The Tavily alternative that costs half as much
BestSearch is a drop-in web search API that speaks the exact same protocol as Tavily — the same endpoints, the same parameters, the same response shapes, the same credit model. You migrate in one line and pay $0.004 per credit instead of $0.008.
/why-switch
Why teams switch from Tavily
If Tavily already powers your retrieval, the math is simple: identical capability, identical API, and a 50% lower bill the moment you repoint the URL.
One-line migration
Point your existing Tavily SDK or HTTP client at https://app.websearchapi.tech. No code rewrite, no new wrapper, no re-architecting your retrieval pipeline.
Exactly half the price
Same credit model as Tavily, billed at $0.004 per credit instead of $0.008. A 50% cut on every search, extract, and crawl call.
Full endpoint parity
All five endpoints — /search, /extract, /crawl, /map, /research — behave identically, with the same request parameters and the same JSON response shapes.
No lock-in to switch back
Because the contract is identical, you can repoint the base URL again at any time. Trying BestSearch costs you nothing but a config change.
/feature-parity
Identical to Tavily, line for line
Every endpoint, parameter, and response field matches what you already use. The only row that changes is the price.
| Capability | What you keep | Tavily | BestSearch |
|---|---|---|---|
| /search endpoint | Same query, depth & filter params | ||
| /extract endpoint | Same URL list & content options | ||
| /crawl endpoint | Same crawl depth & limit params | ||
| /map endpoint | Same sitemap discovery behavior | ||
| /research endpoint | Same multi-step research flow | ||
| Request parameters | Identical field names & types | ||
| Response shape | Identical JSON structure & keys | ||
| Credit model | Same per-call credit accounting | ||
| Price per credit | Same credits, lower rate | $0.008 | $0.004 |
/migration
Migrate in one line
Change the host. Keep everything else — the path, the body, the headers, the parsing.
curl https://api.tavily.com/search \
-H "Authorization: Bearer $TAVILY_KEY" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{"query": "best web search api"}'curl https://app.websearchapi.tech/search \
-H "Authorization: Bearer $BESTSEARCH_KEY" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{"query": "best web search api"}'Same path, same body, same response. Only the host and the bill change.
/faq
Frequently asked questions
01 Is BestSearch really Tavily-compatible?
Yes. We expose the same endpoints — /search, /extract, /crawl, /map, /research — with the same request parameters and the same JSON response shapes. Existing Tavily integrations work unchanged once you repoint the base URL.
02 Do I have to change my code to migrate?
No application logic changes. Migration is one line: set your Tavily client base URL to https://app.websearchapi.tech and use your BestSearch API key. The request and response contracts are identical, so the rest of your pipeline stays the same.
03 How can it be half the price?
We use the same per-credit billing model as Tavily but charge $0.004 per credit instead of $0.008. That is a flat 50% reduction on the list price — the value is in efficient infrastructure, not a stripped-down feature set.
04 Is the billing the same as Tavily?
The credit model is the same: each call consumes the same number of credits it would on Tavily. The only difference is the price per credit. Your usage estimates carry over directly — just multiply by $0.004 instead of $0.008.
05 Can I self-host BestSearch?
BestSearch is a managed API, so you point your client at our hosted endpoints rather than running it yourself. There is no infrastructure for you to operate — you keep your code and swap the base URL. See the docs to get started.
Switch your Tavily base URL. Halve your search bill.
Keep every line of your integration. Repoint to https://app.websearchapi.tech, drop in your key, and start paying $0.004 per credit today.