# CCXT — Universal Cryptocurrency Exchange Trading Library

> A unified API for connecting to over 100 cryptocurrency exchanges in Python, JavaScript, and PHP, enabling automated trading, market data retrieval, and portfolio management across platforms.

## Install

Save as a script file and run:

# CCXT — Universal Cryptocurrency Exchange Trading Library

## Quick Use
```bash
pip install ccxt
# or
npm install ccxt
```
```python
import ccxt
exchange = ccxt.binance()
ticker = exchange.fetch_ticker('BTC/USDT')
print(ticker['last'])
```

## Introduction
CCXT provides a single consistent interface for programmatic access to cryptocurrency exchanges. It abstracts away the differences between exchange APIs so developers can write exchange-agnostic trading code in Python, JavaScript, or PHP.

## What CCXT Does
- Connects to 100+ centralized and decentralized cryptocurrency exchanges via a unified API
- Fetches real-time and historical market data including order books, tickers, and OHLCV candles
- Places, cancels, and manages orders across spot, margin, and futures markets
- Normalizes exchange responses into a common data format regardless of the source
- Supports both REST and WebSocket connections for low-latency streaming

## Architecture Overview
CCXT is structured as a collection of exchange classes, each inheriting from a base class that defines the unified API. Each exchange class implements adapter methods that translate between the unified interface and the exchange-specific REST or WebSocket endpoints. Authentication, rate limiting, and error handling are managed per-exchange with shared utilities.

## Self-Hosting & Configuration
- Install via pip, npm, or composer depending on your language of choice
- No server component required; the library runs in your application process
- API keys are passed per-exchange instance and never stored by the library
- Proxy and timeout settings can be configured per connection
- Sandbox/testnet modes available for supported exchanges

## Key Features
- Unified order placement and management across exchanges with consistent return formats
- Built-in rate limiting to respect exchange API quotas automatically
- Supports both synchronous and asynchronous execution in Python and JavaScript
- Comprehensive error hierarchy for handling exchange-specific failures gracefully
- Active maintenance with frequent updates as exchanges change their APIs

## Comparison with Similar Tools
- **python-binance** — Binance-only; CCXT covers 100+ exchanges with one API
- **Alpaca SDK** — Focuses on US equities; CCXT is crypto-specific and exchange-agnostic
- **Trading View API** — Charting-oriented; CCXT focuses on execution and data retrieval
- **Exchange-native SDKs** — Tied to a single exchange; CCXT normalizes them all

## FAQ
**Q: Does CCXT handle order execution or just data?**
A: Both. You can place, modify, and cancel orders as well as fetch market data.

**Q: Is CCXT suitable for high-frequency trading?**
A: It supports WebSocket streaming for low latency, but extremely latency-sensitive strategies may benefit from exchange-native SDKs.

**Q: Do I need a paid plan?**
A: CCXT is fully open source and free. You only need API keys from the exchanges you connect to.

**Q: How often is CCXT updated?**
A: The project publishes frequent releases to keep pace with exchange API changes.

## Sources
- https://github.com/ccxt/ccxt
- https://docs.ccxt.com

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Source: https://tokrepo.com/en/workflows/asset-9add158b
Author: Script Depot