SQD vs Blockdaemon
SQD vs Blockdaemon: which gives you the onchain data layer your app needs?
225+ networks · Sub-second real-time · TypeScript end-to-end
Blockdaemon is an institutional infrastructure provider: managed nodes, staking, MPC custody, RPC endpoints, and packaged data APIs, with SOC 2 Type II and ISO 27001 compliance for regulated customers. SQD is an indexed-data layer: a streaming Portal API across 225+ networks plus the TypeScript Squid and Pipes SDKs for building custom data backends. Pick Blockdaemon for compliant managed nodes, staking, and custody; pick SQD for high-throughput, decoded, multi-chain data and custom indexing.
Pick SQD if
- → You need a high-throughput, decoded, multi-chain data layer across 225+ networks from one endpoint
- → You want to write custom indexers in TypeScript and store to your own GraphQL or SQL database
- → You want open source, self-hostable infrastructure with a free public Portal and no per-call egress fees
Pick Blockdaemon if
- → You are a regulated institution that needs SOC 2 Type II and ISO 27001 compliance and an institutional SLA
- → You need managed staking, MPC custody, or wallet infrastructure alongside node access
- → You want a single vendor to run dedicated, high-availability nodes across 60+ protocols rather than building a data layer
Two different layers
Where SQD and Blockdaemon sit in your data stack
Blockdaemon is a full-stack institutional infrastructure vendor: managed node clusters, staking, MPC custody/wallets, RPC endpoints, and packaged data APIs, sold mainly to regulated institutions (exchanges, banks, custodians). SQD sits at the indexed-data layer: a streaming Portal API plus the Squid and Pipes SDKs for building custom analytics and application backends over decoded onchain data. The two overlap on RPC and data access but differ in audience and shape: Blockdaemon optimizes for compliance, custody, and managed node operations; SQD optimizes for high-throughput historical and real-time data extraction across many chains. Many teams keep Blockdaemon for nodes, staking, and custody while using SQD for the data and indexing layer.
- Apps & productsWallets Tax Payments KYC RWA
- IntelligenceComparison coming soon Comparison coming soon Comparison coming soon Comparison coming soon Comparison coming soon
- Protocol analyticsDune Comparison coming soon
- Indexed data
- Our focus Read-side infrastructureSQD decentralized, validated, multi-chain at source
- Node providers
SQD optimizes for
- ✓Decoded data at source: one endpoint, 225+ chains, queryable directly
- ✓Multi-chain in one endpoint, not per-chain RPC metered by credits or request units
- ✓A TypeScript SDK for custom indexing, plus a streaming Portal API
- ✓Validated data with 6-step verification at ingestion
- ✓Open source (Portal node AGPL-3.0) and self-hostable
Blockdaemon optimizes for
- ✓Managed node clusters, staking, and MPC custody for regulated institutions
- ✓SOC 2 Type II and ISO 27001 compliance with institutional SLAs
- ✓RPC endpoints and packaged data APIs across 60+ protocols
- ✓Full-stack infrastructure for exchanges, banks, and custodians under one SLA
At a glance
Side-by-side comparison
| Dimension | SQD | Blockdaemon |
|---|---|---|
| Coverage & Performance | ||
| Network coverage Blockdaemon's broad protocol count is on managed nodes; its programmable RPC surface covers 23 blockchains. | 225+ networks across EVM, Solana, Substrate, Bitcoin, and Hyperliquid from one Portal endpoint | 60+ protocols on the node side (200,000+ nodes); 23 blockchains via the RPC API |
| Data access shape | Streaming HTTP Portal serving decoded logs, transactions, traces, and instructions; one query spans full history plus the real-time head | JSON-RPC endpoints, REST/data APIs, and websocket/webhook event streams (Chain Watch) |
| Decoded data out of the box | Yes, decoded events and calls served directly from the Portal | Indexed/decoded data via the data indexer on supported chains; otherwise raw RPC |
| Real-time latency Different products; not a like-for-like benchmark. | Sub-second hot path; independent benchmark 27ms P50 / 48.5ms P90 | Real-time streaming and RPC available; no public P50/P90 latency figure |
| Historical backfill throughput | High-throughput batch streaming designed for fast multi-year backfills with zero egress fees | RPC and indexed APIs metered by compute units; large backfills consume CU quota |
| Architecture & openness | ||
| Open source | Yes: Pipes SDK MIT, Portal node AGPL-3.0 | Mostly proprietary SaaS; some node-ops tooling open on GitHub (Apache-2.0/MIT) |
| Self-hostable | Yes: run the Squid SDK and Portal node yourself, or use managed SQD Cloud | Managed service; core platform not customer self-hostable |
| Custom indexing / SDK | Squid SDK (TypeScript) and Pipes SDK (streaming ETL) for fully custom indexers and pipelines | No first-party indexing SDK; consume fixed REST/RPC/streaming APIs |
| Output / storage flexibility | Store to GraphQL or any TypeORM-compatible database; deploy via CLI to SQD Cloud, Docker, or self-host | Consume API responses; storage and modeling are on the developer |
| Decentralized network | Yes: permissionless worker operators paid in SQD serving a multi-chain data lake | No; centralized infrastructure, no token |
| Compliance & operations | ||
| Compliance certifications Clear Blockdaemon strength for regulated buyers. | Not the core positioning; SQD is open infrastructure | SOC 2 Type II and ISO 27001 certified (also SOC 1 Type I); OFAC compliance |
| Managed nodes / staking / custody Blockdaemon strength; complementary to SQD. | Not offered; SQD is a data layer, not a node or custody provider | Yes: managed node clusters, staking, and MPC custody/wallet products |
| Uptime / SLA Specific uptime percentage not published on the security or pricing pages. | Free public Portal plus managed SQD Cloud; enterprise SLA terms via SQD Cloud | Industry SLAs cited; 24/7/365 response and custom SLAs on Enterprise |
| Economics | ||
| Free tier | Free public Portal: no API key, no card | Free API tier: 3M compute units/month, 5 RPS, 1 test key |
| Pricing model | Predictable, network-based tiers, not per-call metered; final pricing not yet published | Compute-unit metering on APIs (per-CU overage rates published); node/staking/custody via enterprise sales |
| Egress fees | Zero egress on the Portal | Usage metered via compute units rather than a separate egress line item |
| Token required | No token required for production Portal use | No token |
Facts verified June 2026 against Blockdaemon’s public docs and product pages. Every cell value is cited in the Sources section at the bottom of this page.
Decision framework
Choose based on your workload
When SQD is the better choice
- →Building analytics, dashboards, or application backends that need decoded historical plus real-time data
- →Indexing across many chains (225+ networks) from one Portal endpoint and one query model
- →Fast multi-year backfills where per-compute-unit RPC metering and egress would be costly
- →Teams that want open source and self-hosting rather than a closed managed API
- →Custom data modeling needs that fixed REST/RPC APIs cannot express
When Blockdaemon is the better choice
- →Regulated buyers requiring SOC 2 Type II and ISO 27001 controls
- →Staking-as-a-service and MPC custody/wallet needs that SQD does not address
- →Managed, dedicated, high-availability node operations across 60+ protocols with 24/7 institutional support
- →Organizations wanting one vendor for nodes, staking, custody, and data under a single SLA
Most production teams use both: Blockdaemon for its layer, and SQD for the decoded data layer above it.
What changes, what stays
Where SQD replaces Blockdaemon, and where you keep both
SQD replaces the data-access portion of a Blockdaemon deployment: the RPC calls, indexed-data API queries, and event streams used to feed analytics, dashboards, and application backends. You keep Blockdaemon for what it is built for: managed node clusters, staking, MPC custody/wallets, and the compliance posture (SOC 2 Type II, ISO 27001) that regulated institutions require. In practice, point your data and indexing workloads at SQD's Portal and SDKs while continuing to rely on Blockdaemon for node operations, staking, and custody.
SQD replaces
- →RPC calls used for reading and indexing onchain history
- →Indexed-data API queries for decoded events and transactions
- →Event-stream consumption feeding analytics and backends
You keep Blockdaemon for
- →Managed and dedicated node clusters
- →Staking-as-a-service and liquid staking
- →MPC custody and wallet infrastructure
- →SOC 2 Type II / ISO 27001 compliance and institutional SLA
The matrix above breaks the comparison down dimension by dimension. Every claim is cited in Sources.
The full SQD toolkit
What you get with SQD
SQD offers four products that share the same underlying data lake. Pick the layer that fits your workload.
| Product | What it does | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Portal API | Sub-second multi-chain query API | Real-time apps, trading, agents |
| Squid SDK | TypeScript indexer framework | Custom data products, GraphQL APIs |
| Pipes SDK | Streaming ETL pipelines | Warehouses, analytics, batch loads |
| SQD Network | Decentralized data lake | Open access, no vendor lock |
225+
Networks indexed
27ms
Median Portal response
6-step
Validation at ingestion
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between SQD and Blockdaemon?
Is SQD a good Blockdaemon alternative for onchain data?
Does Blockdaemon offer custom indexing like SQD?
How many chains does Blockdaemon support compared to SQD?
Is Blockdaemon open source or self-hostable?
How does Blockdaemon pricing compare to SQD?
Should regulated institutions use Blockdaemon or SQD?
Sources & methodology (8 citations, verified June 2026)
Every comparison cell and statement about Blockdaemon is anchored to Blockdaemon’s own public documentation. Spotted something stale? Let us know.
Products and positioning
- Blockdaemon offers managed node clusters, staking, MPC custody/wallets, RPC endpoints, and data APIs (Transaction, Data, Infrastructure, Staking) for regulated institutions; client logos include Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, Citi, Circle, DTCC [Blockdaemon homepage]
- RPC API covers 23 blockchains across mainnet and testnet; 800+ REST and RPC endpoints; 100B+ requests; no SDK, HTTP REST/JSON-RPC only [Blockdaemon RPC API page]
Chain and protocol coverage
- 60+ named protocols listed on the protocols page including Hyperliquid, Solana, Monad, TON, Cardano, NEAR, and EVM chains [Blockdaemon protocols page]
- SOC 2 report cites more than 200,000 nodes across 60-plus protocols [Blockdaemon SOC 2 Type II announcement]
Compliance and scale
- SOC 2 Type II and ISO 27001 certified; OFAC compliance referenced [Blockdaemon security page]
- More than 400 institutional customers, over $110 billion in digital assets, more than 200,000 nodes across 60-plus protocols [Blockdaemon SOC 2 Type II announcement]
Pricing
- Free tier (3M CU/mo, 5 RPS, 1 test key); Starter (100 RPS, $0.0000425/CU), Growth (up to 365M CU/mo, 200 RPS, $0.0000200/CU), Enterprise (400M+ CU/mo, custom) tiers metered by compute units; no flat monthly prices shown [Blockdaemon API pricing page]
Open source
- ~101 repos; some node-operations tooling (Solana cluster/snapshot tooling, chain_sink) is open source under Apache-2.0/MIT with commits through 2026; core platform is proprietary [Blockdaemon GitHub org]
Decoded data on 225+ chains, one endpoint
Free public Portal, open-source SDK, and 225+ chains indexed from day one.
Indexing more than 100M events a day or need a dedicated portal? Talk to sales.