Frankfurter Python API Docs | dltHub

Build a Frankfurter-to-database pipeline in Python using dlt with AI Workbench support for Claude Code, Cursor, and Codex.

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Frankfurter is a free currency conversion API using ECB rates; its main endpoint is https://api.frankfurter.dev/v2/rates; it supports historical rates and currency lists. The REST API base URL is https://api.frankfurter.dev/v2 and no authentication required (public, no API key).

dlt is an open-source Python library that handles authentication, pagination, and schema evolution automatically. dlthub provides AI context files that enable code assistants to generate production-ready pipelines. Install with uv add "dlt[hub]" and start loading Frankfurter data in under 10 minutes.


What data can I load from Frankfurter?

Here are some of the endpoints you can load from Frankfurter:

ResourceEndpointMethodData selectorDescription
ratesratesGET(top-level array)Latest available working-day exchange rates, one record per currency pair (default base EUR)
rates_baserates?base={base}GET(top-level array)Latest rates with custom base currency
rates_quotesrates?quotes=CHF,GBPGET(top-level array)Latest rates filtered to specific quote currencies
historicalrates?date={date}GET(top-level array)Rates for a specific historical date (YYYY-MM-DD); cannot be combined with from/to
time_seriesrates?from={from}&to={to}GET(top-level array)Rates across a date range; each record carries its own date. Optional group=week|month downsamples
rate_pairrate/{base}/{quote}GET(top-level object)A single exchange rate pair, optionally at a given date
currenciescurrenciesGET(top-level array)Supported currencies with ISO codes, symbols, and availability dates. scope=all includes legacy currencies
currencycurrency/{code}GET(top-level object)A single currency with provider keys and peg metadata
providersprovidersGET(top-level array)Data providers behind the blended rates, with coverage dates and publish cadence

How do I authenticate with the Frankfurter API?

Frankfurter is a public API with no authentication or API keys required; requests can be made directly to the API endpoints over HTTPS.

1. Get your credentials

No credentials required. For production‑critical use consider self‑hosting with Docker (docker run -d -p 80

lineofflight/frankfurter).

2. Add them to .dlt/secrets.toml

Nothing to add — Frankfurter needs no credentials, so this source has no .dlt/secrets.toml entry. If you self-host behind your own gateway, or add a destination that does need credentials, see setting up credentials with dlt for environment variable and vault-based options. Never hardcode tokens in your pipeline script.


How do I set up and run the pipeline?

Set up a virtual environment and install dlt:

uv init uv add "dlt[hub]"

1. Install the dlt AI Workbench:

uv run dlthub ai init --agent <your-agent> # <agent>: claude | cursor | codex

This installs project rules, a secrets management skill, appropriate ignore files, and configures the dlt MCP server for your agent. Learn more →

2. Install the rest-api-pipeline toolkit:

uv run dlthub ai toolkit install rest-api-pipeline

This loads the skills and context about dlt the agent uses to build the pipeline iteratively, efficiently, and safely. The agent uses MCP tools to inspect credentials — it never needs to read your secrets.toml directly. Learn more →

3. Start LLM-assisted coding:

Use /find-source to load data from the Frankfurter API into DuckDB.

The rest-api-pipeline toolkit takes over from here — it reads relevant API documentation, presents you with options for which endpoints to load, and follows a structured workflow to scaffold, debug, and validate the pipeline step by step.

4. Run the pipeline:

uv run python frankfurter_pipeline.py

If everything is configured correctly, you'll see output like this:

Pipeline frankfurter_pipeline load step completed in 0.26 seconds 1 load package(s) were loaded to destination duckdb and into dataset frankfurter_data The duckdb destination used duckdb:/frankfurter.duckdb location to store data Load package 1749667187.541553 is LOADED and contains no failed jobs

Inspect your pipeline and data:

uv run dlthub show

This opens the Pipeline Dashboard where you can verify pipeline state, load metrics, schema (tables, columns, types), and query the loaded data directly.


Python pipeline example

This example loads rates and currencies from the Frankfurter API into DuckDB. It mirrors the endpoint and data selector configuration from the table above:

import dlt from dlt.sources.rest_api import RESTAPIConfig, rest_api_resources @dlt.source def frankfurter_source(): config: RESTAPIConfig = { "client": { "base_url": "https://api.frankfurter.dev/v2", }, "resources": [ {"name": "rates", "endpoint": {"path": "rates"}}, {"name": "currencies", "endpoint": {"path": "currencies"}} ], } yield from rest_api_resources(config) def get_data() -> None: pipeline = dlt.pipeline( pipeline_name="frankfurter_pipeline", destination="duckdb", dataset_name="frankfurter_data", ) load_info = pipeline.run(frankfurter_source()) print(load_info)

To add more endpoints, append entries from the resource table to the "resources" list using the same name, path, and data_selector pattern.


How do I query the loaded data?

Once the pipeline runs, dlt creates one table per resource. You can query with Python or SQL.

Python (pandas DataFrame):

import dlt data = dlt.pipeline("frankfurter_pipeline").dataset() sessions_df = data.rates.df() print(sessions_df.head())

SQL (DuckDB example):

SELECT * FROM frankfurter_data.rates LIMIT 10;

In a marimo or Jupyter notebook:

import dlt data = dlt.pipeline("frankfurter_pipeline").dataset() data.rates.df().head()

See how to explore your data in marimo Notebooks and how to query your data in Python with dataset.


What destinations can I load Frankfurter data to?

dlt supports loading into any of these destinations — only the destination parameter changes:

DestinationExample value
DuckDB (local, default)"duckdb"
PostgreSQL"postgres"
BigQuery"bigquery"
Snowflake"snowflake"
Redshift"redshift"
Databricks"databricks"
Filesystem (S3, GCS, Azure)"filesystem"

Change the destination in dlt.pipeline(destination="snowflake") and add credentials in .dlt/secrets.toml. See the full destinations list.


Next steps

Continue your data engineering journey with the other toolkits of the dltHub AI Workbench:

  • data-exploration — Build custom notebooks, charts, and dashboards for deeper analysis with marimo notebooks.
  • dlthub-runtime — Deploy, schedule, and monitor your pipeline in production.
uv run dlthub ai toolkit install data-exploration uv run dlthub ai toolkit install dlthub-runtime

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