Data Feed Premium
The feed parameter allows the user to modify the data feed used for the API's response, forcing it to use cached data.
Our API offers two types of data feeds: live and cached. These options are designed to meet diverse user needs, balancing between the immediacy of data and cost efficiency. Below is a detailed overview of each feed type, including examples and use-cases to help you choose the best option for your requirements.
This parameter can only be used with paid plans. Free plans and trial plans do not have the ability to control their data feed.
Live Feed
The live feed provides real-time data, delivering the most current market information available. This option is ideal for scenarios requiring the latest data for immediate decision-making.
Pricing for Live Feed
- Quotes: 1 credit per symbol included in the response that has quote data (bid/ask/mid/last price).
- Candles: 1 credit per 10,000 candles included in the response.
- Other Endpoints: 1 credit per response.
Requesting Live Data
To request real-time data, append feed=live to your API call or do nothing at all. If you omit the feed query parameter the live feed is used by default. Here's an example:
GET https://api.marketdata.app/v1/options/chain/SPY/?feed=live
GET https://api.marketdata.app/v1/options/chain/SPY/
Both of these requests are equally valid and return the latest data for the specified symbol, ensuring you have up-to-the-second information.
Cached Feed
The cached feed provides data that could be a few seconds to a few days old, offering a cost-effective solution for accessing large volumes of data. When you use cached data, there is no guarantee of how fresh the data will be.
Pricing for Cached Feed
- 1 credit per request, regardless of the number of symbols. This makes it an economical choice for bulk data retrieval using endpoints like Option Chain and Bulk Stock Quotes.
Use-Case for Cached Feed
The cached feed is perfect for users who need to access historical data or analyze trends across multiple symbols without the need for immediate updates. It allows for significant cost savings, particularly when retrieving data for multiple symbols in a single request.
Requesting Cached Data
To access the cached data, include feed=cached in your API request. For example:
GET https://api.marketdata.app/v1/options/chain/SPY/?feed=cached
This query retrieves data from our cache, offering an affordable way to gather extensive data with a single credit.
Cached Feed Response Codes
When the feed=cached parameter is added, the API's response codes are modified slightly. You will no longer get 200 OK responses, but instead 203 and 204 responses:
203 NON-AUTHORITATIVE INFORMATION- This response indicates the response was successful and served from our cache server. You can treat this the same as a 200 response.204 NO CONTENT- This response indicates that the request was correct and would ordinarly return a success response, but our caching server does not have any cache data for the symbol requested. Make a live request to fetch real-time data for this symbol.
Feed Comparison
| Feature | Live Feed | Cached Feed |
|---|---|---|
| Data Timeliness | Real-time, up-to-the-second data | Data could be seconds to days old |
| Pricing | 1 credit per symbol with quote data | 1 credit per request, regardless of symbol count |
| Ideal Use-Case | Time-sensitive decisions requiring the latest data | Historical data analysis or when needing large volumes of data at lower cost |
| Default Option | Yes (if feed parameter is omitted) | No (must specify feed=cached) |
- Opt for the
livefeed when you require the most current data for each symbol, and the immediate freshness of the data justifies the additional credits. - Select the
cachedfeed for bulk data retrieval or when working with a larger set of symbols, to capitalize on the cost efficiency of retrieving extensive data at a lower price.