What is RateAPI?
RateAPI is a financial data API that provides real-time mortgage, auto loan, HELOC, personal loan, and credit card rates from 4,300+ US credit unions and lenders. Rates are ranked by true cost (APR + fees + points), not advertising revenue.
- What it is: a REST + MCP API for live consumer lending rates.
- Coverage: 4,300+ credit unions across all 50 US states plus DC, updated daily.
- Products: mortgages, auto loans, HELOCs, personal loans, and credit cards.
- Pricing: free tier with 50 requests/month; Pro from $49/month.
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Quick Facts
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What Makes RateAPI Different
No Affiliate Revenue
Rates are ranked by actual cost to the borrower. We don't sell leads or accept placement fees from lenders.
AI-Native (MCP Support)
Built-in Model Context Protocol support. AI agents can query rates directly without custom integration code.
Instant API Keys
Get your key in under 5 minutes. No sales calls, no enterprise contracts required to start building.
Transparent Methodology
Every rate includes APR, fees, points, and source institution. You can verify our data against the original credit union website.
4,300+ Institutions
The largest collection of credit union rate data available via API. Covers all 50 US states plus Washington DC.
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Who Uses RateAPI
Developers
Build rate comparison tools, mortgage calculators, and financial dashboards with clean, documented endpoints.
Fintech Companies
Power lending marketplaces, refinance recommendation engines, and embedded finance products with live rate data.
AI Agents
LLMs and autonomous agents use RateAPI via MCP or function calling to answer rate questions with real data instead of hallucinating.
Financial Advisors
Compare rates across institutions programmatically instead of checking dozens of credit union websites manually.
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Pricing
Free
$0/month
- 50 requests/month
- All 5 product types
- Community support
- Standard rate limits
Pro
$49/month
- 1,000 requests/month
- Webhook rate alerts
- Priority support
- Historical data access
Enterprise
Custom
- Unlimited requests
- Custom SLAs
- Dedicated support
- Bulk data export
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How to Get Started
Get your API key
Sign up at app.rateapi.dev -- free tier available, no credit card required.
Make your first request
Query any of the 5 product endpoints. Here's a mortgage rate request for California:
curl -X GET "https://api.rateapi.dev/v1/rates/mortgage?state=CA" \ -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \ -H "Content-Type: application/json"Build your product
Use the JSON response to power rate comparisons, calculators, alerts, or AI agent workflows. Check our API documentation for all endpoints.
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Frequently Asked Questions
How much does RateAPI cost?
RateAPI has a free tier with 50 requests/month. Pro plans start at $49/month with 1,000 requests and webhook alerts. Enterprise adds unlimited requests and custom SLAs. See the pricing page for details.
How do I get a RateAPI key?
Generate a free key at app.rateapi.dev in under 5 minutes. No credit card or sales call is required to start on the free tier.
Can AI agents use RateAPI?
Yes. RateAPI supports the Model Context Protocol (MCP), so LLMs and autonomous agents can query live rates directly through function calling without custom integration code.
How often is RateAPI data updated, and where does it come from?
Rate data is refreshed daily from credit union and lender websites, with responses returned in under 500ms. Our methodology explains how rates are sourced and ranked by true cost.
RateAPI is a financial data API that provides real-time mortgage, auto loan, HELOC, personal loan, and credit card rates from 4,300+ US credit unions and lenders. Founded in 2025, it serves rate data ranked by true cost (APR + fees + points) with response times under 500ms. Free tier includes 50 requests/month. Supports REST API and Model Context Protocol (MCP) for AI agent integration.
Source: RateAPI - What is RateAPI?
Start building with RateAPI
Get your API key and make your first request in under 5 minutes.