Compare / MLS and IDX feeds
The MLS route is the established way to display listings: Bridge Interactive (a Zillow Group company) offers "MLS listing data via a modern RESTful API" to brokers and developers, invite-only and at each MLS's discretion; SimplyRETS wraps the RETS or RESO feed you already have, from $49 a month, with a 30-minute refresh and the MLS's own display flags. Both are excellent for what they are: brokerage tools for MLS data, which is sale-heavy and needs MLS membership. HousingFeed is for the product that is not a brokerage and needs rental inventory: listings property managers publish on their own sites, licensed for display without an MLS.
| HousingFeed | MLS and IDX feeds | |
|---|---|---|
| Who can get access | Any company building a product that shows rentals; order form, no membership | Bridge: "brokers and developers", "currently invite only", "at the discretion of our individual MLS partners"; SimplyRETS: you bring your own RETS/RESO credentials |
| What the listings are | Rentals published by property managers and owners on their own sites | MLS listings, mostly for sale; "Rental" is one property type among Residential, Condo, MultiFamily, Commercial, Land |
| Display rules | Attribution, link back to the manager's page, enquiries routed to the manager | The MLS's IDX rules, exposed as flags such as internetAddressDisplay; a last-updated disclaimer is often required |
| Freshness, as stated | Weekly verification; delistings delivered | SimplyRETS: "30 minute refresh periods"; Bridge: not stated |
| Pricing | Display Feed by scope, quoted with the sample | SimplyRETS $49 / $99 / $199 per month plus a $99 connection fee per feed, checked 2026-09-20; Bridge: not published |
| Time to first data | Sample within one business day; 30 days free on integration | Bridge: not stated ("invite only"); Zillow's rentals feed programme is inbound to Zillow and "typically takes 4-6 weeks" of testing |
| Licenses listings for public display? | Yes, via the Display Feed (manager-direct listings; portal listings excluded) | Yes for MLS members under IDX/VOW rules; the right comes from the MLS, not from the vendor |
You are not a brokerage, you need rentals rather than sale listings, and you want inventory you may display without an MLS membership or an invitation.
You are a licensed brokerage or build for one, your inventory is for-sale or MLS-listed, and you already hold or can obtain MLS data access; IDX is the right frame and SimplyRETS or Bridge are the right tools.
Filter the Data API and get JSON back:
HousingFeedcurl -X POST "https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/housingfeed~rental-listings-api/run-sync-get-dataset-items?token=YOUR_TOKEN" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{"country":"US","maxItems":100}'Bridge's MLS listing output is invite-only and gated by each MLS (checked 2026-09-20). Zillow Group's rentals programme on the same developer site is a feed into Zillow for property managers, not an outbound rental API.
No. The Display Feed contains listings collected from property managers' and owners' own sites and leasing software. No MLS data, no portal data.
They apply to MLS data. HousingFeed's conditions are its own and are public: name the manager as the source, link back to the listing, route enquiries to the manager, remove delisted records on sync.
More comparisons: vs RentCast · vs Zillow API · vs Realtor.com API · vs Redfin API · vs Rentometer · vs HelloData · vs Apartment List API · vs Dwellsy IQ · vs RealtyAPI · vs Mashvisor API · vs Apify portal scrapers
2.1M+ rows of rental listings from 90+ sources across 30 countries in one documented Data API, and a Display Feed of manager-direct listings licensed for display.
MLS and IDX feeds is a trademark of its respective owner; HousingFeed is independent and not affiliated with or endorsed by it. Comparison reflects public information; competitor pricing is published pricing, checked 2026-09-20, and may change.