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# SearchApi alternatives in 2026: answers and sources at $5 per 1,000

Compared on Nov 10, 2026. The page: https://specstream.ai/alternatives/searchapi-io

SearchApi sells Google results by monthly plan, from $40 for 10,000 searches to $1,500 for 1,000,000. A Google call returns 10 results, and a plan can spend at most 20% of its searches in one hour.

SpecStream is the live web data engine. Its Search API returns the answer with its page and up to 100 results a call, at $5 per 1,000 searches from a balance that never expires. It scores 97.9 on [SimpleQA Verified](https://specstream.ai/benchmarks?utm_source=alternatives&utm_campaign=searchapi-io).

[Get an API key](https://specstream.ai/signup?src=alternatives-searchapi-io&utm_source=alternatives-md&utm_campaign=searchapi-io&returnTo=%2Fworkspace%2Fsearch%3Froute%3Dsearchapi) New accounts get $10 of credit, no card. It covers 2,000 searches.

## SpecStream and SearchApi side by side

| | SpecStream | SearchApi |
|---|---|---|
| What you change | One line. `https://api.specstream.ai/searchapi/api/v1/search` in place of `https://www.searchapi.io/api/v1/search`, and a SpecStream key as `api_key` in the address or as a Bearer token. The request and the reply keep their shape | `GET /api/v1/search` with a SearchApi key as the api_key parameter |
| What a call returns | `GET /v1/web-search` returns an `answer` with the value, the page it was read on and the time it was read, `rows` with the facts the request asks for, and `sources` in rank order with `url`, `title`, `snippet` and the `published` date when the result gives one | Google's results page as JSON from `GET /api/v1/search?engine=google`, with `organic_results` and the other blocks of the page |
| Price per 1,000 searches | $5 for up to 10 results, the same rate on every plan. `num=100` costs $0.059 a call | Monthly plans: Developer $40 for 10,000 searches ($4 per 1,000), Production $100 for 35,000 ($3), BigData $250 for 100,000 ($2.5), Scale $500 for 250,000 ($2), Octo 1M $1,500 for 1,000,000 ($1.5) |
| Results per call | Up to 100 with `num`. A call of up to 10 results costs $0.005, and each started block of 10 more adds $0.006 | Its docs say Google phased out `num` in September 2025, and a Google call now returns a constant 10 |
| Volume | The fast search takes up to 8,800 searches a minute on one account. A call over that gets a `429` with `Retry-After` and is not charged | Up to 20% of the plan's searches in any hour |
| When the searches run out | Calls spend from your balance, inside the spending limit you set on the key. A top-up never expires | No overage rate is printed on the pricing page |
| Failed calls | A `429` with `Retry-After` charges nothing. With an `Idempotency-Key`, a retried call is charged once | Only searches with a 200 status code are charged |
| Free to start | $10 of credit, no card. That is 2,000 searches, or up to 200 rows at 5¢ | 100 free requests on sign up, no credit card |
| What answers the call | The whole live web, read at the moment of the call. 97.9 F-score on all 1,000 SimpleQA Verified questions (978 correct) and 64.0 item F1 on all 200 WideSearch tasks | Google and the other engines SearchApi reads, one engine per call |
| The text of the pages | Add `passages=true` and each source carries an excerpt of its page, up to about 3,500 characters. The Extract API returns the main text of up to 20 pages or documents (PDF, Word, Excel) a call, at $0.80 per 1,000 pages | The snippet Google shows for each organic result |
| Data already held | Public databases read every morning at [specstream.ai/data](https://specstream.ai/data?utm_source=alternatives&utm_campaign=searchapi-io): every company that filed a Form D since 2023 with its filing history, nearly 2 million US nonprofits, every US bank failure since 1934, federal rules, open federal contracts and grants, and local businesses. Signals such as funding rounds, new executives and layoffs at [specstream.ai/signals](https://specstream.ai/signals?utm_source=alternatives&utm_campaign=searchapi-io) | Search engine results pages, fetched one query at a time |
| Every match as structured rows | Deep Search: a request in plain words returns every match on the live web as rows that meet each condition you wrote, at 5¢, 15¢ or $1 a row, plus 5¢ for an email and 15¢ for a phone. The most a run can cost is quoted before it starts, and nothing runs until you approve it | One results page per call |
| Reruns and change labels | Hourly to yearly. Each row comes back labeled changed, unchanged or no longer matching. A changed or new row costs half its rate, an unchanged row 1¢ | Each call is a new search, counted against the month's plan |
| Where the data goes | Google Sheets, Excel, Airtable, Notion, monday.com, HubSpot, Salesforce, Pipedrive, Attio, Slack, Teams, Zapier, Make, n8n and signed webhooks. Agents use the MCP server, the REST API, the Python and TypeScript SDKs, a CLI and A2A | A JSON response to the code that called the API |

## Why teams move from SearchApi to SpecStream

### One call returns the answer, the rows and 100 results

A SearchApi call returns what Google shows for a query, 10 results at a time. A SpecStream call takes the question in everyday words and returns the value with the page it was read on, the rows the question asks for, and up to 100 sources in rank order.

```
curl "https://api.specstream.ai/v1/web-search?q=Who+is+the+CEO+of+Mistral+AI&num=100" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $SPECSTREAM_API_KEY"
```

`num=100` costs $0.059 for one call. When your product reads a Google style results list, `POST https://api.specstream.ai/serper/search` returns `organic[]` with `position`, `title`, `link` and `snippet` at $0.005 for 10 results.

### The most accurate web search API in the world

The SpecStream Search API scores a 97.9 F-score on all 1,000 official SimpleQA Verified questions, with 978 correct. On WideSearch it scores 64.0 item F1 and 43.4 row F1 on all 200 official tasks, and the Extract API scores 0.908 F1 on WCXB. The scores and the method are at [specstream.ai/benchmarks](https://specstream.ai/benchmarks?utm_source=alternatives&utm_campaign=searchapi-io).

### $5 per 1,000 searches from a balance that does not expire

SearchApi's Developer plan is $40 a month for 10,000 searches, and the searches belong to that month. On SpecStream $40 pays for 8,000 searches that never expire, with no hourly share: one account can send up to 8,800 fast searches a minute. A call stopped by a `429` charges nothing.

### About one second a search, at up to 8,800 a minute

Every drop-in route runs the fast search unless the call asks for page text or results past the first ten. On November 9, 2026 production took 1 to 20 fast searches a second and answered 718 of 720: the median was 0.82 s at 1 search a second and 1.07 s at 20 a second, and the 95th percentile stayed between 1.09 and 1.73 s. One account takes up to 8,800 searches a minute, and a call over that gets a `429` with `Retry-After` and is not charged.

### Zero retention on any key

Set `zero_retention` when you create a key, or later. A search made with that key keeps no request text and no answer after the reply: it is not in the history, its answer is not reused for another call, and its log lines carry neither. The charge keeps the account, the key, the request ID, the price and the time.

```
curl -X POST https://api.specstream.ai/v1/account/keys \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $SPECSTREAM_API_KEY" -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"name": "production", "scopes": ["account:read", "finds:spend"], "spend_cap_cents": 500000, "zero_retention": true}'
```

### Search, pages and rows on one key

A product that calls SearchApi still has to read the pages and build its own records. On SpecStream the same key reads up to 20 pages or documents a call with the [Extract API](https://specstream.ai/extract-api?utm_source=alternatives&utm_campaign=searchapi-io) at $0.80 per 1,000 pages, and runs [Deep Search](https://specstream.ai/deep-search?utm_source=alternatives&utm_campaign=searchapi-io), which returns every match on the live web as structured rows at 5¢, 15¢ or $1 a row. 10,000 rows with 5 facts each cost $500, and the most a run can cost is approved before it starts. Save a request and it reruns hourly to yearly, with each row labeled changed, unchanged or no longer matching.

## Other SearchApi alternatives

### SpecStream

The live web data engine for teams and agents. Its Search API costs $5 per 1,000 searches, returns the answer with its page and every source, and scores 97.9 F-score on all 1,000 official SimpleQA Verified questions. The Extract API costs $0.80 per 1,000 pages, and Deep Search returns every match as structured rows at 5¢, 15¢ or $1 a row.

### SerpApi

A results page API for Google and other engines, sold by monthly plan: Starter at $25 for 1,000 searches with 200 an hour, Developer at $75 for 5,000. Cached, errored and failed searches are not counted. On SpecStream $25 pays for 5,000 searches, and the balance never expires.

### Zenserp

A results page API sold by monthly plan: the Small plan costs $49.99 a month for 25,000 searches, and the Free plan has 50 searches a month. SpecStream returns the answer with its page and up to 100 results a call, at $5 per 1,000 searches.

### Serper

Google results sold as prepaid credits with no monthly subscription, from $1.00 per 1,000 on the 50k pack. The first 2,500 queries are free, no credit card. SpecStream answers Serper's own call at `https://api.specstream.ai/serper/search`, in Serper's JSON, for $5 per 1,000 searches.

## How to switch from SearchApi

Change one line. `https://api.specstream.ai/searchapi/api/v1/search` answers the call your code sends to `https://www.searchapi.io/api/v1/search` today, in the same JSON, so your parser stays as it is. Send a SpecStream key as `api_key` in the address or as a Bearer token. A new account gets $10 of credit, no card, which covers 2,000 searches.

```
# Before
curl -G "https://www.searchapi.io/api/v1/search" -d engine=google --data-urlencode "q=$QUERY" -d "api_key=$VENDOR_API_KEY"

# After
curl -G "https://api.specstream.ai/searchapi/api/v1/search" -d engine=google --data-urlencode "q=$QUERY" -H "Authorization: Bearer $SPECSTREAM_API_KEY"
```

`q`, `page`, `num`, `time_period`, `time_period_min` and `time_period_max` work as before, and the reply keeps `organic_results[]` with `position`, `title`, `link`, `domain`, `snippet` and `date`. A call of up to 10 results is one search at $0.005. Every parameter and reply field is in the [SearchApi migration guide](https://specstream.ai/migrate/searchapi?utm_source=alternatives&utm_campaign=searchapi-io).

Your code can also call SpecStream's own Search API, at the same price. The steps:

1. Create a key under Agents & API in the workspace. A new account gets $10 of credit, no card, which covers 2,000 searches.

2. Send the question to `GET https://api.specstream.ai/v1/web-search` with the key as a Bearer token, where your code sends `engine=google&q=` to SearchApi today. `num` sets the results from 1 to 100.

```
import requests

reply = requests.get(
    "https://api.specstream.ai/v1/web-search",
    params={"q": "Who is the CEO of Mistral AI", "num": 10},
    headers={"Authorization": f"Bearer {SPECSTREAM_KEY}"},
).json()["data"]

print(reply["answer"])
for source in reply["sources"]:
    print(source["url"], source["title"], source["snippet"])
```

3. Where your code reads `organic_results`, read `sources` (each with `url`, `title` and `snippet`), or call `POST https://api.specstream.ai/serper/search` and read `organic[]`, whose items carry `position`, `title`, `link` and `snippet`.

```
import requests

reply = requests.post(
    "https://api.specstream.ai/serper/search",
    headers={"X-API-KEY": SPECSTREAM_KEY},
    json={"q": "Who is the CEO of Mistral AI", "num": 10, "page": 1},
).json()

for result in reply["organic"]:
    print(result["position"], result["title"], result["link"], result["snippet"])
```

4. Set a spending limit on the key. A call of up to 10 results costs $0.005, and `num=100` costs $0.059.

When your product needs the whole dataset in place of a results page, write the request in plain words. SpecStream reads it back as the conditions every row must meet and the facts to bring back, quotes the most it can cost, and delivers the rows after you approve.

## Frequently asked questions

### How much does SearchApi cost?

SearchApi starts at $40 a month for 10,000 searches, $4 per 1,000. Production is $100 for 35,000, BigData $250 for 100,000, Scale $500 for 250,000 and Octo 1M $1,500 for 1,000,000. Sign up gives 100 free requests.

### How do I migrate from SearchApi.io to SpecStream?

Change one line: send the call to `https://api.specstream.ai/searchapi/api/v1/search` in place of `https://www.searchapi.io/api/v1/search`, with a SpecStream key as `api_key` in the address or as a Bearer token. The request and the reply keep their shape, and each call of up to 10 results costs $0.005.

### What is the best SearchApi alternative?

SpecStream, at $5 per 1,000 searches. One call returns the answer with its page and up to 100 results, and it scores 97.9 F-score on all 1,000 SimpleQA Verified questions, shown on the [benchmarks](https://specstream.ai/benchmarks?utm_source=alternatives&utm_campaign=searchapi-io) page. New accounts get $10 of credit, no card.

### How many results does a SearchApi call return?

10. SearchApi's docs say Google phased out the `num` parameter in September 2025 and the count is now a constant 10. A SpecStream call returns up to 100 results with `num`, for $0.059.

### Does SearchApi have a rate limit?

Yes: a plan can use up to 20% of its searches in any hour. SpecStream takes up to 8,800 fast searches a minute on one account, and a call over that gets a `429` and is not charged.

### Is there a free SearchApi alternative?

SpecStream gives $10 of credit on sign up, no card, which covers 2,000 searches. SearchApi gives 100 free requests.

### Does SpecStream have an API?

Yes, three. The Search API is `GET /v1/web-search` at $5 per 1,000 searches of up to 10 results. The Extract API is `POST /v1/extract` at $0.80 per 1,000 pages. Deep Search takes a request in plain words and returns structured rows. Python and TypeScript SDKs, a CLI and A2A cover the same calls.

### Does SpecStream have an MCP server?

Yes, at `https://api.specstream.ai/mcp` over Streamable HTTP, with OAuth or an API key. The `search_web` tool runs a search for $0.005, and the agent spends from the same balance as your team, inside the limits you set on its key.

## Sources

SpecStream wrote this page. Each rival figure comes from that company's own page.

- [SpecStream pricing](https://specstream.ai/pricing), read Nov 9, 2026
- [SpecStream for agents](https://specstream.ai/agents.md), read Nov 9, 2026
- [SpecStream benchmarks](https://specstream.ai/benchmarks), read Nov 9, 2026
- [SpecStream data](https://specstream.ai/data), read Nov 9, 2026
- [SpecStream signals](https://specstream.ai/signals), read Nov 9, 2026
- [SearchApi pricing](https://www.searchapi.io/pricing), read Nov 9, 2026
- [SearchApi Google Search API docs](https://www.searchapi.io/docs/google), read Nov 9, 2026
- [SerpApi pricing](https://serpapi.com/pricing), read Nov 9, 2026
- [Zenserp pricing](https://www.zenserp.com/pricing), read Nov 9, 2026
- [Serper homepage and pricing](https://serper.dev/), read Nov 9, 2026