Mediastack vs APITube: full comparison for 2026
Quick verdict
Mediastack (3.8/5) edges ahead of APITube (3.4/5) overall. Mediastack is the better choice for low-traffic sites needing a cheap commercial headline feed. APITube is the stronger option for developers comparing coverage in a side-by-side trial. The right pick depends on your budget, how much history you need and whether you need full text.
Mediastack vs APITube: head-to-head summary
| Criterion | Mediastack | APITube |
|---|---|---|
| Founded | 2015 | Not disclosed |
| HQ | Vienna, Austria (apilayer); owned by Idera | Not publicly disclosed (developer profile lists Texas, USA) |
| Team size | Part of Idera | Not publicly disclosed |
| Rating | 3.8 / 5 | 3.4 / 5 |
| Primary differentiator | Commercial use and historical news from $24.99 a month | Sentiment and entity filters offered on lower tiers |
| Pricing model | Monthly request plans | Monthly plans; free tier |
| Entry price | $24.99/mo | See pricing page |
| Formats & SDKs | REST API, JSON | REST API, JSON |
| Typical uses | News & content apps, Marketing & PR | News & content apps, AI & LLM apps, Media monitoring |
Mediastack vs APITube: overview
Mediastack
Mediastack belongs to apilayer, the Vienna company behind ipstack and weatherstack, which Julian and Paul Zehetmayr founded in 2015 and the US software group Idera bought in January 2021. If you already use another apilayer API, the key format, parameters and error codes will look familiar. It covers live and historical news from 7,500+ sources in 13 languages, with filters for country, category, language and keyword. The free plan gives 100 requests a month, which a day of testing can use up, and paid plans run from $24.99 for 10,000 requests to $249.99 for 250,000. Responses carry descriptions and metadata, without full text or enrichment.
APITube
APITube advertises filters for language, country, category, sentiment and entities, and posts regular developer tutorials on Medium and DEV. Aggregator listings put its coverage somewhere between 300,000 and 500,000 sources in about 60 languages (per company materials; independently unverifiable). The company behind it is not named beyond a developer profile located in Texas, and no founding date is published. Its own site shows paid plans, but third-party listings quote different figures. Run your real queries through the free tier and compare results with another provider before you depend on it.
Features: Mediastack vs APITube
| Capability | Mediastack | APITube |
|---|---|---|
| Full article text | ✗ | ✓ |
| Historical archive | ✓ | ✓ |
| NLP enrichment | ✗ | ✓ |
| Story/event clustering | ✗ | ✗ |
| Official SDK | ✗ | ✗ |
| Streaming or webhooks | ✗ | ✗ |
| Free access | ✓ | ✓ |
Formats and SDKs: Mediastack vs APITube
| Format / SDK | Mediastack | APITube |
|---|---|---|
| REST API | ✓ | ✓ |
| Python SDK | N/A | N/A |
| Node.js SDK | N/A | N/A |
| Webhooks | N/A | N/A |
| WebSocket | N/A | N/A |
| MCP server | N/A | N/A |
| S3/bulk delivery | N/A | N/A |
| BigQuery | N/A | N/A |
Pricing comparison: Mediastack vs APITube
| Criterion | Mediastack | APITube |
|---|---|---|
| Entry price | $24.99/mo | See pricing page |
| Pricing model | Monthly request plans | Monthly plans; free tier |
| Access models | Free tier, Monthly plans | Free tier, Monthly plans |
| Price transparency | Public price | Quote only |
| Price tier | Budget | Enterprise / quote |
Who each API suits: Mediastack vs APITube
| Dimension | Mediastack | APITube |
|---|---|---|
| Buyer type | Individuals to enterprise | Individuals to enterprise |
| Typical uses | News & content apps, Marketing & PR | News & content apps, AI & LLM apps, Media monitoring |
| Example use cases | A category news feed on a small website. Classroom projects that need commercial terms. | A second-opinion feed during a vendor trial. Small apps that filter by sentiment. |
| How you get access | Free tier | Free tier |
Mediastack vs APITube: pros and cons
| Mediastack | |
|---|---|
| + | Among the lowest paid entry prices for general news |
| + | Shares conventions with the other apilayer APIs |
| + | History included on paid plans |
| + | Short docs with copy-paste code |
| - | 100 free requests a month barely covers testing |
| - | Only 7,500 sources in 13 languages |
| - | No full text, entities or sentiment |
| APITube | |
|---|---|
| + | Many filters, including sentiment and entities |
| + | A free tier for testing |
| + | Active developer tutorials |
| - | Coverage claims differ by source |
| - | Unclear who runs it |
| - | Conflicting price listings |
Who should choose Mediastack?
A typical fit: a category news feed on a small website.
Commercial use and historical news from $24.99 a month. Paid access starts at $24.99/mo. Typical uses: News & content apps, Marketing & PR.
Who should choose APITube?
A typical fit: a second-opinion feed during a vendor trial.
Sentiment and entity filters offered on lower tiers. Paid access is quote-based. Typical uses: News & content apps, AI & LLM apps, Media monitoring.
Decision matrix: Mediastack vs APITube
| Your situation | Recommended choice |
|---|---|
| You want to start free before paying | Both |
| Your budget is at the lower end | Mediastack |
| You need full article text in the response | APITube |
| You need years of historical news | Both |
| You want an official SDK | Neither; both are plain REST |
| You are wiring news into an LLM agent | Both work through plain REST calls |
Use case fit: Mediastack vs APITube
| Use case | Mediastack fit | APITube fit | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|
| News & content apps | Strong | Strong | Both equally |
| Marketing & PR | Strong | Limited | Mediastack |
| AI & LLM apps | Limited | Strong | APITube |
| Media monitoring | Limited | Strong | APITube |
Verdict: Mediastack vs APITube
Mediastack (3.8/5) is the stronger overall choice as a news data source. Commercial use and historical news from $24.99 a month.
APITube (3.4/5) is worth a look if you need small apps that filter by sentiment. If your situation matches that, APITube is a competitive option.
Related comparisons
Mediastack vs APITube FAQ
Is Mediastack better than APITube?
Mediastack (3.8/5) scores higher overall, but "better" depends on your use case. Mediastack's strongest advantage: among the lowest paid entry prices for general news. APITube's strongest advantage: many filters, including sentiment and entities.
How do Mediastack and APITube differ in pricing?
Mediastack: monthly request plans, with paid access from $24.99/mo. APITube: monthly plans; free tier, priced by quote. Both offer some free access for testing.
Which is better for enterprise: Mediastack or APITube?
Neither sells an enterprise contract. Neither carries licensed publisher content, so check copyright terms before republishing anything.
What are the main differences between Mediastack and APITube?
What sets Mediastack apart: commercial use and historical news from $24.99 a month. What sets APITube apart: sentiment and entity filters offered on lower tiers. They also differ on entry price ($24.99/mo vs See pricing page) and typical uses (News & content apps, Marketing & PR vs News & content apps, AI & LLM apps).
Verify all details directly with each API before making a decision.