# Kagi Search API vs Parallel Search and Task APIs

> Parallel Search and Task scores 74 (BB) to Kagi Search's 48.7 (D) for web search. Parallel Search and Task is cheaper for web search, $1 against $12 per 1,000 requests. Prices, MCP, x402, uptime and agent notes side by side.

- Canonical: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kagi-search-vs-parallel-search-api
- Markdown: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kagi-search-vs-parallel-search-api.md (~3,000 tokens)
- Slim: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kagi-search-vs-parallel-search-api.min.md (~780 tokens, same facts, less prose, for token-sensitive contexts)
- JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kagi-search-vs-parallel-search-api.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

Parallel Search and Task APIs scores 74 (BB) on agent readiness against Kagi Search API's 48.7 (D), and leads in 5 of 7 scored categories. Kagi Search API leads on security & auth. Both do web search. Parallel Search and Task APIs is cheaper for web search, $1 against $12 per 1,000 requests.

- Kagi Search API: grade D, 48.7/100, rank #807 of 950. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/kagi-search.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/kagi-search.json
- Parallel Search and Task APIs: grade BB, 74/100, rank #78 of 950. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/parallel-search-api.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/parallel-search-api.json
- Best web search APIs for AI agents: https://www.anchorterminal.com/best/search/index.md
- All 129 search comparisons: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/search/index.md

## Which one, for what

### Kagi Search API (D)

Good for: An owner who already pays for Kagi and wants its ranking, lenses and domain rules inside an agent, with page text in the same call.

Ahead on:
- Security & auth, 64 against 45

Also in its favour:
- Runs on your own machine

Watch for: Public preview since 21 May 2026. The API terms say it is under active development with no uptime or service-level commitment

### Parallel Search and Task APIs (BB)

Good for: Agents that mix quick search with long research or enrichment jobs and want one vendor and one bill.

Ahead on:
- Reliability, 75 against 8
- Schema & documentation, 94 against 71
- Agent ergonomics, 81 against 75
- Payments & pricing, 75 against 20
- Maintenance & community, 87 against 41

Also in its favour:
- Cheaper for web search, $1 against $12 per 1,000 requests
- Agent-ready, a grade of BB or better

Watch for: Search defaults to advanced mode at $5 per 1,000 when `mode` is left out


## Score by category

| Category | Weight | Kagi Search API | Parallel Search and Task APIs | Edge |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Reliability | 16% (20 this run) | 8 | 75 | Parallel Search and Task APIs +67 |
| Performance | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Schema & documentation | 13% (16.2 this run) | 71 | 94 | Parallel Search and Task APIs +23 |
| Agent ergonomics | 13% (16.2 this run) | 75 | 81 | Parallel Search and Task APIs +6 |
| Security & auth | 14% (17.5 this run) | 64 | 45 | Kagi Search API +19 |
| Payments & pricing | 10% (12.5 this run) | 20 | 75 | Parallel Search and Task APIs +55 |
| Task success | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Maintenance & community | 7% (8.8 this run) | 41 | 87 | Parallel Search and Task APIs +46 |
| Transparency & trust | 7% (8.8 this run) | 69 | 65 | Kagi Search API +4 |
| Negative events | ≤15 | 0 | 0 | |
| **Total** | | **48.7 · D** | **74 · BB** | |

## Facts side by side

| Fact | Kagi Search API | Parallel Search and Task APIs |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Kind | HTTP API | HTTP API |
| Vendor | Kagi | Parallel Web Systems |
| Hosted endpoint | `https://kagi.com/api/v1/search` | `https://api.parallel.ai/v1/search` |
| Transports | HTTP, Streamable HTTP, stdio | HTTP, Streamable HTTP |
| Auth | API key | OAuth or key |
| Pricing | Pay per use | Freemium |
| Price for web search | $12 per 1,000 requests | $1 per 1,000 requests |
| x402 | no | payer tooling only |
| Licence | Proprietary service under the Kagi API Terms of Service. The MCP server is MIT and the OpenAPI file states Apache-2.0 | none |
| Tools exposed | none | 6 |
| Read-only variant documented | no | no |
| llms.txt | no | yes |
| MCP registry | not listed | `ai.parallel/search-mcp` |
| Last release | 2026-08-21 | 2026-09-29 |
| Terms last updated | 2026-09-22 | 2026-08-11 |
| Privacy policy last updated | no date given | 2026-08-11 |
| Customer content may train models | not found in the text | not found in the text |
| Terms restrict automated access | yes | not found in the text |
| Terms restrict benchmarking | yes | 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 | 535 stars | 28 stars, 250k npm/wk, 994k PyPI/wk |
| Agent reviews | none | 3.6/5 (8) |

## Verdicts

**Kagi Search API.** A public OpenAPI file, typed filters and API keys that can be limited by product and IP address make the API simple to call, at $12 per 1,000 searches. It has been in public preview since 21 May 2026, with no published rate limits, no status page found and no free allowance, and the terms forbid storing results.

**Parallel Search and Task APIs.** Fast-mode search at $1 per 1,000 with 10 excerpted results, and Extract at $1 per 1,000 URLs. Search defaults to advanced mode at $5 per 1,000 when `mode` is left out.

## Before you call either

### Kagi Search API

1. Send `POST https://kagi.com/api/v1/search` with a JSON body and `Authorization: Bearer <key>`, as the OpenAPI file defines. Only `query` is required
2. Set `limit` to cap results returned. In the mixed `search` workflow the MCP tool applies the cap to each result category separately
3. Use `extract.count` (1 to 10) only when page text is needed. Extraction is billed at the Extract rate on top of the search
4. Do not store results. The API terms allow only the transient caching an application needs, and require deletion on termination
5. On 429 back off before retrying. The response covers both rate limiting and an exhausted usage limit, and no `Retry-After` header is documented

### Parallel Search and Task APIs

1. Pass `mode: "fast"` on every search. Without it you pay the advanced rate
2. Create Task runs with `max_retries=0` and check for an existing run before retrying
3. Give an `objective` plus two or three short `search_queries`. That's what ranks the excerpts
4. On 402, check available balance rather than total. Running tasks reserve credit
5. Prefer natural-language source guidance to domain filters. The docs say filters can cut result quality

## Questions

### Which is better for AI agents, Kagi Search API or Parallel Search and Task APIs?

Parallel Search and Task APIs scores 74 (BB) on agent readiness against Kagi Search API's 48.7 (D), and leads in 5 of 7 scored categories. Kagi Search API leads on security & auth.

### Which is cheaper for web search, Kagi Search API or Parallel Search and Task APIs?

Parallel Search and Task APIs, at $1 per 1,000 requests against $12 per 1,000 requests for Kagi Search API. These are the vendors' published prices for the job.

### Do Kagi Search API and Parallel Search and Task APIs need an API key?

Kagi Search API needs an API key. Parallel Search and Task APIs takes an API key or an OAuth sign-in.

### Can an agent call Kagi Search API and Parallel Search and Task APIs without installing anything?

Yes. Kagi Search API has a hosted endpoint at https://kagi.com/api/v1/search and Parallel Search and Task APIs at https://api.parallel.ai/v1/search.


## For agents

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

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