Futures Data: Best Futures Datasets & Databases

What is Futures Data?

Futures are contracts to buy a specific commodity or goods in the future at a predetermined date and price. When the time comes, the buyer must buy and the seller must sell the commodity regardless of the current market price which means there is a huge potential for profit, but also for loss. A futures dataset will provide information about commodities that are traded on the futures market, such as trades that have been made and the price they were sold for.

How is Futures Data collected?

A futures dataset will typically include information that is pertinent to futures trades. It will include the commodity that is being traded as well as the date that it will eventually be sold for. You will also find basic details, such as the commodity offer price and the price that the commodity was eventually sold for. You will also find the timestamp of when the trade took place as well as front-month and back-month data.
For futures trades which have already taken place, it may be common to find information about the market value of the commodity on the day it was sold in comparison to the price it was sold for in advance in a futures dataset.

What are the attributes of Futures Data?

Anyone involved in or interested in futures trading will probably use futures data in some form. Due to the potential high profits of the futures trading market, traders and investors want to make sure they are making the most well-informed decisions to try to maximize their profits. They can use long-term data to build charts for market trend analytics which display areas with potential for high yield in order to generate the most alpha possible.

What is Futures Data used for?

Market research agencies are used by investors to highlight potentially profitable markets and commodities, which they do by analyzing futures data. They use this intelligence to create reports which can then be sold on to clients for profit.

In-house analysts rely heavily on futures data to predict how the market might change and to ascertain whether a certain investment is likely to be profitable when the commodity is finally sold on a set future date. They use futures datasets to better understand the market and advise traders on areas of high yield.

How can a user assess the quality of Futures Data?

Due to the constantly changing nature of the futures market, it is important to have a futures dataset that is kept regularly and consistently updated with the latest futures information. This is needed by traders when making trades to ensure their decision is as well-informed as possible.

Historical futures data is equally important as it can be used to identify market trends and analyze good areas of investment. You should ask for a data sample before buying any futures datasets to ensure that the data that is provided matches your business’ needs.

Where can I buy Futures Data?

Data providers and vendors listed on Datarade sell Futures Data products and samples. Popular Futures Data products and datasets available on our platform are Historical Futures Trade and Quote Data (Europe, China, USA & Canada covered)⎢Olsen Data by Olsen Data, EDI Company Future Events Data by Exchange Data International, and AlgoSeek Futures Trade and Quote data US coverage - historic data till 2010 by AlgoSeek.

How can I get Futures Data?

You can get Futures Data via a range of delivery methods - the right one for you depends on your use case. For example, historical Futures Data is usually available to download in bulk and delivered using an S3 bucket. On the other hand, if your use case is time-critical, you can buy real-time Futures Data APIs, feeds and streams to download the most up-to-date intelligence.