Valuein vs SEC EDGAR API (free, official)
The free source of truth — Valuein is the seven layers you'd otherwise build and maintain
The key difference
EDGAR is free and authoritative — and you build everything else yourself. Valuein adds the seven layers EDGAR (and its community MCP wrappers) don't: standardized concepts, restatement-vintage PIT, a 1993 backfill (vs EDGAR's ~2009 XBRL floor), audited ratios, survivorship-free index membership, per-fact citable lineage, and AI-safety governance.
Outcomes that matter
What you actually get done — not just a feature checklist.
| The job | Valuein | SEC EDGAR API (free, official) |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | Free tier, then $49/mo for the layers | Free — but you build the layers |
| Standardized, comparable concepts | 292 concepts from ~12K raw tags | Raw issuer-chosen XBRL tags |
| Backtest that survives out-of-sample | Restatement vintage to 1993 | Current view only — silent look-ahead |
| Audit any number an agent returns | fact_id → exact filing | You parse and wire it yourself |
Feature Comparison
| Feature | Valuein | SEC EDGAR API (free, official) |
|---|---|---|
| Standardization | 292 concepts, ~12K tags mapped | Raw tags + custom extensions |
| History Depth | 1993 → present | Structured XBRL from ~2009 only |
| Point-in-Time | Restatement vintage (accepted_at) | Current aggregated view (look-ahead risk) |
| Audited Ratios | 164 ratios, CI-gated accuracy | None — compute it all yourself |
| Index Membership | Survivorship-free, point-in-time | Not provided |
| AI Agent Access | Agent-safe MCP | Community MCP inherits every raw gap |
SEC EDGAR API (free, official) details and pricing are based on publicly available information as of June 2026 and may have changed — verify on their site. Where a competitor's figure is vendor-reported or estimated, we say so.
Where SEC EDGAR API (free, official) is stronger
- EDGAR is free, unlimited, and the authoritative source of truth
- EDGAR covers every filer ever — the broadest possible raw universe
- For a team willing to build and maintain the layers, EDGAR is unbeatable raw input
Best for
Developers weighing build-vs-buy who want standardized, point-in-time, auditable SEC fundamentals without maintaining a parsing, standardization, and PIT pipeline themselves.
Frequently asked questions
Why pay for Valuein when SEC EDGAR is free?
EDGAR gives you raw XBRL from ~2009 with issuer-chosen tags and no point-in-time vintaging. Valuein adds the seven layers you'd otherwise build and maintain: standardization, restatement-vintage PIT, a 1993 backfill, audited ratios, survivorship-free index membership, per-fact lineage, and AI-safety governance.
Don't the community SEC EDGAR MCP servers solve this?
They wrap the raw EDGAR API, so they inherit all of its gaps — no standardization, no point-in-time, no audited ratios, no survivorship-free index membership. Valuein's MCP serves the assembled, audited, point-in-time product instead.
Start comparing today
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