We ranked 17 options data providers that sell US options chains or options history, from exchange archives to Google Sheets add-ons. ThetaData ranks first, on the deepest greeks and tick history for $40 a month. We rank second, for real-time OPRA chains with greeks included. Every figure below comes from the provider’s own pages, checked on 26 September 2026.
We sell options data, and we scored ourselves with the same rubric as the other sixteen. We lose points for having no historical greeks and no streaming, and the scorecards below show where.
How did we rank the options data providers?
Each provider was scored from 0 to 10 on six criteria, from the freshness of its option chains to its commercial path. Chains and price count double, and greeks and history count one and a half. A 10 is the best offering among these providers, and a 0 means the provider does not offer it.
The criteria favour a provider that serves a retail trader or a solo developer, because that buyer searches for the best options data API most often. A fund that buys tick data by the terabyte would weigh price far less, and for that buyer Databento and Cboe DataShop rank higher than they do here.
Which options data providers rank best?
| Rank | Provider | Score | Best for | Cost of real-time US options, API |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ThetaData | 8.6 | 3rd-order Greeks at low cost | $40/mo |
| 2 | Market Data | 7.1 | Real-time OPRA chains with Greeks | $30/mo (annual) |
| 3 | ORATS | 6.9 | Smoothed volatility surfaces for options | $299/mo |
| 4 | Tradier | 6.8 | Free real-time OPRA with Greeks | Free, partial |
| 5 | Unusual Whales | 6.1 | Real-time options flow and GEX | $150/mo |
| 6 | Massive | 5.8 | Real-time OPRA with computed Greeks | $159.2/mo (annual) |
| 7 | EODHD | 5.6 | Cheap EOD options with Greeks | Not offered |
| 8 | Intrinio | 5.5 | Full Greeks, Enterprise-priced OPRA | $150/mo |
| 8 | Sheets Finance | 5.5 | 20+ years of options history in Sheets | Not offered |
| 10 | Barchart | 5.4 | Equity and futures options with GEX | Price not published, partial |
| 10 | Databento | 5.4 | Raw tick-level options history | Price not published, partial |
| 12 | Alpaca | 5.1 | Free indicative options data | $99/mo |
| 13 | Cboe DataShop | 4.9 | Exchange-of-record OPRA history | $2,499/mo |
| 14 | MarketXLS | 4.8 | Full Excel options chains with Greeks | Not offered |
| 15 | Wisesheets | 4.7 | Cheap options access in Sheets | Not offered |
| 16 | Alpha Vantage | 3.3 | Basic real-time options endpoint | $166.58/mo (annual) |
| 17 | Yahoo Finance | 2.1 | Free but always-delayed options | Not offered |
The six highest-ranked providers, side by side:
| Feature | ThetaData | Market Data | ORATS | Tradier | Unusual Whales | Massive |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US options | Excellent, full OPRA 1 | Excellent, real-time OPRA (Trader+) | Excellent, full US options 2 | Excellent, real-time OPRA, free 3 | Excellent, 100% flow coverage | Excellent, real-time OPRA (Advanced) 4 |
| Real-time options | Yes, unlimited requests 5 | OPRA real-time on Trader plan+ | Yes, <10s delay, live tiers 6 | Yes, free with any account 3 | Yes, real-time flow 7 | Real-time from Advanced ($199/mo) 4 |
| Greeks and IV | Excellent, up to 3rd order 1 | Real-time only, no historical | Excellent, SMV-smoothed Greeks 6 | Yes, via ORATS, hourly refresh 8 | Excellent, GEX + volatility suite | Computed; latency follows quote tier 4 |
| Options history | Excellent, tick-level since 2012 1 | EOD chains since 2010, unadjusted | Excellent, EOD 2007, 1-min 2020 9 | Excludes expired contracts 10 | Basic, 2-year lookback 7 | Up to 5+yr (Advanced), shallower 4 |
| Real-time US stocks | Yes, sub-second (Nasdaq Basic) 11 | SmartMid (API); IEX quote (Sheets) | Yes, underlying prices only 12 | Yes, free with any account 3 | Yes, real-time (API Basic+) 7 | Real-time from Advanced ($199/mo) 13 |
| WebSocket streaming | Yes, for stocks 11 | No 14 | No 15 | Yes 16 | Yes, 28+ channels 17 | Yes 4 |
| Google Sheets | None 18 | Native add-on, free | None 12 | No 8 | None 17 | None found 19 |
| Excel | Native add-in (needs Terminal) 20 | Not yet (planned) | None; manual VBA/API workflow 21 | No 8 | None 17 | None found 19 |
| Free tier | $0, EOD only, 1yr history 22 | 100 credits/day, 1yr history, delayed | None; $29/14-day paid trial only 6 | Yes, $0 min., real-time data included 23 | Yes, 2-day delayed flow 24 | 5 calls/min, 2yr history, EOD only 13 |
| Cheapest paid plan | $40/mo (Options Value) 5 | $12/mo (Starter, annual) | $99/mo (Trading Tools Individual) 6 | $10/mo (Pro) 23 | $42/mo (Retail Basic, annual) 24 | $23.20/mo (Stocks Starter, annual) 13 |
| Cost of real-time stocks + options | Price not published, partial 5 | $30/mo (annual) 25 | $299/mo 6 | Free, partial 23 | $150/mo 7 | $318.4/mo (annual) 13 |
| Cheapest commercial plan | $125/mo startup (Interest Rates) 26 | Custom (contact sales) | $199/mo per user 27 | Not published (Partner, custom) | $625/mo (Business, annual) 7 | $1,999/mo (Options Business) 28 |
Sources for this table, checked 2026-09-26
- thetadata.net/options-data
- orats.com/near-eod-data
- docs.tradier.com/docs/market-data.md
- massive.com/pricing?product=options
- thetadata.net/pricing
- orats.com/data-api
- unusualwhales.com/pricing?product=api
- docs.tradier.com/llms.txt
- orats.com/hard-drive-delivery
- docs.tradier.com/docs/historical-data.md
- thetadata.net/stocks-data
- orats.com/
- massive.com/pricing
- marketdata.app/llms.txt
- orats.com/docs/authentication
- docs.tradier.com/docs/streaming-data.md
- unusualwhales.com/public-api
- thetadata.net/faq
- massive.com
- thetadata.net/blog/2024-12-30-theta-data-in-excel
- orats.com/blog/get-1-minute-options-data-in-excel
- thetadata.net/docs/Articles/Getting-Started/Subscriptions.html
- tradier.com/pricing
- unusualwhales.com/pricing
- marketdata.app/docs/account/plan-limits/index.md
- thetadata.net/commercial-use
- orats.com/trading-tools
- massive.com/business-options
ThetaData
8.6/10 Up to 3rd-order Greeks and tick-level history since 2012, the deepest options analytics here for $40/month.
- Option chains, and how fresh ×2
- 9/10
- Greeks and implied volatility ×1.5
- 10/10
- Historical options data ×1.5
- 10/10
- Price for value ×2
- 9/10
- Ease of use ×1
- 4/10
- Commercial path ×0.5
- 6/10
Strengths
- Up to 3rd-order Greeks (Vanna, Charm, Speed, Zomma, Color)
- Tick-level options history since 2012-06-01
- $40/mo Options Value plan, real-time included
Weaknesses
- REST API and Excel add-in both need a local Java Terminal
ThetaData is the specialist for options research. Its greeks go to the third order, and its trade and quote history starts in June 2012 at tick level. The catch has been the Theta Terminal, a local Java program that the REST API and the Excel add-in still need. Since May 2026 its Python library connects to ThetaData’s servers directly, so a Python user can now skip the Terminal. Retail plans are for one person’s own use, and commercial plans are priced per asset class.
Market Data
7.1/10 Real-time OPRA chains with free Greeks/IV, but no historical Greeks and coverage stops at US options.
- Option chains, and how fresh ×2
- 8/10
- Greeks and implied volatility ×1.5
- 6/10
- Historical options data ×1.5
- 6/10
- Price for value ×2
- 8/10
- Ease of use ×1
- 7/10
- Commercial path ×0.5
- 6/10
Strengths
- Real-time OPRA on the Trader plan and above
- Full Greeks and IV on every real-time quote, no extra cost
- EOD chains back to 2010, including expired contracts
Weaknesses
- No historical Greeks/IV for backtesting
- No websocket streaming for options
Our options API returns full OPRA chains with the first-order greeks and implied volatility on every quote, at no extra cost. Real-time options start on the Trader plan, which is $30 a month billed annually. A chain costs one credit for each contract the call returns, so a filtered chain is cheaper than a whole one, and our chain endpoint filters by strike range or by delta before it counts.
Two gaps cost us points. We keep end-of-day chains back to 2010, but no historical greeks or IV: a customer first asked for historical greeks in November 2025, and we still do not sell them. And the 30-day trial never includes real-time options, because real-time OPRA data needs a paid Trader plan and the exchange agreement that comes with it.
ORATS
6.9/10 Proprietary SMV-smoothed Greeks and surfaces back to 2007, with no free tier.
- Option chains, and how fresh ×2
- 8/10
- Greeks and implied volatility ×1.5
- 9/10
- Historical options data ×1.5
- 9/10
- Price for value ×2
- 5/10
- Ease of use ×1
- 5/10
- Commercial path ×0.5
- 1/10
Strengths
- SMV-smoothed Greeks and IV surfaces, methodology named
- EOD history to 2007, 1-minute intraday since 2020
- Hosted backtester (Trading Tools)
Weaknesses
- No free tier, $29 paid trial only
- Redistribution forbidden
ORATS sells analytics. Its raw quotes are secondary. Its smoothed volatility surfaces and greeks are the reason to buy it, and its end-of-day history goes back to 2007. The Data API starts at $199 a month for delayed data, there is no free tier, and redistribution is not allowed.
Tradier
6.8/10 Real-time OPRA with ORATS Greeks, free with any brokerage account, but history excludes expired contracts.
- Option chains, and how fresh ×2
- 9/10
- Greeks and implied volatility ×1.5
- 6/10
- Historical options data ×1.5
- 2/10
- Price for value ×2
- 10/10
- Ease of use ×1
- 6/10
- Commercial path ×0.5
- 3/10
Strengths
- Real-time OPRA options free with any account
- Greeks/IV via ORATS, refreshed hourly
Weaknesses
- Options history excludes expired contracts
- Trustpilot 2.0/5 (28 reviews)
Tradier is a broker, and real-time OPRA options with ORATS greeks come free with any Tradier brokerage account. That makes it the cheapest real-time options feed here if you are willing to open an account. The API is for personal use unless you are an approved partner, history leaves out expired contracts, and its Trustpilot rating is 2.0 from 28 reviews.
Unusual Whales
6.1/10 100% real-time options flow coverage with a GEX/volatility suite, but only about 2 years of history.
- Option chains, and how fresh ×2
- 8/10
- Greeks and implied volatility ×1.5
- 8/10
- Historical options data ×1.5
- 3/10
- Price for value ×2
- 5/10
- Ease of use ×1
- 6/10
- Commercial path ×0.5
- 7/10
Strengths
- 100% market-coverage real-time options flow
- GEX and volatility suite included
- Official hosted MCP server
Weaknesses
- Options history limited to about 2 years
- No Google Sheets or Excel integration
Unusual Whales is the pick for an options flow API: every options trade in real time, with gamma exposure and dark pool data that no other provider here packages. The API is sold separately from the retail dashboard, at $150 a month for the Basic plan, and it looks back only about two years.
Massive
5.8/10 Real-time OPRA from $199/mo, with computed Greeks and up to 5+ years of history.
- Option chains, and how fresh ×2
- 8/10
- Greeks and implied volatility ×1.5
- 6/10
- Historical options data ×1.5
- 5/10
- Price for value ×2
- 3/10
- Ease of use ×1
- 8/10
- Commercial path ×0.5
- 6/10
Strengths
- Real-time OPRA options from $199/mo
- Up to 5+ years of options history on Advanced+
Weaknesses
- Trustpilot 2.3/5 (6 reviews)
- Real-time gated behind the $199/mo Advanced tier
Massive, formerly Polygon.io, has real-time OPRA options on its $199 Advanced plan and delayed data below that. Greeks are computed on request, so their freshness follows the plan’s quote delay. It is the broadest API here if you also need futures, forex or crypto.
What does real-time options access cost at each provider?
The price of the plan that actually unlocks real-time options, greeks included, with every add-on counted:
| Provider | What you must buy | Per month, billed monthly | Per month, billed annually | What it includes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tradier 1 | Lite (partial) | Free | No annual plan | Free with a brokerage account; greeks refresh hourly. |
| Market Data 2 | Trader | $75/mo | $30/mo | Real-time OPRA options with full greeks and IV, at no extra cost; personal use only. |
| ThetaData 3 | Options Value | $40/mo | No annual plan | Options Value gives real-time OPRA options with greeks; requires running Theta Terminal. |
| Alpaca 4 | Algo Trader Plus | $99/mo | No annual plan | Algo Trader Plus ($99/mo): real-time OPRA options feed with per-contract greeks. |
| Intrinio 5 | Individual | $150/mo | No annual plan | Individual plan includes OptionsEdge, a derived options price with full greeks and IV. |
| Unusual Whales 6 | API Basic | $150/mo | No annual plan | API Basic includes real-time options flow plus greek-exposure (GEX) and volatility data. |
| Massive 7 | Options Advanced | $199/mo | $159.2/mo | Options Advanced is the cheapest tier with a real-time OPRA chain and real-time greeks. |
| Alpha Vantage 8 | Premium 4 (600 requests a minute) | $199.99/mo | $166.58/mo | Needs Premium 4 ($199.99/mo) or higher; greeks included via require_greeks. |
| ORATS 9 | Live Data API | $299/mo | No annual plan | Live Data API gives real-time OPRA chains with full greeks and IV; needs a signed deal. |
| Cboe DataShop 10 | All Access API — Tier 3 | $2,499/mo | No annual plan | Tier 3 gives 1.25M points/month of real-time OPRA options with greeks; fees extra. |
| Barchart 11 | OnDemand (API) (partial) | Not published | Not published | OnDemand can give real-time options; only a generic volatility field, no confirmed greeks. |
| Databento 12 | OPRA.PILLAR subscription (partial) | Not published | Not published | Real-time OPRA quotes and trades only, no computed greeks; price is unpublished. |
Price sources for this table
- docs.tradier.com/docs/market-data.md
- marketdata.app/docs/account/plan-limits/index.md
- thetadata.net/pricing
- alpaca.markets/data
- intrinio.com/options/optionsedge
- unusualwhales.com/pricing?product=api
- massive.com/pricing?product=options
- alphavantage.co/documentation/
- orats.com/data-api
- datashop.cboe.com/cboe-all-access-api
- barchart.com/ondemand/api
- databento.com/blog/subscriber-status
Tradier’s free feed needs a brokerage account and refreshes greeks hourly. Past that, we are the cheapest real-time OPRA source here at $30 a month billed annually, and the same plan covers stocks, funds and the Sheets add-on. For backtests, this is what five or more years of end-of-day chains costs:
| Provider | What you must buy | Per month, billed monthly | Per month, billed annually | What it includes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Market Data 1 | Starter | $30/mo | $12/mo | Starter includes 5 years of unadjusted EOD options history, from data back to 2010. |
| Barchart 2 | Premier (partial) | $19.99/mo | $19.99/mo | Premier gives historical options data; years of depth and price are not published. |
| Alpha Vantage 3 | Premium 1 (or any higher premium tier) | $49.99/mo | $41.58/mo | Premium 1 unlocks historical options back to 2008; not on the free tier. |
| Sheets Finance 4 | Options | $98/mo | $78/mo | The standalone Options product gives 20+ years of EOD OPRA history, expired included. |
| ThetaData 5 | Options Standard | $80/mo | No annual plan | Options Standard gives 8 years of EOD and tick-level options history with full NBBO. |
| Cboe DataShop 6 | Option EOD Summary — full market | $300/mo | $125/mo | Full-market EOD options history since 2012; price is an estimate, not a published rate. |
| Massive 7 | Options Advanced | $199/mo | $159.2/mo | Options Advanced gives 5+ years of EOD options history, bundled with real-time delivery. |
| ORATS 8 | Delayed Data API | $199/mo | No annual plan | Delayed Data API gives EOD options chains with greeks and IV back to 2007. |
| Databento 9 | Usage-based OPRA.PILLAR history | Not published | Not published | Usage-based OPRA history back to 2013, billed from $0.04/GB; no flat monthly price. |
| Intrinio 10 | Individual plus a bulk-history purchase | Not published | Not published | Individual includes about 2 years of options history; 5+ years needs an unpriced bulk buy. |
Price sources for this table
- marketdata.app/docs/account/plan-limits/index.md
- barchart.com/get-barchart-premier
- alphavantage.co/documentation/
- sheetsfinance.com/docs/pricing-and-plans-xgwqy
- thetadata.net/pricing
- datashop.cboe.com/option-eod-summary
- massive.com/pricing?product=options
- orats.com/data-api
- databento.com/options
- intrinio.com/options/eod-historical-options
Where can you get free options data?
Tradier’s brokerage account is the only source of free real-time options data we found. Alpaca’s free plan gives an indicative options feed, which is not the OPRA feed. Yahoo Finance shows options chains for free, always 15 minutes delayed, through an unofficial route that its terms do not permit for automated use.
Our free plan includes options data 24 hours delayed, 100 credits a day, and a year of history, which is enough to build and test against before you pay. ThetaData’s free tier is end of day only. In August 2026 we set up an options research service that was replacing Yahoo Finance as the price source for its product.
Which provider has the best historical options data?
For tick-level history, ThetaData and Cboe DataShop reach back to 2012, and Databento to 2013. For smoothed end-of-day greeks and volatility, ORATS reaches back to 2007. Sheets Finance offers over 20 years of chains inside a spreadsheet. Our end-of-day chains start in 2010 and include expired contracts, but without historical greeks.
Our historical options data guide shows what a download looks like.
Which providers sell options data you may redistribute?
Almost none on a self-serve plan. Read the terms. Every retail plan in this ranking is for personal use. Unusual Whales sells a Business plan with redistribution from $625 a month billed annually, and ThetaData and Massive publish commercial prices. Real-time options for display also carry OPRA’s own fees, which our OPRA fees guide breaks down.
Our commercial plans go through our partner Intrinio.
How much does a full options chain cost on our plans?
It depends on the chain, because we bill real-time options at one credit per contract returned. The Trader plan’s 100,000 daily credits cover polling a few contracts all session.
A full SPX chain is another matter: at more than 22,000 contracts, pulling it every minute needs the Quant or Prime plan. We gave a developer exactly that answer in September 2026.
What if you need a commercial license for options data?
We refer you to our partner Intrinio. We made that change in February 2025, after IEX ended free redistribution of real-time stock prices for business use, because exchange compliance for business customers was more than our small team could handle.
The volume is steady: from 1 to 25 September 2026 we passed on 22 commercial enquiries. Each one described a product that would show prices, or something built from them, to other people.
When should you not use Market Data for options?
Use another provider if you need options on futures or historical greeks for backtests. ThetaData and ORATS fit those jobs better, and Databento sells futures options. The overall ranking of financial data providers compares all of them on more than options, and our own options data API page lists what we cover.
OPRA publishes the rules for options market data on its official site.