Sports data APIs deliver fixtures, live scores, statistics and betting odds to apps, media sites and sportsbooks.
This guide ranks thirteen providers on what the first requests cost, what the bill becomes as leagues and volume grow, how clearly limits and terms are published, whether a buyer can start without a sales call, and who each is built for.
Vendors can pay for more visibility on this website, for example a higher place in a ranking or more room on a page. Commercial relationships can also affect which products we feature and how prominently. Every vendor link is marked the same, whatever the arrangement behind it. How that works.
In short
What sports data apis software does
Sports data APIs supply fixtures, standings, live scores, statistics and betting odds as JSON or XML feeds, which developers connect to apps, websites and trading tools under a request quota.
Every sports data apis tool was judged on five points in a fixed order: setup effort, cost in practice, how data is exported, how easily you can leave, and the buyer it was designed for. Vendors outside the best-known names fill places 1 to 3 when they exist, and the big brands rank from place 4. Our how we work page explains the choice of these five and why we give no mark out of ten.
Football-only API with published euro tiers and a permanent free plan
Ranked #1 of 13 in Best Sports Data APIs in 2026.
Free tierPublished pricingElsewhere
The pricing page lists a free plan limited to 12 competitions, a live-score variant, a deep-data variant with line-ups and cards, and three competition tiers named Standard, Advanced and Pro.
Free access names the Champions League, Premier League, Bundesliga, La Liga and Serie A among others. The coverage page also lists MLS, Liga MX and the J. League. The v4 documentation lists resources but names no authentication method, and the operator is never named.
What stands out
Football only
Free plan
Add-on odds
Where it costs you
Scores and schedules on the free plan are delayed, and live scores need a paid tier.
Odds and statistics cost extra, and three legal pages gave a 404 when opened.
Right for
Football apps that need a cheap, clearly priced start with a few top competitions
Wrong for
Buyers who need other sports or a named legal entity
Not stated by the vendorPublished monthly tiers with a free plan; odds and statistics sold as add-ons; VAT may apply
Credit-metered betting odds API run from Australia, starting at no charge
Ranked #2 of 13 in Best Sports Data APIs in 2026.
Free tierPublished pricingAsia-Pacific
Quota is counted in credits: one per market per region on the odds endpoint, one for scores and ten per market per region for historical odds. Empty responses do not count and headers report what remains.
Bookmakers are grouped into US, Canada, UK, EU and Australia, from DraftKings and FanDuel to Pinnacle and Sportsbet. Historical odds start in June 2020. The company says it began in 2017 in Melbourne and now sits in Sydney.
What stands out
Odds only
Credit quotas
Historical odds
Where it costs you
Every market and region in a request costs credits, so wide coverage drains the quota quickly.
Score coverage is described as limited and expanding, and no support channel is named in the guide.
Right for
Odds comparison and tipster sites that need bookmaker prices across several regions
Wrong for
Teams that need player statistics, lineups or play-by-play
AustraliaPublished monthly credit plans; starter allowance at no charge; historical odds on paid plans only
Multi-sport API with per-league tiers and a plan at no charge
Ranked #3 of 13 in Best Sports Data APIs in 2026.
Free tierPublished pricingElsewhere
The documentation requires an API key in an Authorization header and returns JSON with a data key. Lists are paged by cursor rather than page number, and the error list includes 429 for rate limiting.
NBA groups cover box scores, injuries, lineups, shot charts and contract aggregates. Examples are given in cURL, JavaScript and Python, with an OpenAPI specification and a Google Sheets integration, but no official SDK is named.
What stands out
Per league
Play-by-play
Webhooks on paid
Where it costs you
Per-league billing means a multi-sport product pays once per league until it reaches the all-access tier.
The homepage names no currency and no country for BALLDONTLIE LLC.
Right for
Developers building NBA, NFL or MLB features who want a documented start
Wrong for
Buyers who want one flat price for a single sport
Not stated by the vendorPublished monthly tiers per league or across all leagues; trial on paid plans; annual option
Football, cricket and Formula One APIs from Deventer with published prices
Ranked #4 of 13 in Best Sports Data APIs in 2026.
Published pricingEurope
JSON APIs for football, cricket and Formula One are listed with live scores, lineups, xG, odds and predictions. Embeddable livescore and WordPress widgets suit teams that would rather not build.
It claims 99.99 percent uptime and seven-day human support, with a personal contact on paid plans. Card payments go through a third-party gateway that holds PCI Level 1 certification, and the policy promises email notice of a breach within seven business days.
What stands out
Per-sport APIs
xG add-ons
Livescore widgets
Where it costs you
The free football plan reaches only two leagues, so broader testing depends on the paid trial.
The home page and privacy policy name two different legal forms for the operator.
Right for
Football and cricket products wanting a published price and ready-made widgets
Wrong for
Buyers needing basketball, American football or esports data
NetherlandsPublished monthly prices per sport billed yearly; free football plan; 14-day trial on paid plans
Video highlights and live scores API with daily request quotas
Ranked #5 of 13 in Best Sports Data APIs in 2026.
Published pricingElsewhere
Paid tiers on the sport API page are Pro, Ultra and Mega, rising from 7,500 to 75,000 requests per day and from 12 to 100 per second. The cricket page adds scorecards, fall of wickets, partnerships and standings with net run rate, and states 900+ leagues and 99.97% uptime.
Access also runs through RapidAPI, and a status page exists. Prices on the two pages are reported as shown, because they differ for the same named tiers.
What stands out
Video highlights
Daily quotas
RapidAPI listing
Where it costs you
Three Highlightly pages list three different sets of tier prices.
No company name, registered country or address appears on the pages read.
Right for
Media and app builders who want highlight clips next to live scores
Wrong for
Buyers who need a named legal entity or odds feeds
Not stated by the vendorPublished monthly tiers by daily request quota; basic tier at no charge; annual discount
Cricket-first sports API from Jaipur with published monthly and yearly plans
Ranked #6 of 13 in Best Sports Data APIs in 2026.
Published pricingAsia-Pacific
Endpoints cover schedules, live scores, players, rosters and fantasy points across cricket, football, basketball, baseball, field hockey, NFL, tennis and NHL. Cricket coverage names the IPL, BBL, PSL, BPL and CPL.
The vendor says data comes from official sports authorities and counts 600+ competitions. Named customers are mostly fantasy platforms such as MPL and Sportskeeda. Support is offered by email and phone around the clock, and the company address is in Jaipur.
What stands out
Cricket first
Fantasy points
Match widgets
Where it costs you
The pricing page lists paid plans only, with the development API terms left unstated.
The advertised trials give no length or limits, and taxes are charged on top.
Right for
Fantasy cricket and football products that need fantasy points and fixed call bundles
Wrong for
Buyers looking for a plan with published terms at no charge
IndiaPublished monthly or yearly plans per sport by call volume; Enterprise quoted; trials advertised
Esports odds and statistics API from Paris, priced per game
Ranked #7 of 13 in Best Sports Data APIs in 2026.
Published pricingEurope
The pricing page lists schedules, results and context data at no cost with 1,000 requests an hour, then Historical and Post-Match Data and Live Basic at 10,000 an hour.
Live Basic carries a WebSocket API, limited League of Legends and Counter-Strike statistics and a Live Replay API. Annual plans take a 10% discount but start through the sales team. The home page claims 308 markets and 132,000+ matches, and lists an address in Paris.
What stands out
Esports only
Per game
Odds product
Where it costs you
Prices multiply by the number of games, so covering many titles costs more.
Stats plans exclude betting-related use, which pushes operators towards the quoted Odds product.
Right for
Esports media and fantasy teams covering a handful of game titles
Wrong for
Buyers needing traditional sports such as football or cricket
FrancePublished monthly per-game plans from a no-cost entry level; Live Pro quoted; annual discount
Cricket, football and Kabaddi APIs priced in rupees by monthly request quota
Ranked #8 of 13 in Best Sports Data APIs in 2026.
Published pricingElsewhere
Cricket and football are delivered over HTTP, Firebase, webhook and WebSocket, and a newsroom post mentions GraphQL for cricket. The vendor says 1,500+ development teams use its APIs and calls its cricket APIs powered by machine learning techniques.
Business + lifts the limit to unlimited matches and a million requests a month. The Kabaddi page lists no delivery methods, and the copyright line names Roanuz Softwares Private Limited.
What stands out
Cricket focus
Rupee pricing
Scorecard editor
Where it costs you
Request limits on the plan cards differ from the comparison table for the same tier.
The privacy page gives no legal entity, country, address or governing law.
Right for
Cricket and Kabaddi apps wanting rupee-priced plans by request volume
Wrong for
Buyers who want one pricing page covering every sport
Not stated by the vendorPublished cricket plans billed monthly or annually; Enterprise quoted; football and Kabaddi on separate pages
Live scores and odds feeds in XML and JSON, sold by quote
Ranked #9 of 13 in Best Sports Data APIs in 2026.
Pricing on requestElsewhere
Scores update every two to four seconds for most sports and history reaches back to 2010, according to the FAQ. Football coverage is 300+ leagues, with sport-specific APIs for cricket, tennis, horse racing, golf, rugby and others.
Documentation sits on its own domain and the site is offered in seven languages. Support is promised around the clock by email. Named customers include Tipico and Accuscore, and a community Laravel library exists on GitHub.
What stands out
XML and JSON
Odds from 30+ books
Full Package
Where it costs you
Prices are only given after contact, so plans cannot be compared in advance.
The terms page names no legal entity, registered country or governing law.
Right for
Sportsbook and score sites wanting broad league and odds feeds on trial first
Wrong for
Teams that need a published price or a named operator
Not stated by the vendorQuoted subscriptions by month, half-year or year via contact page; 30-day full-access trial
Sports and betting-odds API launched in 2025, priced by custom quote
Ranked #10 of 13 in Best Sports Data APIs in 2026.
Pricing on requestElsewhere
The home page claims 50+ sports and 500+ leagues, with data types spanning commentary, league tables, injury updates, predictions and historical archives. Live streaming integration, betting software development and betting website rental are sold as separate services.
Support runs through email, phone, WhatsApp, Telegram, a contact form and live chat. Pricing is described as flexible with no figures, and the page gives no webhook or WebSocket detail.
What stands out
Custom quote
Exchange odds
Casino API
Where it costs you
Rate limits, authentication and data licensing terms are all absent from the home page.
The uptime claim has no stated measurement method or SLA.
Right for
Small betting or fantasy projects wanting odds and scores from one vendor
Wrong for
Buyers who must see terms, certifications or a legal entity first
Not stated by the vendorQuoted per customer; trial offered with no card required
US-based data provider spanning sports, odds, fantasy and historical feeds
Ranked #11 of 13 in Best Sports Data APIs in 2026.
Pricing on requestNorth America
Product lines include a Core Sports Data API, Betting Odds API, Fantasy Sports API and News and Images API, with a League API for depth and a Global Sports API for breadth.
Named leagues run from the NFL, MLB, NBA and NHL to NASCAR, F1 and the FIFA World Cup. Logos on the home page include FanDuel, DraftKings and Fox Sports. No security statement or certification appears there, and removal requests go by email.
What stands out
US leagues
Fantasy data
Historical data
Where it costs you
No plans, prices or pricing link appear on the home page.
The privacy policy names no legal entity, hosting location or data export right.
Right for
American-league products such as fantasy and betting apps needing mapped IDs and history
Wrong for
Buyers who want to compare self-serve prices before talking to sales
United StatesQuoted by contact; API trial offered; home page lists no plans
Official-data supplier with betting, fan engagement and coaching products
Ranked #12 of 13 in Best Sports Data APIs in 2026.
Pricing on requestEurope
Football is named through the Premier League and Football DataCo, alongside the NFL, the FIFA World Cup and FIBA U19. A Premier League story refers to skeletal tracking from Second Spectrum technology.
The home page names no parent, acquisition or security certification and links an investors site. Retention is two years after last contact for enquiries. Data subjects can request access, erasure or portability through a webform or email, after identity checks.
What stands out
Quoted pricing
Betting products
Group of companies
Where it costs you
No prices and no trial are mentioned, and feed formats and coverage are left undescribed.
Data sharing reaches group entities in nine countries under adequacy decisions or contract terms.
Right for
Rights-holder style buyers whose project spans data, betting and fan engagement
Wrong for
Developers wanting self-serve access and published request limits
United KingdomQuoted through Contact Sales; trial not mentioned
Multi-sport data supplier claiming 80 sports, with Real-time and Standard packages
Ranked #13 of 13 in Best Sports Data APIs in 2026.
Pricing on requestEurope
Coverage is stated as 80+ sports, 500+ leagues and 750,000+ events a year, in XML and JSON, with an API sandbox and documentation. Extras include odds feeds, historical data, player tracking with XY coordinates and widgets.
Security is limited to a vulnerability-report page and an ethics hotline, with no certifications described. Transfers outside the EEA, UK and Switzerland rely on standard contractual clauses.
What stands out
Quoted pricing
Real-time package
Integrity services
Where it costs you
Prices are quoted and the page lists none, so sizing a budget needs a sales conversation.
The Standard package caps requests at 25,000 per sport and refreshes game feeds every 15 minutes.
Right for
Large operators licensing many sports with high request volumes and odds feeds
Wrong for
Small teams wanting published prices or a quick self-serve start
SwitzerlandQuoted per customer with multi-sport discounts; 30-day trial
Sports data APIs supply fixtures, standings, live scores, statistics and betting odds as JSON or XML feeds, which developers connect to apps, websites and trading tools under a request quota. A feature table will not settle this choice. These steps will.
01
Decide whether you need a published price
The split is 8 published against 5 quoted. If you want to compare numbers first, start with football-data.org, The Odds API, BALLDONTLIE, Sportmonks, Highlightly, Entity Sport, Pandascore, Roanuz.
02
Decide how much the jurisdiction matters
Jurisdiction is a buying criterion here. The 13 vendors are spread over 8 countries (Elsewhere 6, Europe 4, Asia-Pacific 2, North America 1), and the home country determines which disclosure rules bind them.
Sports data APIs: what one request actually costs
Providers count usage in different units, so list prices cannot be compared directly. The Odds API spends credits per market per region and charges ten times more for historical odds. Sportmonks sells a separate API per sport, BALLDONTLIE bills per league, and PandaScore bills per game title. Highlightly sets daily request quotas, football-data.org caps calls per minute and competitions, and Sportradar limits requests per sport over a rolling 30 days.
A product with one sport and one league may fit a cheap tier, while a site covering football, cricket and basketball can pay three times over. Write down the sports, leagues, refresh rate and monthly call volume you expect, then convert each vendor's unit into that same workload before comparing totals.
List the sports, leagues and calls per month you expect
Convert each vendor's unit (credit, league, game, sport) into that workload
Check whether historical or odds data is billed at a different rate
Quoted or published: how to start without a sales call
Sports data sellers split into two camps. football-data.org, The Odds API, BALLDONTLIE, Sportmonks and Highlightly publish tiers and let a developer begin the same day. Sportradar, Genius Sports, SportsDataIO, Goalserve and Sportbex ask for contact, and their pages show no amounts.
Trials differ too: Sportradar and Goalserve state 30 days, Sportmonks 14 days on paid plans, BALLDONTLIE seven days on paid plans, while Entity Sport advertises trials without a length. A quoted price is not a flaw by itself, since several sports and high volumes are hard to list, yet it hides the bill until late. Ask for a written quote with request limits, overage terms and renewal conditions before committing engineering time.
Ask quoted vendors for a written price including overage terms
Note the trial length and whether it covers every league you need
Confirm the renewal and cancellation terms in writing
Coverage claims against the leagues you actually need
Headline numbers sound alike and mean little. Sportmonks claims 2,200 football leagues and cups, SportsDataIO 1,500 competitions across 75 sports, and Sportradar 500 leagues, yet the free football plan at Sportmonks covers two leagues and football-data.org's free plan covers 12 competitions. Entity Sport and Roanuz centre on cricket, PandaScore on esports, and The Odds API on bookmaker prices rather than statistics.
Goalserve and Sportbex list wide sport ranges, but the pages read do not show which data types each league carries. List your leagues, then check, plan by plan, whether lineups, play-by-play, odds or player props are included or sold as add-ons. Test one live match end to end before signing anything.
Name every league and check it on the plan you would buy
Confirm which data types (lineups, play-by-play, odds) the plan includes
Run one live match through the sandbox or trial and compare against the official result
Speed, limits and the operator behind the feed
Freshness is stated unevenly. Goalserve states a two-to-four-second update for most sports, The Odds API says about every 30 seconds, Sportradar's Standard package pulls game feeds every 15 minutes, and football-data.org delays scores on its free plan. Rate limits range from 5 requests per minute at BALLDONTLIE's free level to 100 per second on a Highlightly tier.
Sportbex names no limits at all. Check who stands behind the feed as well: Genius Sports and Sportradar name their companies, while Goalserve, Highlightly and Roanuz do not state a country on the pages read. Match your update speed, burst needs and need for a named contract partner to the plan before launching a live product.
Compare stated refresh times with what your product shows users
Check per-minute or per-second limits against peak match traffic
Confirm a legal entity and country in the terms before relying on the feed
What goes wrong most often when buying sports data apis software
Comparing a per-credit, per-league and per-sport price as if they covered the same amount of data.
Testing on a free plan that covers two leagues and assuming the paid plan behaves the same.
Reading a vendor's headline league count as proof that your own competitions have full player-level data.
Launching a live-score product on delayed or per-minute-limited tiers without checking peak traffic.
07
Frequently asked questions
6 answers
What is the best sports data apis in 2026?
Our ranking of 13 puts football-data.org first. football-data.org publishes every tier on one page. Seven monthly plans run from a free plan with 12 competitions at 10 calls per minute up to Pro, with 100 competitions at 120.
Odds and match statistics are add-ons. It covers football alone, free-plan scores are delayed, and the imprint, terms and privacy URLs returned a 404 error, so the operator is unknown.
Which sports data apis tools publish their pricing?
The ones that do, with the model each states:
football-data.org: Published monthly tiers with a free plan; odds and statistics sold as add-ons; VAT may apply.
The Odds API: Published monthly credit plans; starter allowance at no charge; historical odds on paid plans only.
BALLDONTLIE: Published monthly tiers per league or across all leagues; trial on paid plans; annual option.
Sportmonks: Published monthly prices per sport billed yearly; free football plan; 14-day trial on paid plans.
Highlightly: Published monthly tiers by daily request quota; basic tier at no charge; annual discount.
Entity Sport: Published monthly or yearly plans per sport by call volume; Enterprise quoted; trials advertised.
Pandascore: Published monthly per-game plans from a no-cost entry level; Live Pro quoted; annual discount.
Roanuz: Published cricket plans billed monthly or annually; Enterprise quoted; football and Kabaddi on separate pages.
Everything else on the list is priced on request.
Is there a free sports data apis tool?
football-data.org, The Odds API, BALLDONTLIE can be used for free, either as a free plan or a self-hosted edition.
Where are these sports data apis vendors established?
In 8 countries across 4 regions: Elsewhere 6, Europe 4, Asia-Pacific 2, North America 1.
football-data.org: Not stated by the vendor.
The Odds API: Australia.
BALLDONTLIE: Not stated by the vendor.
Sportmonks: Netherlands.
Highlightly: Not stated by the vendor.
Entity Sport: India.
Pandascore: France.
Roanuz: Not stated by the vendor.
Goalserve: Not stated by the vendor.
Sportbex: Not stated by the vendor.
SportsDataIO: United States.
Genius Sports: United Kingdom.
Sportradar: Switzerland.
What should you use instead of football-data.org?
Look at The Odds API (made for Odds comparison and tipster sites that need bookmaker prices across several regions) and BALLDONTLIE (made for Developers building NBA, NFL or MLB features who want a documented start), which hold places two and three.
Who should not buy football-data.org?
Buyers who need other sports or a named legal entity. Scores and schedules on the free plan are delayed, and live scores need a paid tier..
Sell sports data apis and missing from the ranking? Send us a line on what the product does and who buys it. Whether it is added is our decision, though commercial arrangements can also affect it, and the terms of a listing sit on the software advice page.
