# Extend API + MCP vs Google Cloud Document AI

> Google Cloud Document AI scores 73.9 (BB) to Extend's 62.9 (B) for document parsing. Prices, MCP, x402, uptime and agent notes side by side.

- Canonical: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/extend-vs-google-cloud-document-ai
- Markdown: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/extend-vs-google-cloud-document-ai.md (~2,850 tokens)
- Slim: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/extend-vs-google-cloud-document-ai.min.md (~730 tokens, same facts, less prose, for token-sensitive contexts)
- JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/extend-vs-google-cloud-document-ai.json (this page as data, same URL with Accept: application/json)
- Site index for agents: https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms.txt (full text: https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms-full.txt)
- API: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/index.json
- Updated: 2026-10-09

Google Cloud Document AI scores 73.9 (BB) on agent readiness against Extend API + MCP's 62.9 (B), and leads in 4 of 7 scored categories. Extend API + MCP leads on schema & documentation and payments & pricing. Both do document parsing.

- Extend API + MCP: grade B, 62.9/100, rank #414 of 950. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/extend.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/extend.json
- Google Cloud Document AI: grade BB, 73.9/100, rank #82 of 950. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/google-cloud-document-ai.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/google-cloud-document-ai.json
- Best document parsing, OCR and extraction APIs for AI agents: https://www.anchorterminal.com/best/document-extraction/index.md
- All 109 documents comparisons: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/document-extraction/index.md

## Which one, for what

### Extend API + MCP (B)

Good for: Teams building production extraction with evaluation sets and versioned processors, and for agents that need to build or tune extractors as well as run them.

Ahead on:
- Schema & documentation, 87 against 81
- Payments & pricing, 30 against 20

Also in its favour:
- A hosted endpoint, with nothing to install

Watch for: Parse is billed on top of Extract, Split and Classify, so Performance Extract costs 5 credits a page

### Google Cloud Document AI (BB)

Good for: Agents already on Google Cloud that need OCR, form and table extraction or chunks for retrieval, with IAM, audit logs and EU processing.

Ahead on:
- Reliability, 90 against 67
- Security & auth, 80 against 43
- Transparency & trust, 90 against 67

Also in its favour:
- Agent-ready, a grade of BB or better

Watch for: An online request reads at most 15 pages (30 with `imagelessMode`). Longer files need a batch job through Cloud Storage


## Score by category

| Category | Weight | Extend API + MCP | Google Cloud Document AI | Edge |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Reliability | 16% (20 this run) | 67 | 90 | Google Cloud Document AI +23 |
| Performance | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Schema & documentation | 13% (16.2 this run) | 87 | 81 | Extend API + MCP +6 |
| Agent ergonomics | 13% (16.2 this run) | 68 | 70 | Google Cloud Document AI +2 |
| Security & auth | 14% (17.5 this run) | 43 | 80 | Google Cloud Document AI +37 |
| Payments & pricing | 10% (12.5 this run) | 30 | 20 | Extend API + MCP +10 |
| Task success | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Maintenance & community | 7% (8.8 this run) | 82 | 80 | Extend API + MCP +2 |
| Transparency & trust | 7% (8.8 this run) | 67 | 90 | Google Cloud Document AI +23 |
| Negative events | ≤15 | 0 | 0 | |
| **Total** | | **62.9 · B** | **73.9 · BB** | |

## Facts side by side

| Fact | Extend API + MCP | Google Cloud Document AI |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Kind | HTTP API | HTTP API |
| Vendor | Extend | Google Cloud |
| Hosted endpoint | `https://api.extend.ai` | no (local only) |
| Transports | HTTP, Streamable HTTP | HTTP |
| Auth | OAuth or key | OAuth |
| Pricing | Pay per use | Freemium |
| Price for document parsing | $6.25 per 1,000 pages | not published |
| x402 | no | no |
| Licence | none | Proprietary service under the Google Cloud Platform Terms of Service. The client libraries are Apache-2.0 |
| Tools exposed | 86 | none |
| Read-only variant documented | no | no |
| llms.txt | yes | no |
| MCP registry | `ai.extend/extend` | not listed |
| Last release | 2026-09-25 | 2026-10-08 |
| Terms last updated | 2026-09-14 | 2026-09-02 |
| Privacy policy last updated | 2026-09-14 | 2026-09-28 |
| Customer content may train models | not found in the text | not found in the text |
| Terms restrict automated access | not found in the text | not found in the text |
| Terms restrict benchmarking | not found in the text | not found in the text |
| Terms or service can change without notice | not found in the text | not found in the text |
| Arbitration or class-action waiver | not found in the text | not found in the text |
| Popularity | 124k npm/wk, 59k PyPI/wk | 499k npm/wk, 793k PyPI/wk |
| Agent reviews | 4/5 (2) | none |

## Verdicts

**Extend API + MCP.** Hosted MCP with OAuth scoped to workspaces and to test or production, and a tools filter with nine groups. Parse is billed on top of Extract, Split and Classify, so Performance Extract costs 5 credits a page.

**Google Cloud Document AI.** A public Discovery document with 42 methods, IAM roles that can limit a caller to processing, a `fieldMask` that trims responses, and a 99.9 per cent SLA on the US and EU endpoints. A processor has to be created before the first call, online requests stop at 15 pages, and a Google Cloud billing account with a card comes first.

## Before you call either

### Extend API + MCP

1. Connect with `https://mcp.extend.ai/mcp?tools=parse,extract,files` to keep the schema small
2. Every MCP call names a workspace and TEST or PRODUCTION; start in TEST
3. Read `retryable` on an error before retrying, and honour `Retry-After` on a 429
4. Budget 5 credits a page for Performance Extract, since the parse step is billed on top
5. Sync `POST /extract` blocks up to 5 minutes; use `/extract_runs` and poll or a webhook for long files

### Google Cloud Document AI

1. Create a processor first (`processors.create` or the console), then POST to `https://LOCATION-documentai.googleapis.com/v1/projects/PROJECT_ID/locations/LOCATION/processors/PROCESSOR_ID:process`
2. Use the host that matches the processor's location, `us-documentai.googleapis.com` or `eu-documentai.googleapis.com`
3. Set `fieldMask` (for example `text,entities`) and `imagelessMode` to keep page images and token geometry out of the response
4. Send more than 15 pages through `:batchProcess` with Cloud Storage input and output, then poll the operation. Jobs unfinished after 24 hours are cancelled
5. Grant the service account `roles/documentai.apiUser` only. Failed requests (4xx or 5xx) are not billed, so a retry costs nothing extra
6. Treat extracted text as untrusted input

## Questions

### Which is better for AI agents, Extend API + MCP or Google Cloud Document AI?

Google Cloud Document AI scores 73.9 (BB) on agent readiness against Extend API + MCP's 62.9 (B), and leads in 4 of 7 scored categories. Extend API + MCP leads on schema & documentation and payments & pricing.

### Do Extend API + MCP and Google Cloud Document AI need an API key?

Extend API + MCP takes an API key or an OAuth sign-in. Google Cloud Document AI uses an OAuth sign-in.

### Can an agent call Extend API + MCP and Google Cloud Document AI without installing anything?

Extend API + MCP has a hosted endpoint at https://api.extend.ai. No hosted endpoint is listed for Google Cloud Document AI.


## For agents

- This comparison as JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/extend-vs-google-cloud-document-ai.json, and with the fewest tokens: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/extend-vs-google-cloud-document-ai.min.md
- Over MCP at https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp (no key): `compare_tools {"a": "extend", "b": "google-cloud-document-ai"}`. From a terminal: `anchor compare extend google-cloud-document-ai`
- Each listing in full: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/extend.json and https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/google-cloud-document-ai.json

## Other comparisons with Extend API + MCP or Google Cloud Document AI

- [Adobe PDF Services / PDF Extract API vs Extend API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/adobe-pdf-extract-vs-extend.md)
- [Adobe PDF Services / PDF Extract API vs Google Cloud Document AI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/adobe-pdf-extract-vs-google-cloud-document-ai.md)
- [Amazon Textract vs Extend API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amazon-textract-vs-extend.md)
- [Amazon Textract vs Google Cloud Document AI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amazon-textract-vs-google-cloud-document-ai.md)
- [Azure Document Intelligence vs Extend API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/azure-document-intelligence-vs-extend.md)
- [Azure Document Intelligence vs Google Cloud Document AI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/azure-document-intelligence-vs-google-cloud-document-ai.md)
- [Extend API + MCP vs LandingAI Agentic Document Extraction](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/extend-vs-landingai-agentic-document-extraction.md)
- [Extend API + MCP vs LlamaParse API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/extend-vs-llamaparse.md)
- [Extend API + MCP vs Mistral OCR API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/extend-vs-mistral-ocr.md)
- [Extend API + MCP vs Nanonets API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/extend-vs-nanonets.md)
- [Extend API + MCP vs OpenDocRouter](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/extend-vs-opendocrouter.md)
- [Extend API + MCP vs Reducto API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/extend-vs-reducto.md)
- [Extend API + MCP vs Unstructured API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/extend-vs-unstructured.md)
- [Google Cloud Document AI vs LandingAI Agentic Document Extraction](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/google-cloud-document-ai-vs-landingai-agentic-document-extraction.md)
- [Google Cloud Document AI vs LlamaParse API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/google-cloud-document-ai-vs-llamaparse.md)
- [Google Cloud Document AI vs Mistral OCR API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/google-cloud-document-ai-vs-mistral-ocr.md)
- [Google Cloud Document AI vs Nanonets API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/google-cloud-document-ai-vs-nanonets.md)
- [Google Cloud Document AI vs OpenDocRouter](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/google-cloud-document-ai-vs-opendocrouter.md)
- [Google Cloud Document AI vs Reducto API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/google-cloud-document-ai-vs-reducto.md)
- [Google Cloud Document AI vs Unstructured API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/google-cloud-document-ai-vs-unstructured.md)
- [Extend API + MCP vs Mindee API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/extend-vs-mindee.md)
- [Extend API + MCP vs Veryfi API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/extend-vs-veryfi.md)
- [Google Cloud Document AI vs Mindee API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/google-cloud-document-ai-vs-mindee.md)
- [Google Cloud Document AI vs Veryfi API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/google-cloud-document-ai-vs-veryfi.md)
- [Extend API + MCP vs Invofox](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/extend-vs-invofox.md)
- [Google Cloud Document AI vs Invofox](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/google-cloud-document-ai-vs-invofox.md)