Web search API pricing, at half Tavily’s rate
One number to remember: $0.004 per credit. That is exactly half of Tavily pricing at $0.008 — same credit model, same /search, /extract, /crawl, /map and /research endpoints. Migrating is one line: repoint the base URL.
/per-credit
One rate, no fine print
We did not reinvent the billing model — we kept Tavily’s credit system and simply cut the price in half. Compare the per-credit rate side by side.
Tavily list price
The rate you pay today on Tavily for the same endpoints and the same credit counts.
- Double the per-credit cost
- Same endpoints & response shapes
BestSearch
−50%Half of Tavily pricing for identical capability. Drop-in compatible — change the base URL and your costs halve.
- 50% lower per-credit rate
- Same Tavily endpoints & params
- One-line migration
Credits per call
Identical to Tavily — only the rate changes. A credit costs the same no matter which endpoint spends it.
- /search 1 credit basic depth · 2 credits for advanced
- /extract 1 credit per 5 URLs extracted
- /map 1 credit per 10 pages mapped
- /crawl 5 credits per crawl run
- /research 10 credits per research request
/the-math
What 100,000 searches cost
A basic /search is 1 credit on both platforms. Run 100,000 of them and the credit count is identical — the bill is not.
On Tavily
$800
100,000 credits × $0.008
On BestSearch
$400
100,000 credits × $0.004 — you keep $400
/whats-included
Fair by default
Pay as you go
You are billed only for the credits you actually spend. No subscription wrapper, no idle seats.
No minimums
No monthly floor and no commitment tiers. Send one call or one million — the per-credit rate is the same.
No lock-in
Same Tavily-compatible API, so you can point the base URL back at any time. We earn the traffic, not trap it.
Want the full endpoint reference and request shapes? Read the docs.
/faq
Pricing questions, answered honestly
How much does the web search API cost?
BestSearch charges $0.004 per credit — exactly half of Tavily’s $0.008 list rate. The credit model is identical, so your existing per-call cost math just halves.
How are credits counted per call?
Credits map 1:1 to Tavily’s model: /search is 1 credit (2 for advanced depth), /extract is 1 credit per 5 URLs, /map is 1 credit per 10 pages, /crawl is 5 credits, and /research is 10 credits. Only the dollar rate per credit changes.
Is there a free tier or free trial?
There is no perpetual free tier. You add a balance and pay $0.004 per credit as you use the API. Because there are no minimums, you can deposit a small amount and test real traffic for a few cents.
How is billing handled and what happens on overage?
Billing is prepaid balance based. Each call deducts its credit cost from your balance in real time. When the balance hits zero, requests are rejected rather than silently overcharged, so you never get a surprise bill.
Do I have to change my code to get this pricing?
No. BestSearch mirrors Tavily’s endpoints, request params, and response shapes. Repoint your base URL to https://app.websearchapi.tech and swap the key — one line — and you pay half for the same results.
Pay half for the same search API
Repoint the base URL to https://app.websearchapi.tech, keep your code, and watch your per-credit cost drop to $0.004.