Frankfurter API Alternative
Frankfurter is an excellent, free, open-source ECB exchange rate API. Its limitation is 33 ECB currencies only — no ARS, BRL, or most emerging-market currencies. ApogeoAPI covers 161 currencies, refreshes every 4 hours, and bundles IP geo, countries, and cities in the same subscription.
⚠️ Frankfurter does NOT include ARS (Argentine Peso), BRL (Brazilian Real), CLP, COP, PEN, SAR, AED, or most emerging-market currencies. If your app needs LatAm or MENA pricing, Frankfurter will silently return no data for those pairs.
Frankfurter vs ApogeoAPI
| Feature | Frankfurter | ApogeoAPI |
|---|---|---|
| Number of currencies | 33 (ECB only) | 161 currencies |
| LatAm currencies (ARS, BRL, CLP) | ❌ Not included | ✅ Included |
| Update frequency | 1× per business day | Every 4 hours |
| Free to use | ✅ Completely free | ✅ Free tier (1,000 req/mo) |
| API key required | ❌ None needed | ✅ Required (rate limit control) |
| Historical rates | ✅ Yes (ECB archive) | ❌ Not available |
| Rate conversion endpoint | ✅ /convert | ✅ /v1/exchange-rates/:from |
| IP Geolocation | ❌ No | ✅ Yes |
| Countries database | ❌ No | ✅ 250 countries with full details |
| Cities database | ❌ No | ✅ 150k+ cities |
| SLA / uptime guarantee | ❌ Best-effort (OSS) | 99% (Basic+) |
When Frankfurter wins
- • Your app only needs EUR, USD, GBP, JPY, CHF — ECB pairs
- • You need historical rates back to 1999
- • You want zero cost, no API key, open-source reliability
- • You can self-host the Frankfurter server on your own infrastructure
When ApogeoAPI wins
- • You need ARS, BRL, CLP, or other LatAm/MENA currencies
- • You need rates refreshed more than once per day
- • You want IP geo + country localisation alongside FX rates
- • You need an SLA and reliable uptime for production
Migrate from Frankfurter in minutes
// Before (Frankfurter — ECB currencies only, daily updates)
const res = await fetch('https://api.frankfurter.app/latest?from=USD&to=EUR,GBP');
const { rates } = await res.json();
// rates.EUR, rates.GBP
// After (ApogeoAPI — 161 currencies, updates every 4 h)
const res = await fetch('https://api.apogeoapi.com/v1/exchange-rates/USD', {
headers: { 'X-API-Key': 'YOUR_KEY' }
});
const { rates, last_updated } = await res.json();
// rates.EUR, rates.GBP, rates.ARS, rates.BRL, rates.AED, ...Frequently Asked Questions
Is Frankfurter API completely free?
Yes, Frankfurter (frankfurter.app) is fully open-source and free with no API key required. It uses ECB (European Central Bank) rates, which update once per business day. It supports 33 currencies — all from the Eurozone and major trading pairs.
What currencies does Frankfurter NOT cover?
Frankfurter only covers ECB-published currencies (33 total). It does NOT include most Latin American currencies (ARS, BRL, COP, CLP, PEN), Middle East currencies (SAR, AED, QAR), many African currencies, and crypto pairs. If you need ARS or any LatAm currency, you need a different provider.
How often does ApogeoAPI update exchange rates?
ApogeoAPI refreshes exchange rates every 4 hours using ExchangeRate-API (161 currencies) as primary source and Frankfurter as fallback for ECB currencies. This is more frequent than Frankfurter's once-per-business-day cadence.
161 currencies — free to start
1,000 requests/month on the free plan. No credit card required.
Get your free API key