Scraping API PricesAll products / Google Custom Search JSON API
Google Custom Search JSON API pricing
What Google Custom Search JSON API returns, its query meter, who can still buy usage, what new buyers can do, and priced alternatives.
one default result set; no fan-out
Fixed for this page; volume is the control.Every available option was priced in advance from published vendor rules. Changing a control only switches between those checked options; nothing is sent anywhere and no account is needed.
Your job
What Google Custom Search JSON API counts
What you pay
Successes you want
100,000 standard searches
Your stated workload. Every vendor on this site is priced against this same number.
- ÷ 1
Attempts you are billed for
100,000 standard searches
Google Custom Search JSON API bills failed fetches. This workload assumes none fail, so nothing is added here.
- × 1
What the meter counts
100,000 requests
One attempt is one billed unit for this workload.
- =
Metered cash this month
$500.00 /mo
Additional queries for existing customers. Cheapest of every eligible purchase option, not the first plan that fits.
Bars share one linear scale across the 3 counted stages, so a multiplier shows as length. Units differ by stage and are labelled. Cash is not on that scale.
100,000 standard searches → 100,000 request → Additional queries for existing customers $500.00/mo = $5.00 per 1,000 searches
Cheaper for this job
Same 100,000 standard search calls with one default-depth result set per call, ranked by what you would actually be billed. Unknown totals never enter the numeric order.
Every Google Custom Search JSON API plan
| Plan | Monthly | If billed yearly | Prepaid pack | Included | Simultaneous sessions |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Additional queries for existing customers your job | Not published | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a |
What consumes a unit
This is where a bill actually grows. One operation is not one billed unit, and the multiplier is published here rather than on the pricing page.
| Operation | Costs | Per | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| search.query | 1 request | request | source |
What Google Custom Search JSON API does not publish
- Failed-request billing is not stated in the reviewed overview.
- No API-specific customer caching, retention, redistribution, or attribution rule was obtained.
- The daily free tier does not fit the schema's monthly or trial period choices, so period is null and the cadence is preserved in notes.
Product scope and returned result
Google Custom Search JSON API programmatically retrieves web or image results from a configured Programmable Search Engine. It returns JSON that follows the OpenSearch 1.1 specification. A working request needs both a Programmable Search Engine identifier and a Google API key. That makes it a programmable result API tied to a configured search engine, not a general remote browser and not a prose-answer service. (Google Custom Search overview, retrieved 2026-07-26).
The service is closed to new customers. Existing customers can continue using it during the transition period, but Google says they must move to an alternative by January 1, 2027. For searching up to 50 domains, Google points readers to Vertex AI Search; for a full-web-search requirement, the page offers an interest form rather than a new Custom Search JSON API signup. (Google Custom Search overview, retrieved 2026-07-26).
Every recorded meter
The sole recorded meter is one search query per request. Existing customers receive 100 queries per day for free. Additional usage costs $5 per 1,000 queries, with paid usage capped at 10,000 queries per day. The reviewed overview does not state whether failed requests count toward billing or quota, so failure billing remains unknown. (Google Custom Search overview, retrieved 2026-07-26).
There is no second content, token, browser-time, or proxy meter in the current record. The free allowance has a daily cadence, not a monthly one, and the current data model preserves that fact in notes rather than turning it into a monthly estimate. (Google Custom Search overview, retrieved 2026-07-26).
Contract path, minimum, and evaluation
An existing customer configures a Programmable Search Engine, obtains an API key, and enables billing in the Google API Console when usage exceeds the free daily allowance. The overview does not publish a minimum monthly spend or a time-limited trial. The 100 free daily queries are the continuing evaluation allowance for eligible existing accounts. (Google Custom Search overview, retrieved 2026-07-26).
A new buyer cannot get a Custom Search JSON API quote or open a new account for this product. The only full-web-search path shown is an interest form for more information about a different solution. A buyer using that form should be ready to specify whether the need is a bounded domain set or full-web search, expected daily query volume, result format, and migration timing. The current page does not publish the new solution’s price, minimum, trial, or contract terms. (Google Custom Search overview, retrieved 2026-07-26).
Price status and why there is no monthly plan price
There is a public usage price, but only for existing customers and only until discontinuation. The record has no monthly plan price because billing is per query and new sales are closed. This is a lifecycle restriction, not an enterprise-price omission. (Google Custom Search overview, retrieved 2026-07-26).
Priced alternatives
- Tavily Project starts at $30 per month for current web-search API access. (Tavily API credits, retrieved 2026-07-26).
- Olostep Starter starts at $9 per month for search and retrieval. (Olostep, retrieved 2026-07-26).
- Firecrawl Hobby starts at $16 per month when billed annually, or $19 month to month, and includes search. (Firecrawl pricing, retrieved 2026-07-26).
Answer
Google Custom Search JSON API costs $500.00 for 100,000 standard searches on its Additional queries for existing customers offer. Every figure is sourced and dated.
Recorded 2026-07-26 from the vendor's own pricing page.The published price on this page matched the vendor page when it was rechecked.