How to Get All Perpetual Contract Pairs on OKX Using CCXT in Python

Cryptocurrency trading has evolved rapidly, and automated trading using APIs is now a standard practice for both retail and institutional traders. One of the most powerful tools available for interacting with multiple exchanges—including OKX—is the CCXT library in Python. If you're looking to retrieve all perpetual contract pairs listed on OKX programmatically, this guide will walk you through the complete process, from setup to implementation, with best practices and code examples.

Whether you're building a trading bot, conducting market analysis, or monitoring contract availability, accessing real-time perpetual futures data is essential. Let’s dive into how you can use CCXT to fetch all available perpetual contracts on OKX.

What Is CCXT?

CCXT is an open-source Python, JavaScript, and PHP library that enables developers to interact with over 100 cryptocurrency exchanges via a unified API interface. It supports spot trading, margin trading, and derivatives such as futures and perpetual contracts.

Key features:

Unified API across multiple exchanges
Real-time price fetching
Order placement and management
Market data retrieval (tickers, order books, OHLCV)
Support for both public and private endpoints

👉 Discover how to integrate advanced trading tools into your strategy with powerful APIs.

Step-by-Step: Fetch All Perpetual Contract Pairs on OKX

To get all perpetual contract pairs from OKX using CCXT, follow these steps:

1. Install CCXT

First, ensure you have Python installed (3.7 or higher recommended), then install CCXT via pip:

pip install ccxt

This command installs the latest version of CCXT with full support for OKX and other major exchanges.

2. Connect to OKX Public API

You don't need an API key to access market data like symbols and tickers—only for private account operations like placing orders or checking balances.

Here's how to initialize the OKX exchange object:

import ccxt

# Initialize OKX exchange instance
exchange = ccxt.okx({
    'enableRateLimit': True,  # Required by CCXT to avoid rate limiting
    'options': {
        'defaultType': 'swap'  # Specifies perpetual swap contracts
    }
})

🔍 Note: Setting 'defaultType': 'swap' tells CCXT to focus on perpetual (swap) contracts instead of spot or futures.

3. Load Markets and Filter Perpetual Contracts

Once connected, load the market data and filter for perpetual pairs only:

# Load all markets
markets = exchange.load_markets()

# Extract only perpetual swap contracts
perpetual_pairs = []
for symbol in markets:
    market = markets[symbol]
    if market['swap'] and market['active']:  # Check if it's a swap and active
        perpetual_pairs.append({
            'symbol': market['symbol'],
            'base': market['base'],
            'quote': market['quote'],
            'settle': market['settle'],       # Usually USDT or USD
            'type': market['type']
        })

# Print results
for pair in perpetual_pairs:
    print(pair['symbol'])

This script returns a clean list of all active perpetual contract pairs, such as:

BTC/USDT:USDT
ETH/USD:USD
SOL/USDT:USDT

Each symbol format follows OKX’s convention: base/quote:settle.

4. Optional: Save Results to CSV

For further analysis or integration with trading systems, export the results:

import csv

with open('okx_perpetual_pairs.csv', 'w', newline='') as file:
    writer = csv.DictWriter(file, fieldnames=['symbol', 'base', 'quote', 'settle', 'type'])
    writer.writeheader()
    writer.writerows(perpetual_pairs)

Now you have a reusable dataset of all OKX perpetuals.

Understanding Key Fields in Perpetual Contracts

When working with perpetual futures, it's important to understand what each field means:

Field	Description
Symbol	Trading pair identifier (e.g., BTC/USDT:USDT)
Base	The cryptocurrency being traded (e.g., BTC)
Quote	The pricing currency (e.g., USDT)
Settle	The settlement currency (can differ from quote)
Active	Whether the market is currently tradable

Knowing these helps when filtering or selecting specific contracts for trading strategies.

Core Keywords for SEO and Relevance

To enhance search visibility and align with user intent, here are the core keywords naturally integrated throughout this article:

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fetch all swap markets OKX
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Python crypto trading bot
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These terms reflect high-intent searches related to algorithmic trading and exchange integration.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q1: Do I need an API key to get perpetual contract pairs?

No. You only need an API key for private endpoints like placing orders or fetching your balance. Public data such as market symbols, prices, and order books can be accessed without authentication.

Q2: Why does my code return duplicate or inactive markets?

By default, load_markets() includes all markets—active and inactive. Always filter by market['active'] == True and use the correct type (swap) to avoid outdated or suspended pairs.

Q3: What’s the difference between `'swap'` and `'future'` in CCXT?

In CCXT:

'swap' refers to perpetual contracts (no expiry date)
'future' refers to quarterly or monthly futures (with expiration)

Use defaultType: 'swap' to target perpetuals specifically.

Q4: How often should I refresh the list of perpetual pairs?

Market listings change occasionally. For live bots, consider refreshing every 6–24 hours using a scheduled task (e.g., cron job or APScheduler).

Q5: Can I use this method for other exchanges?

Yes! CCXT supports many exchanges like Binance, Bybit, KuCoin, and more. Just replace ccxt.okx() with ccxt.binance() or another supported exchange.

Q6: Is rate limiting necessary when fetching market data?

Yes. OKX enforces API rate limits. Setting 'enableRateLimit': True in your exchange config ensures compliance and prevents IP bans.

👉 Access real-time market data securely and efficiently using trusted exchange platforms.

Practical Use Cases

Once you’ve retrieved the full list of perpetual contracts, you can apply it in various ways:

Trading Bot Development: Automatically detect new pairs for arbitrage or trend-following strategies.
Market Surveillance: Monitor listing announcements and identify early movers.
Portfolio Diversification: Analyze available instruments across chains and sectors (DeFi, memecoins, etc.).
Backtesting Setup: Generate symbol lists for historical data collection.

For example, combining this with OHLCV data fetching allows you to scan hundreds of markets for breakout patterns.

Final Thoughts

Using CCXT in Python to retrieve all perpetual contract pairs on OKX is fast, reliable, and scalable. With just a few lines of code, you can automate market discovery and integrate real-time data into your trading workflows.

As the crypto derivatives space continues to grow—with new tokens and contracts launching weekly—having a systematic way to track available instruments gives you a significant edge.

Whether you're a developer building bots or a trader analyzing opportunities, mastering tools like CCXT opens doors to smarter, faster decision-making.

👉 Start building your next-generation trading system with robust API connectivity today.