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Data Freshness

Market Data classifies the data you receive into three freshness categories:

  • Real-time — under 15 minutes old. Live trading data.
  • Delayed — 15+ minutes old, but from the current trading session.
  • Historical — from a previous, fully-closed trading session.

Which category applies depends on your plan, the data type, and the time of day.

When Delayed data becomes Historical

Historical requires both a >15-minute delay floor and a data-type-specific session-closed condition. The session-closed condition is different for stocks and options:

  • Stocks: Historical at session close + 15 min — 4:15:01 PM ET on a regular trading day. Between 4:00 PM and 4:15 PM ET, the data is still Delayed (the 15-minute Delayed window hasn't elapsed yet).
  • Options: Historical at the next session's open — 9:30:01 AM ET the next trading day, not at the prior session's close.

Friday's options quotes therefore do not become Historical until 9:30:01 AM ET Monday — they remain Delayed all weekend.

If you query an options endpoint at 6:33 AM ET Wednesday on a plan that provides Historical-only options data, you will receive Monday's close, not Tuesday's. Tuesday's options data does not roll to Historical until 9:30:01 AM ET Wednesday. This is the most common cause of "the data doesn't match my broker" support requests — the behavior is correct, the customer is just querying before the next session has opened.

By Plan

The tables below show the freshness category for every API endpoint, by plan, and assume non-professional status. Real-time exchange data is never available to professional subscribers — see the Notes below. For the underlying entitlement model, see Exchange Entitlements.

Real-time stock pricing comes from /v1/stocks/prices/

/v1/stocks/prices/ delivers Real-time stock prices with no delay on every paid plan. /v1/stocks/quotes/, /v1/stocks/candles/, and /v1/stocks/bulkcandles/ carry the standard 15-minute exchange delay. Point your application at /v1/stocks/prices/ when you need the current price.

Free Forever

All pricing data is Historical (24-hour delayed). Metadata endpoints remain Real-time.

EndpointFreshnessNotes
/v1/stocks/quotes/Historical
/v1/stocks/candles/Historical
/v1/stocks/bulkcandles/Historical
/v1/stocks/prices/Historical
/v1/options/quotes/Historical
/v1/options/chain/Historical
/v1/options/expirations/Real-timeContract metadata
/v1/options/lookup/Real-timeContract metadata
/v1/markets/status/Real-timeCalendar metadata
/v1/funds/*See notePending product confirmation

Starter Trial

Same as Free Forever — all pricing data is Historical (24-hour delayed).

EndpointFreshnessNotes
/v1/stocks/quotes/Historical
/v1/stocks/candles/Historical
/v1/stocks/bulkcandles/Historical
/v1/stocks/prices/Historical
/v1/options/quotes/Historical
/v1/options/chain/Historical
/v1/options/expirations/Real-timeContract metadata
/v1/options/lookup/Real-timeContract metadata
/v1/markets/status/Real-timeCalendar metadata
/v1/funds/*See notePending product confirmation

Trader Trial

Same as Starter Trial — all pricing data is Historical (24-hour delayed).

EndpointFreshnessNotes
/v1/stocks/quotes/Historical
/v1/stocks/candles/Historical
/v1/stocks/bulkcandles/Historical
/v1/stocks/prices/Historical
/v1/options/quotes/Historical
/v1/options/chain/Historical
/v1/options/expirations/Real-timeContract metadata
/v1/options/lookup/Real-timeContract metadata
/v1/markets/status/Real-timeCalendar metadata
/v1/funds/*See notePending product confirmation

Starter

Real-time stock prices. Stock quotes, stock candles, and options data carry the 15-minute exchange delay.

EndpointFreshnessNotes
/v1/stocks/quotes/15m delayed
/v1/stocks/candles/15m delayed
/v1/stocks/bulkcandles/15m delayed
/v1/stocks/prices/Real-time
/v1/options/quotes/15m delayed
/v1/options/chain/15m delayed
/v1/options/expirations/Real-timeContract metadata
/v1/options/lookup/Real-timeContract metadata
/v1/markets/status/Real-timeCalendar metadata
/v1/funds/*See notePending product confirmation

Trader

Real-time stock prices and Real-time options data. Stock quotes and candles carry the 15-minute exchange delay.

EndpointFreshnessNotes
/v1/stocks/quotes/15m delayed
/v1/stocks/candles/15m delayed
/v1/stocks/bulkcandles/15m delayed
/v1/stocks/prices/Real-time
/v1/options/quotes/Real-timeOPRA entitlement
/v1/options/chain/Real-timeOPRA entitlement
/v1/options/expirations/Real-timeContract metadata
/v1/options/lookup/Real-timeContract metadata
/v1/markets/status/Real-timeCalendar metadata
/v1/funds/*See notePending product confirmation

Quant

Same freshness profile as Trader.

EndpointFreshnessNotes
/v1/stocks/quotes/15m delayed
/v1/stocks/candles/15m delayed
/v1/stocks/bulkcandles/15m delayed
/v1/stocks/prices/Real-time
/v1/options/quotes/Real-timeOPRA entitlement
/v1/options/chain/Real-timeOPRA entitlement
/v1/options/expirations/Real-timeContract metadata
/v1/options/lookup/Real-timeContract metadata
/v1/markets/status/Real-timeCalendar metadata
/v1/funds/*See notePending product confirmation

Prime

Same freshness profile as Trader and Quant.

EndpointFreshnessNotes
/v1/stocks/quotes/15m delayed
/v1/stocks/candles/15m delayed
/v1/stocks/bulkcandles/15m delayed
/v1/stocks/prices/Real-time
/v1/options/quotes/Real-timeOPRA entitlement
/v1/options/chain/Real-timeOPRA entitlement
/v1/options/expirations/Real-timeContract metadata
/v1/options/lookup/Real-timeContract metadata
/v1/markets/status/Real-timeCalendar metadata
/v1/funds/*See notePending product confirmation

Notes

  • Real-time data and professional status: Real-time exchange data is only available to non-professional subscribers. Professional subscribers never receive Real-time exchange data, no matter which exchange agreements they sign. Signing an agreement does not change this, and no self-service plan changes it. Delayed / historical data access remains available, depending on the data policies of each exchange. Real-time exchange data for professional use requires direct exchange licensing — contact our sales team to discuss it. See Professional Status Policy, Exchange Entitlements, and Professional Status Explained.
  • /v1/funds/* freshness is documented per fund-data type and is pending publication here. Until then, refer to the individual endpoint pages under Funds API.
  • Stock quotes and candles carry the 15-minute exchange delay. /v1/stocks/quotes/, /v1/stocks/candles/, and /v1/stocks/bulkcandles/ are delayed 15 minutes on every plan under the UTP entitlement. The delay comes from the exchange, so mode=live does not shorten it — see Data Mode.