specification: FinOps Framework
specificationVersion: '1.0'
schema: https://www.finops.org/framework/
provider: Stooq
providerId: stooq
created: '2026-06-13'
modified: '2026-06-13'
reconciled: true
tags:
  - Fintech
  - Market Data
  - FinOps
  - FOCUS
description: >-
  FinOps view of Stooq. The service is entirely free with no published paid tiers, so direct
  monetary cost is zero. The primary operational cost is engineering time spent managing the
  undisclosed daily request quota, implementing CAPTCHA-based API key renewal, and caching
  downloaded CSV data to stay within limits. Bulk database snapshots require manual download
  behind a CAPTCHA, adding operational overhead. No SLA or uptime commitment is published.
sources:
  - https://stooq.com/db/h/
  - https://focus.finops.org/focus-specification/v1-3/
alignedWith:
  framework: FinOps Foundation Framework
  frameworkUrl: https://www.finops.org/framework/
  dataSpec: FOCUS
  dataSpecVersion: '1.3'
  dataSpecUrl: https://focus.finops.org/focus-specification/v1-3/
publisherName: Stooq
serviceCategory: Fintech
billingModel:
  pricingCategory: Free
  billingFrequency: None
  billingCurrency: USD
  chargeCategories:
    - None
focusColumns:
  ServiceName: Stooq Historical Data API
  ServiceCategory: Fintech
  ProviderName: Stooq
  PublisherName: Stooq
  InvoiceIssuerName: Stooq
  BillingCurrency: USD
  ChargeCategory: None
meters:
  - name: requests
    description: HTTP GET requests to /q/d/l/ counted against undisclosed daily quota.
    unit: request
    aggregation: count
    dimensions:
      - api_key
      - symbol
principles:
  - name: Visibility
    description: >-
      Log all outbound Stooq requests with symbol, timestamp, and response status. Track daily
      request count against the undisclosed quota to detect quota exhaustion before it occurs.
  - name: Allocation
    description: >-
      Assign API keys to specific workloads or teams. Each key has its own daily quota so
      separate keys per consuming service prevent cross-contamination of quota.
  - name: Optimization
    description: >-
      Cache all downloaded CSV data locally with a content-addressed store keyed by symbol,
      interval, and date range. Only fetch uncached date ranges to minimize daily request count.
      Schedule bulk database ZIP downloads from stooq.com/db/h/ to replace many individual
      calls for large backtests.
  - name: Accountability
    description: >-
      No monetary cost to track. Accountability centres on quota stewardship: assign a quota
      owner per API key, review daily hit counts in logs, and document CAPTCHA key renewal
      procedures so that rotation does not cause production outages.
maintainers:
  - FN: Kin Lane
    email: kin@apievangelist.com