Brave Search API Pricing 2026
Complete pricing guide with plans, and cost analysis
Brave Search API pricing ranges from $0 to $30/per 1K queries.
Brave Search API costs Free to $30 per per 1K queries as of May 2026, with 3 plans available including a free tier. Plan: Free (free). Pricing depends on your chosen tier, contract length, and negotiated discounts.
Use the interactive pricing calculator to estimate your exact cost based on team size and requirements.
- Free tier: Yes
Brave Search API offers 3 pricing tiers: Free, Base (per-query), Pro AI. The Base (per-query) plan is production rag.
Compared to other ai search apis software, Brave Search API is positioned at the budget-friendly price point.
How much does Brave Search API cost?
Brave Search API Pricing Overview
Brave Search API has 3 pricing plans, including a free tier. Paid plans range from $0 to $30/per 1K queries. The Free plan is free and is best for eval. The Base (per-query) plan requires contacting sales for a custom quote and is designed for production rag. The Pro AI plan requires contacting sales for a custom quote and is designed for ai agents.
This pricing was last verified in April 23, 2026.
How Brave Search API Pricing Compares
Compare Brave Search API pricing against top alternatives in AI Search APIs.
All Brave Search API Plans & Pricing
| Plan | Monthly | Annual | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free | Free | Custom | Eval |
| Base (per-query) | Custom | Custom | Production RAG |
| Pro AI | Custom | Custom | AI agents |
View all features by plan
Free
- 2,000 queries/month free
- 1 query/sec rate limit
- No credit card
Base (per-query)
- $5 per 1K queries
- 20 queries/sec
- Independent index (not Bing)
Pro AI
- $9 per 1K queries
- AI-optimized results with snippets
- Built for RAG pipelines
Usage-Based Rates
Per-unit pricing for Brave Search API API usage.
Base (per-query)
| Item | Dimension | Unit | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| brave-search-query | request | 1K queries | $5.00 |
Pro AI
| Item | Dimension | Unit | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| brave-search-ai | request | 1K queries | $9.00 |
Compare Brave Search API vs Alternatives
Before committing to Brave Search API, compare pricing with these 3 alternatives in the same category.
How Brave Search API Pricing Compares
| Software | Starting Price | Top Price |
|---|---|---|
| Brave Search API | Free | $30/per 1K queries |
| Kagi Search API | Free | $25/per 1K queries |
| Perplexity Sonar API | $1/per million tokens | $15/per million tokens |
| You.com Search API | Free | $50/per 1K queries |
Detailed pricing comparisons:
Is this pricing incorrect? — we'll verify and update it.