ValueSERP Alternatives — Better Value Search API

ValueSERP (now part of Traject Data) positioned itself as the "low cost SERP API" — and at $1.00/1K searches at high volume, it delivers on that promise. But ValueSERP is a single-purpose tool: Google SERP data. No content extraction, no web scraping, no AI-optimized search. If you're paying for ValueSERP and also running a separate scraping API (or manually fetching pages), you're overpaying for a fragmented stack. Here are the best ValueSERP alternatives in 2026, including options that combine SERP data with scraping and AI search in one API.

Key Takeaways

• ValueSERP's cheapest plan starts at $50/mo for 25K searches ($2.00/1K), with best rate of $1.00/1K at 1M/month
• ValueSERP only provides SERP data — no content extraction, scraping, or AI features
• SearchHive delivers search + scraping + research in one API for less than ValueSERP's monthly plans
• Several competitors match or beat ValueSERP's per-query pricing while offering broader functionality
• Teams doing under 50K searches/month have better options that don't require a $50/mo commitment

1. SearchHive — Search + Scrape + Research, Starting at $9/month

SearchHive's SwiftSearch API provides web search results comparable to ValueSERP, but it's bundled with ScrapeForge (content extraction) and DeepDive (research synthesis) in a single platform.

Pricing: Free 500 credits, Starter $9/mo (5K credits), Builder $49/mo (100K credits), Unicorn $199/mo (500K credits)

Why it replaces ValueSERP: For ValueSERP's $50/mo plan (25K searches), SearchHive's Builder plan at $49/mo gives you 100K credits — 4x the volume at the same price. Those credits cover search results and page content extraction, so you don't need a separate scraping tool. For teams currently paying ValueSERP $240/mo for 200K searches, SearchHive's Unicorn at $199/mo provides 500K credits — 2.5x more for less money.

import requests

# Web search — direct ValueSERP replacement
response = requests.get(
    "https://api.searchhive.dev/v1/swiftsearch",
    headers={"Authorization": "Bearer YOUR_API_KEY"},
    params={"query": "machine learning frameworks comparison 2026", "num_results": 10}
)

results = response.json()["results"]

# Extract content from search results — no separate tool needed
response = requests.post(
    "https://api.searchhive.dev/v1/scrapeforge",
    headers={"Authorization": "Bearer YOUR_API_KEY"},
    json={
        "urls": [r["url"] for r in results[:5]],
        "format": "markdown"
    }
)

for page in response.json()["results"]:
    print(f"{page['url']}: {len(page['markdown'])} chars extracted")

/compare/valueserp

2. DataForSEO — Cheapest Raw SERP Data at Scale

DataForSEO's SERP API uses a pay-as-you-go model that beats ValueSERP on raw per-query cost at every volume level.

Pricing: Standard queue $0.60/1K SERPs, Priority queue $1.20/1K, Live $2.00/1K. $50 minimum deposit.

DataForSEO is 40% cheaper than ValueSERP's best rate ($0.60/1K vs. $1.00/1K). The catch: standard queue results take up to 5 minutes, the API is complex, and there's no content extraction. For high-volume SEO tools processing millions of SERPs where latency isn't critical, DataForSEO is the value leader.

Best for: High-volume SEO platforms and agencies that need the lowest possible per-query cost.

3. SerpApi — Easiest Google SERP API

SerpApi is the industry standard for parsed Google search results. More expensive than ValueSERP per query, but significantly easier to integrate.

Pricing: Free 250/mo, Starter $25/mo (1K), Production $150/mo (15K)

SerpApi's per-query rate is higher than ValueSERP at every tier, but the API is simpler and the documentation is more thorough. For teams under 15K searches/month who value developer experience over raw cost, SerpApi's Production plan provides a known quantity.

Best for: Teams that want the most reliable, well-documented Google SERP API.

/compare/serpapi

4. Brave Search API — Independent Index, Flat Pricing

Brave's API draws from their own search index rather than scraping Google.

Pricing: $5/1K searches, $5 free credits/month

At $5/1K, Brave sits between ValueSERP's entry ($2/1K) and premium ($1/1K) tiers. The trade-off: you get Brave's index instead of Google's. For applications where exact Google SERP data isn't required, Brave provides clean, well-structured results with privacy as a bonus.

Best for: Search applications where index independence matters more than Google-specific features.

5. Tavily — AI-Optimized Search for LLM Applications

Tavily returns search results optimized for AI consumption — clean content, relevant snippets, minimal noise.

Pricing: $0.008/credit (1K free/mo), 1 credit per search

At $8/1K, Tavily costs more per query than ValueSERP. But each query returns content-ready results, so you save on the scraping step entirely. If you're currently paying ValueSERP for SERP data and then separately scraping pages for content, Tavily might actually be cheaper end-to-end.

Best for: AI/ML teams building RAG pipelines, agents, or chatbots.

6. Exa AI — Neural/Embedding-Based Search

Exa uses vector embeddings for semantic search rather than keyword matching.

Pricing: $7/1K search requests, $1/1K pages (Contents), 1K free/month

Exa won't replace ValueSERP for Google SERP tracking. But for applications where you're searching for semantically similar content (finding competitors, research papers, related products), neural search produces qualitatively different and often better results.

Best for: Semantic search use cases where keyword matching falls short.

7. Google Custom Search JSON API — Basic Budget Option

Google's official API provides basic search results.

Pricing: 100 queries/day free, $5/1K beyond that

No Knowledge Graph, no local packs, no rich SERP features. But $5/1K with no monthly commitment is cheaper than ValueSERP's entry plan for basic needs.

Best for: Simple search requirements with tight budgets.

Comparison Table

Recommendation

SearchHive is the strongest ValueSERP alternative for most developers. At the same $50/month price point where ValueSERP gives you 25K searches, SearchHive's Builder plan provides 100K credits that cover both search and content extraction. You're getting 4x the volume with a more capable toolset.

For teams doing millions of SERP lookups where latency doesn't matter, DataForSEO remains the cheapest per-query option. For AI-native applications, Tavily eliminates the need for a separate scraping step.

Start with SearchHive's free tier — 500 credits, no monthly commitment, full API access. Docs include migration examples from ValueSERP and other providers.