Chainlink vs Nownodes

Chainlink is best known as a decentralized oracle network whose core products (Data Feeds, Automation, Functions, VRF) are consumed on-chain by smart contracts rather than through a conventional web API, which is why this entry sat un-enriched for a long time. Data Streams is the one Chainlink product with a genuine off-chain HTTP surface: a low-latency REST endpoint (plus a companion WebSocket feed) that serves cryptographically-verifiable market-data reports, authenticated with an HMAC-signed API key rather than a bearer token. The mainnet endpoint bills per-report or via a subscription, payable in LINK or other supported assets; the same interface is free to call against a public testnet host for development and testing.

NOWNodes runs hosted full nodes for Bitcoin, Ethereum, and dozens of other chains, giving developers a single JSON-RPC/REST gateway instead of operating node infrastructure themselves. A free tier covers 100,000 requests for one month to get started, after which usage moves to metered Pro/Business/Enterprise plans billed per request volume. Every endpoint requires an api-key header.