Perigon vs Finnhub: full comparison for 2026
Quick verdict
Perigon (4.5/5) edges ahead of Finnhub (3.6/5) overall. Perigon is the better choice for startups wanting enriched news with transparent tiers. Finnhub is the stronger option for developers who need market data and news from one key. The right pick depends on your budget, how much history you need and whether you need full text.
Perigon vs Finnhub: head-to-head summary
| Criterion | Perigon | Finnhub |
|---|---|---|
| Founded | 2022 | 2018 |
| HQ | Austin, Texas, USA | New York, USA |
| Team size | 11–50 | Not publicly disclosed |
| Rating | 4.5 / 5 | 3.6 / 5 |
| Primary differentiator | Published plans from $25 with enrichment and saved-query monitors included | Company news bundled with quotes, fundamentals and estimates |
| Pricing model | Monthly plans; add-ons for real-time and volume | Free key; paid market-data bundles |
| Entry price | $25/mo | Varies by data bundle |
| Formats & SDKs | REST API, JSON, Python SDK | REST API, JSON, WebSocket |
| Typical uses | AI & LLM apps, Media monitoring, Risk & compliance, Marketing & PR | Financial services, Research & academia |
Perigon vs Finnhub: overview
Perigon
Perigon was founded in 2022 by Joshua Dziabiak and Josh Rickel, is based in Austin, Texas, and closed a $5 million seed round led by LiveOak Ventures in February 2024. The API collects from more than 230,000 sources (per company website; independently unverifiable) and returns articles with entities, topics, summaries and story clusters, plus Monitors that run saved queries on a schedule. All three plans are public: Individual at $25 a month for personal use, Startup at $250 with limited commercial rights, and Commercial at $1,250 with real-time data, an SLA and SSO. Below the Commercial tier, data carries a one-hour delay unless you buy the real-time add-on.
Finnhub
Finnhub is a New York fintech founded in 2018, according to CB Insights, that sells stock, forex and crypto data over REST and WebSocket, with staff reported in New York, Mumbai, Sydney and Ho Chi Minh City. News is one feature among many. A free key returns a year of North American company news and general market headlines at up to 60 calls a minute, but it is meant for personal, non-commercial use, and low-latency news streaming is a premium feature. Commercial data bundles are priced on Finnhub's site, with the All-in-One plan listed at $1,000 a month.
Features: Perigon vs Finnhub
| Capability | Perigon | Finnhub |
|---|---|---|
| Full article text | ✓ | ✗ |
| Historical archive | ✓ | ✗ |
| NLP enrichment | ✓ | ✗ |
| Story/event clustering | ✓ | ✗ |
| Licensed publisher content | ✗ | ✗ |
| Streaming or webhooks | ✓ | ✓ |
| Free access | ✓ | ✓ |
Formats and SDKs: Perigon vs Finnhub
| Format / SDK | Perigon | Finnhub |
|---|---|---|
| REST API | ✓ | ✓ |
| Python SDK | ✓ | ✓ |
| Node.js SDK | ✓ | ✓ |
| Webhooks | ✓ | N/A |
| WebSocket | N/A | ✓ |
| MCP server | N/A | N/A |
| S3/bulk delivery | N/A | N/A |
| BigQuery | N/A | N/A |
Pricing comparison: Perigon vs Finnhub
| Criterion | Perigon | Finnhub |
|---|---|---|
| Entry price | $25/mo | Varies by data bundle |
| Pricing model | Monthly plans; add-ons for real-time and volume | Free key; paid market-data bundles |
| Access models | Free trial, Monthly plans, Enterprise contract | Free tier, Monthly plans |
| Price transparency | Public price | Quote only |
| Price tier | Budget | Enterprise / quote |
Who each API suits: Perigon vs Finnhub
| Dimension | Perigon | Finnhub |
|---|---|---|
| Buyer type | Individuals to enterprise | Individuals to enterprise |
| Typical uses | AI & LLM apps, Media monitoring, Risk & compliance | Financial services, Research & academia |
| Example use cases | A startup building a news-aware product that needs commercial rights early. Brand or risk alerts driven by saved searches. | Fintech prototypes that show news beside charts. Student and personal investing projects. |
| How you get access | Free trial | Free tier |
Perigon vs Finnhub: pros and cons
| Perigon | |
|---|---|
| + | Even the $25 tier returns entity and topic data instead of bare headlines |
| + | Monitors turn a saved query into a recurring alert without extra code |
| + | The Commercial tier bundles a 10+ year archive, an SLA and SSO in one price |
| + | License terms spell out that you are buying the structured data, which helps legal review |
| - | Real-time data costs extra below the $1,250 Commercial plan; otherwise expect a one-hour delay |
| - | Request quotas are tight for the price, with 10,000 a month on Startup |
| - | The license does not cover republishing full article text |
| Finnhub | |
|---|---|
| + | A generous free rate limit of 60 calls a minute |
| + | One key for prices, fundamentals and news keeps fintech prototypes simple |
| + | Official SDKs in many languages |
| + | WebSocket support for streaming quotes |
| - | News is basic, with headlines and summaries but no full text |
| - | The free key is non-commercial |
| - | The low-latency news stream is a premium add-on |
Who should choose Perigon?
A typical fit: a startup building a news-aware product that needs commercial rights early.
Published plans from $25 with enrichment and saved-query monitors included. Paid access starts at $25/mo. Typical uses: AI & LLM apps, Media monitoring, Risk & compliance, Marketing & PR.
Who should choose Finnhub?
A typical fit: fintech prototypes that show news beside charts.
Company news bundled with quotes, fundamentals and estimates. Paid access is quote-based. Typical uses: Financial services, Research & academia.
Decision matrix: Perigon vs Finnhub
| Your situation | Recommended choice |
|---|---|
| You want to start free before paying | Both |
| Your budget is at the lower end | Perigon |
| You need full article text in the response | Perigon |
| You need years of historical news | Perigon |
| You need licensed premium or wire content | Neither; look at Factiva, AP or LexisNexis |
| You are wiring news into an LLM agent | Perigon |
Use case fit: Perigon vs Finnhub
| Use case | Perigon fit | Finnhub fit | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|
| AI & LLM apps | Strong | Limited | Perigon |
| Media monitoring | Strong | Limited | Perigon |
| Risk & compliance | Strong | Limited | Perigon |
| Marketing & PR | Strong | Limited | Perigon |
| Financial services | Limited | Strong | Finnhub |
| Research & academia | Limited | Strong | Finnhub |
Verdict: Perigon vs Finnhub
Perigon (4.5/5) is the stronger overall choice as a news data source. Published plans from $25 with enrichment and saved-query monitors included.
Finnhub (3.6/5) is worth a look if you need student and personal investing projects. If your situation matches that, Finnhub is a competitive option.
Related comparisons
Perigon vs Finnhub FAQ
Is Perigon better than Finnhub?
Perigon (4.5/5) scores higher overall, but "better" depends on your use case. Perigon's strongest advantage: even the $25 tier returns entity and topic data instead of bare headlines. Finnhub's strongest advantage: a generous free rate limit of 60 calls a minute.
How do Perigon and Finnhub differ in pricing?
Perigon: monthly plans; add-ons for real-time and volume, with paid access from $25/mo. Finnhub: free key; paid market-data bundles, priced by quote. Both offer some free access for testing.
Which is better for enterprise: Perigon or Finnhub?
Perigon sells enterprise contracts with negotiated volume and SLA terms. Neither carries licensed publisher content, so check copyright terms before republishing anything.
What are the main differences between Perigon and Finnhub?
What sets Perigon apart: published plans from $25 with enrichment and saved-query monitors included. What sets Finnhub apart: company news bundled with quotes, fundamentals and estimates. They also differ on entry price ($25/mo vs Varies by data bundle) and typical uses (AI & LLM apps, Media monitoring vs Financial services, Research & academia).
Verify all details directly with each API before making a decision.