Alternatives to Sportmonks API
Checked on . Prices change; see each provider's page.
Sportmonks is a football (soccer) data API covering more than 2,200 leagues, with add-ons for odds, predictions, xG and news, plus separate cricket and Formula 1 APIs. Prices are published and billed month to month or yearly. source
Below is a side-by-side with Realtime Sports API, built from Sportmonks's public pages and our own plan limits, followed by where each one is the better fit. We publish this page, so read it with that in mind.
Sportmonks vs Realtime Sports API
| Sportmonks | Realtime Sports API | |
|---|---|---|
| Paid plans | Starter from €29/month (5 leagues), Growth from €99 (30 leagues), Pro from €249 (120 leagues); yearly plans 20% cheaper; Enterprise custom. 14-day free trial on paid plans. source | Starter $29, Growth $49, Pro $99, Scale $299 per month (10,000 / 25,000 / 50,000 / 500,000 calls/month); annual billing $290 / $490 / $990 / $2,990 per year |
| Free tier / trial | Free plan with two full leagues (Danish Superliga and Scottish Premiership), no card, no expiry. source | 1,000 calls in the first 30 days, then 125 calls/month at 1 request/s; WebSocket preview of 500 messages/month. No card required. |
| Sports and leagues | Football: pick leagues from 2,200+ worldwide depending on plan; separate cricket and Formula 1 APIs. source | 29 leagues monitored live: NFL, college football, NBA, men's college basketball, MLB, NHL and 23 soccer competitions. |
| Push delivery (webhooks / WebSocket) | Not listed on their public pricing page. source | Webhooks and WebSocket on every paid plan, from Starter at $29/month. The free plan has a WebSocket preview but no webhooks. |
| Betting odds | Odds & Predictions add-on from €24/month: pre-match and in-play odds, 50+ bookmakers, 150+ markets. Premium Odds Feed add-on from €129/month. source | Current spread, moneyline and total (single source book). |
| AI assistant (MCP) support | Not listed on their public pricing page. source | Hosted MCP server at https://www.realtimesportsapi.com/api/mcp with 14 tools, for Claude, Cursor and other MCP clients. |
Sportmonks details are from their public pages as of October 4, 2026 and may have changed. Realtime Sports API details are from our pricing page. Data is aggregated from public sources and is typically 20-30 seconds behind live play (about 1 second after our source). There is no SLA. Not suited to in-play betting that needs sub-second data. Odds come from a single source book.
Where Sportmonks is the better choice
- Soccer is your focus and you need leagues beyond the top competitions: they cover more than 2,200 leagues. source
- You need advanced soccer analytics such as xG, pressure index, expected lineups or AI predictions. source
- You need odds from 50+ bookmakers, or historical soccer data (available as an add-on or on Enterprise). source
- You also need cricket or Formula 1 data. source
Where Realtime Sports API may fit better
- US sports and soccer under one key: 29 leagues monitored live: NFL, college football, NBA, men's college basketball, MLB, NHL and 23 soccer competitions.
- Webhooks and WebSocket are included on every paid plan, starting at $29/month.
- A hosted MCP server (14 tools) lets Claude, Cursor and other assistants query live games directly.
- Prices in US dollars with no league picking: every plan covers all 29 monitored leagues.
Other Sportmonks alternatives
- The Odds API: The Odds API is a sports betting odds API covering odds from 100+ bookmakers across US, UK, EU and Australian regions for 100+ sports, with historical odds, a scores endpoint, and Excel and Google Sheets add-ons. It has operated since 2017.
- TheSportsDB: TheSportsDB is an open, crowd-sourced sports database with a free sports API for data and artwork.
See the full table of providers on our compare page.
FAQ
Does Sportmonks have a free plan?
Yes. Their football API page lists a free plan with the Danish Superliga and Scottish Premiership, no card and no expiry, plus a one-time 14-day trial on paid plans. source
How does Sportmonks pricing work?
Plans differ by how many leagues you pick and your hourly API call capacity: from €29/month for 5 leagues up to €249/month for 120, as of October 4, 2026. source
What is a good alternative to Sportmonks?
It depends on what you need. Realtime Sports API is one option, with 29 leagues monitored live: NFL, college football, NBA, men's college basketball, MLB, NHL and 23 soccer competitions. Webhooks and WebSocket on every paid plan, from Starter at $29/month. The free plan has a WebSocket preview but no webhooks. Other alternatives covered on our compare pages include The Odds API and TheSportsDB.
How much does Realtime Sports API cost?
Starter $29, Growth $49, Pro $99, Scale $299 per month (10,000 / 25,000 / 50,000 / 500,000 calls/month); annual billing $290 / $490 / $990 / $2,990 per year. Free tier: 1,000 calls in the first 30 days, then 125 calls/month at 1 request/s; WebSocket preview of 500 messages/month. No card required.
How fresh is Realtime Sports API data?
Data is aggregated from public sources and is typically 20-30 seconds behind live play (about 1 second after our source). There is no SLA. Not suited to in-play betting that needs sub-second data. Odds come from a single source book.
Sources
Checked on . Prices change; see each provider's page. All trademarks belong to their owners. Spotted an error? Email austin@elcodev.com and we'll fix it.