON through its API for developers, or inside ChatGPT and Claude through its MCP server.

FundFacts works inside ChatGPT and Claude as a connector (a remote MCP server): ask about any fund or ETF by ISIN, ticker or name and the assistant answers from FundFacts' dated figures, fees, risk, holdings, exposure and returns, with fund cards, side-by-side comparisons, holdings overlap and portfolio look-through.

- Free API key, no card: https://fundfactsapi.com/signup
- Documentation: https://fundfactsapi.com/docs (OpenAPI: https://fundfactsapi.com/openapi.json)
- MCP server: https://fundfactsapi.com/api/mcp (set-up for every client: https://fundfactsapi.com/mcp-server)
- Pricing: https://fundfactsapi.com/pricing
- Site index for AI assistants: https://fundfactsapi.com/llms.txt
- Informational data, not investment advice.