The demand for reliable blockchain RPC infrastructure has never been higher. Projects across DeFi, payments, and trading need consistent, low-latency access to on-chain data — and the provider you choose directly affects your uptime, costs, and ability to scale. Whether you’re querying a single chain or running multi-chain infrastructure across dozens of networks, the RPC layer is a production-critical decision.
Each project optimizes for different priorities: some need predictable pricing, others need maximum throughput or enterprise compliance. In this guide, we compare the best RPC providers in 2026 across key metrics, such as pricing models, uptime, throughput, chain coverage, and security compliance, to help you find the right fit for your stack.
RPC providers comparison
| # | Provider | Free tier | Pricing model | Paid plans | Uptime SLA | Chains | Compliance |
| 1 | Chainstack | 3M RU/mo, 25 RPS — permanent | Request Units (flat: 1 RU/request) | From $49/mo (250 RPS) to $990/mo (400M RU) | 99.99%+ | 70+ | Type II + ISO 27001 |
| 2 | NOWNodes | 100K req/mo, 15 RPS — 1 month only | Tiered subscription | From €20/mo (1M req) to €500/mo (100M req) | 99.9% | 120+ | — |
| 3 | Quicknode | None (10M credits trial, 1 month) | Credits, method-weighted | From $49/mo (80M credits, 50 RPS) to $999/mo | 99.99% | 80+ | Type II + ISO 27001 |
| 4 | Alchemy | 30M CU/mo, 25 RPS — permanent | Compute Units (~27 CU avg/request) | Pay-as-you-go: $0.45/1M CU; Enterprise custom | 99.9%* | 100+ | Type II |
| 5 | Ankr | 200M credits/mo — permanent | API credits | Pay-as-you-go: $10/100M credits; up to 15,000 RPS | 99.99% (Enterprise) | 50+ | Type II |
*Alchemy uptime SLA is only guaranteed on Enterprise plans.
Key takeaways:
- Chainstack offers the most balanced combination: transparent flat-rate billing, 99.99%+ uptime, leads on compliance credentials (SOC 2 Type II + ISO 27001), and 70+ chains with dedicated node and Unlimited Node add-on options
- NOWNodes covers the widest range of chains (120+) and integrates natively with the NOW ecosystem (NOWPayments, ChangeNOW, NOWCustody)
- Quicknode SOC 2 Type II + ISO 27001 and raw throughput at higher tiers, but has no permanent free plan
- Alchemy provides the richest developer tooling (Notify, Transact APIs) with a generous permanent free tier, but CU pricing makes costs harder to predict at scale
- Ankr has the most generous free tier by volume (200M credits/month) with a straightforward pay-as-you-go model
In-depth analysis
1. Chainstack
Chainstack is a multi-chain infrastructure platform built for teams that need one account to cover multiple chains, environments, and workload types. It offers HTTP and WebSocket RPC access backed by geo-balanced global routing, 99.99%+ uptime, SOC 2 Type II certification, and ISO 27001. Billing is RU-based (Request Units, 1 RU per request) with a permanent free tier of 3M RU/month at 25 RPS, paid plans from $49/mo, and both Dedicated Nodes and Unlimited Node add-on with flat-rate pricing available across 70+ chains.
The platform covers the full range of deployment options from a single console:
- Global Nodes — geo-balanced RPC with automatic regional failover
- Dedicated Nodes — isolated infrastructure with full node configuration control
- Archive Nodes — full historical data access from genesis, including debug and trace methods
- Unlimited Node add-on — flat monthly fee for unlimited requests within a chosen RPS tier, with no per-request overages
- Access rules — allowlist domains and IPs directly from the dashboard
Pricing
| Plan | Price | Included RU | RPS | Overage |
| Developer | Free | 3M RU/mo | 25 | $20/1M RU |
| Growth | $49/mo | 20M RU/mo | 250 | $15/1M RU |
| Pro | $199/mo | 80M RU/mo | 400 | $12.5/1M RU |
| Business | $499/mo | 200M RU/mo | 600 | $10/1M RU |
| Enterprise | $990/mo | 400M RU/mo | Unlimited | From $5/1M RU |
| Unlimited Node add-on | From $149/mo | Unlimited requests | By RPS tier | — |
| Dedicated Nodes | From $0.50/hr + storage | — | Isolated | — |
Billing is based on Request Units (RU): 1 RU per full-node request, 2 RU per archive request. No method-level multipliers — every call counts the same within its node type.
Performance
- Uptime: 99.99%+ with multi-cloud architecture and automatic regional rerouting. Latency: Endpoint choice across US, EU, and APAC regions; geo-balanced routing on Global Nodes
- Throughput: 250 RPS on Growth, 600 RPS on Business; Unlimited Node add-on removes per-request caps entirely
- Monitoring: Built-in dashboard metrics plus public performance comparison dashboard
Pros
- Flat request-based billing — no method multipliers, no surprise cost spikes
- Unlimited Node add-on for predictable high-volume pricing
- 99.99%+ uptime SLA with multi-cloud redundancy
- MCP support
- Strongest compliance stack: SOC 2 Type II + ISO 27001 certified
- 70+ chains from one account
- Dedicated Nodes available on Pro and above
Cons
- Fixed RPS per tier; burst-heavy workloads may require Dedicated Nodes
- Free tier (3M RU, 25 RPS) can be tight for indexers or high-frequency bots
- Dedicated Nodes require at least a Pro plan ($199/mo)
2. NOWNodes
NOWNodes is a blockchain infrastructure provider offering API access to full, archive, and dedicated nodes across a broad spread of networks, with WebSocket support, block explorers, and market data alongside the core RPC layer. Billing runs on tiered subscriptions: each plan includes a fixed monthly request quota, with overage charged per 100,000 requests. The free Start tier covers 100,000 requests, 15 RPS, and five networks for one month, while paid plans run from €20/mo to €500/mo across 120+ chains. Backed by a 99.9% uptime SLA, 15,000+ transactions per second throughput, and 24/7 support, NOWNodes suits teams that value chain breadth and responsive assistance over the deepest compliance paperwork.
The provider covers several access models from one account:
- Shared Nodes — API access to full nodes on a request-quota plan, suitable for development and moderate production traffic
- Archive Nodes — full historical state access from genesis, including the deeper query and tracing methods needed for indexing, analytics, and balance-history lookups; available on shared plans and deployable as dedicated infrastructure on request
- Dedicated Nodes — fully isolated infrastructure with no daily or monthly request caps, region selection, and IP allowlisting
- Block Explorers — Blockbook-based explorers for major chains, available without registration
- Market Data — token and price data delivered through the same platform
- Public Endpoints — free, registration-free nodes with low rate limits, intended for testing rather than production
Pricing
| Plan | Price | Included requests | RPS | API keys | Overage (per 100k) |
| Start | Free | 100,000 | 15 | 1 | — |
| Pro | €20/mo | 1,000,000 | Unlimited | 3 | €5 |
| Business | €200/mo | 30,000,000 | Unlimited | 25 | €1 |
| Enterprise | €500/mo | 100,000,000 | Unlimited | 100 | €0.5 |
| Custom | Contact sales | Custom | Unlimited | Custom | Custom |
| Dedicated Nodes | Custom | Uncapped | Unlimited | Custom | — |
Billing is quota-based per plan: you pay a flat monthly fee for a set number of requests, and over-limit usage is invoiced at the end of the cycle based on your tier. The Start plan is a one-month trial rather than a permanent free tier, and the dedicated-node option removes request quotas entirely, billing on allocated hardware instead.
Performance
- Uptime: >99.9% SLA across supported services, per the published service-level terms
- Latency: Geo-balanced infrastructure with US and EU servers and response times around 0.2 seconds, with region selection available on dedicated nodes
- Throughput: 15,000+ transactions per second; 15 RPS on the free Start tier, with higher limits on paid plans, while dedicated nodes carry no per-request caps and scale with hardware
- Support: 24/7 technical support on all tiers, with account-manager response times down to a few minutes on higher plans
Pros
- Very broad chain coverage — 120+ networks from a single account
- Dedicated nodes with no request caps, region choice, and IP allowlisting
- High throughput with sub-200 ms response times on geo-balanced US/EU infrastructure
- Crypto payments accepted, plus EUR-denominated plans
- 24/7 support across every tier, including the free plan
- Block explorers and public endpoints usable without registration
Cons
- Free tier is a one-month trial only (5 networks, 1 API key), not a permanent free plan
- No SOC 2 Type II or ISO 27001 certification listed
- Per-100k overage pricing can add up on workloads that routinely exceed plan quotas
- Per-tier RPS limits above the free plan aren’t publicly listed, so sustained-rate capacity is worth confirming at sign-up
3. Quicknode
Quicknode runs a globally distributed multi-region infrastructure supporting 80+ chains. It offers HTTP and WebSocket access with archive support, plus add-ons including Streams (real-time blockchain data feeds) and Webhooks for event-triggered workflows.
It is widely used by high-traffic teams and holds the solid compliance certification stack: SOC 1 Type 2, SOC 2 Type 2, and ISO 27001.
Pricing
| Plan | Price | Credits/mo | RPS | Overage |
| Free Trial | Free (1 month) | 10M credits | 15 | — |
| Build | $49/mo | 80M credits | 50 | $0.62/1M credits |
| Accelerate | $249/mo | 450M credits | 200 | $0.55/1M credits |
| Scale | $499/mo | 1B credits | 500 | Custom |
| Business | $999/mo | Custom | 500+ | Custom |
Quicknode uses a credit-based model with method-level weighting — heavier methods (e.g., eth_getLogs, trace_*) consume significantly more credits per call than simple reads. Actual cost depends heavily on the method mix in your workload.
Performance
- Uptime: 99.99% SLA on paid tiers; globally distributed infrastructure
- Latency: Multi-region setup with intelligent routing; no public latency benchmarks
- Throughput: 50 RPS on Build, 500 RPS on Scale; higher on Enterprise
- Monitoring: Team dashboards, usage analytics, alerting via Webhooks
Pros
- Solid compliance stack: SOC 2 Type II + ISO 27001
- Streams and Webhooks for real-time event-driven architectures
- High throughput available at mid-tier plans
- 80+ chains
Cons
- No permanent free tier — only a 1-month trial
- Credit-based billing with method multipliers makes cost forecasting difficult
- Costs at high volume can be significantly higher than flat-rate alternatives
4. Alchemy
Alchemy offers RPC access through its Supernode infrastructure across 100+ chains, with HTTP and WebSocket endpoints for mainnet and testnets. Beyond raw RPC, it provides additional APIs: Notify (real-time webhook notifications for on-chain events), Transact (gas management and transaction reliability), and Mempool access.
It holds SOC 2 Type II certification and is widely used by developer-focused teams that need enhanced tooling on top of standard RPC.
Pricing
Alchemy bills in Compute Units (CU). The average is approximately 27 CU per request, but the actual cost per call varies by method — lightweight reads cost 1–10 CU while heavy calls like eth_getLogs or alchemy_getAssetTransfers can cost 150–300+ CU.
| Plan | Price | CU/mo | RPS |
| Free | Free | 30M CU/mo | 25 |
| Pay-as-you-go | Usage-based | Unlimited | Up to 300 |
| Enterprise | Custom | Custom | Custom |
Pay-as-you-go rate: $0.45/1M CU up to 300M CU/mo, $0.40/1M CU beyond that.
Performance
- Uptime: 99.9% historical; formal SLA only on Enterprise plans
- Latency: Region-based routing; no officially published latency benchmarks
- Throughput: 25 RPS on free; scales up on paid plans
- Monitoring: Real-time dashboard with request breakdown, error rates, and usage analytics
Pros
- Generous permanent free tier (30M CU/mo)
- Rich developer tooling: Notify, Transact, Mempool APIs
- SOC 2 Type II certified
- 100+ chains
Cons
- CU pricing with method multipliers — costs are hard to predict at scale without profiling your exact method mix
- No formal uptime SLA below Enterprise tier
- No dedicated node option on standard plans
5. Ankr
Ankr operates a decentralized network of node operators across 50+ chains, offering shared RPC endpoints with one of the most generous permanent free tiers available: 200M credits per month.
It holds SOC 2 Type II certification (as of 2025) and supports both HTTPS and WebSocket connections, with archive access available.
Pricing
| Plan | Price | Credits/mo | RPS |
| Free | Free | 200M credits/mo | ~30 |
| Pay-as-you-go | $10/100M credits | As used | Up to 15,000 (Enterprise) |
Performance
- Uptime: 99.99% SLA on Enterprise tiers; shared tiers have no formal SLA
- Latency: Geo-distributed network of independent operators; latency can vary more than centralized providers
- Throughput: Up to 15,000 RPS on Enterprise; shared plans are rate-limited
Pros
- Most generous permanent free tier by volume (200M credits/mo)
- Simple pay-as-you-go pricing with no monthly commitment
- SOC 2 Type II certified
- 50+ chains including HTTPS and WebSocket
Cons
- Latency consistency can be lower than managed infrastructure due to decentralized node operator model
- No formal SLA below Enterprise tier
- Fewer chains than NOWNodes or Alchemy
How to choose the right RPC provider
The right provider depends on where your project is in its lifecycle and what trade-offs matter most:
For early-stage development and testing — Ankr’s 200M free credits/month or Alchemy’s 30M CU/month free tier give you the most runway without spending.
For production at moderate scale — Chainstack’s Growth plan ($49/mo, 250 RPS, flat RU billing) offers the most predictable cost structure alongside 99.99%+ uptime and SOC 2 compliance. Alchemy Pay-as-you-go works if you need Notify or Transact APIs.
For multi-chain coverage — NOWNodes (120+ chains) or Alchemy (100+ chains) lead here. Chainstack covers 70+ chains with deeper infrastructure options per chain.
For enterprise and compliance-sensitive deployments — Quicknode (SOC 2 Type II + ISO 27001) and Chainstack (SOC 2 Type II + ISO 27001, 99.99%+ SLA) are the two providers with formal compliance documentation.
For highest volume at lowest per-request cost — Chainstack Enterprise ($5/1M RU) or Chainstack’s Unlimited Node add-on (flat monthly fee, unlimited requests) typically undercut CU and credit-based models significantly once method mix is factored in.
Conclusion
Every provider on this list covers the basics — the differences show up at scale. If compliance and uptime guarantees are non-negotiable, Chainstack and Quicknode are the only two options with formal SOC 2 Type II + ISO 27001 and a 99.99% SLA. If chain coverage matters most, NOWNodes (120+) and Alchemy (100+) lead. If you’re still in development and want maximum free runway, Ankr’s 200M credits/month is hard to beat.
The billing model is worth more attention than most teams give it. Method-weighted CU and credit systems are hard to forecast at scale — flat per-request pricing like Chainstack’s RU model keeps costs predictable as workloads grow. Pick the model that matches your call mix, not just the lowest headline price.