RentCast API vs Zillow (Bridge API) for AI agents
RentCast API is a self-serve REST API for US property records, value and rent estimates, market data, and active sale and rental listings. Zillow Group's developer portal lists APIs such as MLS Listings (served through the Bridge Listing Output platform), Public Records and Zestimates, and the listings and public records APIs are invite-only.
The short answer
- RentCast API: The quickest self-serve way to search active US rentals and for-sale homes with agent contacts, without MLS paperwork.
- Zillow (Bridge API): Brokers and approved vendors that already have MLS relationships and want a RESO-normalized feed from Zillow's Bridge platform.
Side by side
| RentCast API | Zillow (Bridge API) | |
|---|---|---|
| Searches | Active sale and rental listings by city or area with filters, plus 150+ million property records, valuations and market trends. | MLS listing data from the MLS partners connected to Bridge; a separate Public Records API covers parcel, assessment and county transaction data. |
| Returns | Listing records with address, coordinates, property type, beds, baths, size, price or rent, status, days on market, MLS name and number, history, and listing agent and office. | JSON listing records normalized to the RESO Data Dictionary (MLS Listings API). |
| Before the first call | A RentCast account and an API key from the dashboard; no MLS membership or license. | An invitation: you request access through a form, and every MLS partner decides whether you get its data. |
| Free | Developer plan: 50 API calls a month for $0. | – |
| Paid | Foundation plan: $74 a month for 1,000 requests. | – |
| Acting on a result | Listings include the listing agent's and listing office's name, phone, email and website; no landlord contact is described. | – |
| Limits on keeping or showing results | The API terms allow storing API data in your own systems and redistributing it only as the license section permits; no attribution is required. | – |
| Coverage | US nationwide; listings are gathered from public sources, not directly from MLSs. | US and Canada, but only for MLSs that partner with Bridge and approve you. |
| MCP server | Official hosted MCP server: https://developers.rentcast.io/mcp | – |
Where Openpath fits
Openpath has no homes listed yet. Owners and landlords can list a home for rent or sale on Openpath today, free, and agents will find it through the same search as jobs and businesses. Get listed.
Questions people ask
What do I need before I can use RentCast API?
A RentCast account and an API key from the dashboard; no MLS membership or license.
Is RentCast API free?
Developer plan: 50 API calls a month for $0.
Sources
Every line about another company comes from its own pages. Prices and terms change, so check the source before you rely on one.
RentCast API, read on October 15, 2026:
- rentcast.io/api: “Our pricing plans start with 50 free API calls per month”
- rentcast.io/api: “$ 74 Per Month”
- rentcast.io/api: “Active sale and rental listings across the country.”
- developers.rentcast.io/reference/introduction: “To get started, create a RentCast account to access your API dashboard and generate your first API key.”
- developers.rentcast.io/reference/introduction: “We have nationwide coverage for most residential properties and select commercial property types in the US”
- developers.rentcast.io/reference/property-listings: “the names and contact information of the listing agent, the listing office or broker”
- developers.rentcast.io/reference/property-listings: “we do not retrieve our property listing data directly from the MLS”
- rentcast.io/terms-api: “and (v) to incorporate and store the API Data within your internal systems”
- rentcast.io/terms-api: “neither use of the RentCast API nor use of the API Data requires attribution”
- developers.rentcast.io/reference/ai-tools: “The RentCast API MCP server is hosted at https://developers.rentcast.io/mcp.”
Zillow (Bridge API), read on October 15, 2026:
- zillowgroup.com/developers/api/mls-broker-data/mls-listings: “The Bridge Listing Output platform allows brokers and developers to access MLS listing data via a modern RESTful API.”
- zillowgroup.com/developers/api/mls-broker-data/mls-listings: “The platform is currently invite only, so please contact us for the latest list of available MLS integrations.”
- zillowgroup.com/developers/api/mls-broker-data/mls-listings: “All data access is at the discretion of our individual MLS partners in the US and Canada.”
- zillowgroup.com/developers/api/public-data/public-records-api: “This resource is really for commercial use cases by businesses.”