Exa vs Perplexity API: search and web data API pricing compared
Updated 2026-11-10 · listed A to Z, not ranked
Exa is a web search API built for AI agents. It is billed pay as you go per request, with a different rate for each endpoint and search type, and an Enterprise plan for custom limits.
The Perplexity API offers a Search API (ranked web results as JSON), an Agent API with third-party models and web tools, an Orchestrator API, and embeddings.
Listed A to Z, from exa.ai and docs.perplexity.ai. Every figure below is quoted from those pages.
- Main price table
- Lite Search, Auto Search, Deep Search, Contents, Monitors, Answer
- Free option
- None in the published plan table
- Published prices
- Search from $4 per 1,000 requests, contents $1 per 1,000 pages, Monitors $2 per 1,000 requests, Agent runs from $0.012, plus its x402 route.
- Main price table
- Search API, Search API with Fast Search
- Free option
- None in the published plan table
- Published prices
- Search API $5 per 1,000 requests ($1 with Fast Search); Agent API tools from $0.0005 per call.
How we checked: Prices quoted from each official pricing page: Exa checked Nov 10, 2026, Perplexity API checked Nov 10, 2026. Taxes, usage overages and promotions can change what you pay; confirm with each provider before you buy.
How they compare
- Main price table. Exa lists 6 entries (Lite Search, Auto Search, Deep Search, Contents, Monitors, Answer); Perplexity API lists 2 (Search API, Search API with Fast Search).
- Free option. Exa: none in the published plan table. Perplexity API: none in the published plan table.
- How prices are quoted. Exa: “Endpoint rates (per 1,000 requests, up to 10 results)”. Perplexity API: “Search API”.
Exa plans and prices
| Endpoint | Base price | Each extra result above 10 | AI page summaries |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lite Search | $4 | $1 per 1k requests | $1 per 1k pages |
| Auto Search | $7 | $1 per 1k requests | $1 per 1k pages |
| Deep Search | $12 | $1 per 1k requests | $1 per 1k pages |
| Contents | $1 per 1k pages | – | $1 per 1k pages |
| Monitors | $2 | $1 per 1k requests | $1 per 1k pages |
| Answer | $5 | – | – |
| Effort or component | Price |
|---|---|
| Minimal / Low / Medium effort | $0.012 / $0.025 / $0.10 per request |
| High / X-high effort | $0.50 / $1.00 per request |
| Ultra effort | Usage-based |
| Agent compute units | $0.10 per ACU |
| Search tool calls | $0.005 per search |
| Email / phone contact enrichment | $0.02 per email / $0.07 per phone number |
By default the Agent uses effort “auto”, where compute and tool usage scale to the task; a fixed effort gives a predictable price per request.
From exa.ai, checked Nov 10, 2026. Full breakdown: Exa pricing.
Perplexity API plans and prices
| API | Price per 1K requests | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Search API | $5.00 | Ranked web results as JSON with extracted page text; no token billing |
| Search API with Fast Search | $1.00 | Lower-latency results in the same format (search_type: "fast") |
Billed per successful POST /search request; a request with up to five queries is one billing unit. Invalid, rate-limited and failed requests are not billed.
| Tool | Price |
|---|---|
| web_search (standard) | $0.0025 per invocation ($2.50 per 1,000) |
| web_search (Fast Search) | $0.001 per invocation ($1.00 per 1,000) |
| image_search | $0.0025 per successful invocation |
| fetch_url | $0.0005 per invocation |
| people_search | $0.005 per invocation |
| finance_search | $0.005 per invocation |
| sandbox | $0.03 per session (20-minute billing window) |
Agent API and Orchestrator API model usage is billed per token at each model's published rates; tool costs are separate from model token costs.
From docs.perplexity.ai, checked Nov 10, 2026. Full breakdown: Perplexity API pricing.
FAQ
How much does Exa cost?
Search from $4 per 1,000 requests, contents $1 per 1,000 pages, Monitors $2 per 1,000 requests, Agent runs from $0.012, plus its x402 route. (checked Nov 10, 2026).
How much does Perplexity API cost?
Search API $5 per 1,000 requests ($1 with Fast Search); Agent API tools from $0.0005 per call. (checked Nov 10, 2026).
Do Exa and Perplexity API have a free option?
Exa: none in the published plan table. Perplexity API: none in the published plan table.
Which is better, Exa or Perplexity API?
We do not pick a winner. The two price and package their products differently; the tables above quote each official pricing page so you can match a plan to your own usage.
Where do these prices come from?
Each vendor's own pricing page: exa.ai (checked Nov 10, 2026) and docs.perplexity.ai (checked Nov 10, 2026). Prices change; confirm on the vendor's page before you buy.
Sources (official pages, read 2026-11-10)
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