# Spider Cloud, free, credits, POST /search, Search and crawl: Web search API

> The web search API that returns pages, not links.

Spider Cloud's web search API on its Free credits plan. It costs $0.00 per 1,000 searches. It returns 1 of the 6 key fields we check: Text.
The cheapest of the 243 plans we rank by price is [Keenable, free, Keyless](https://datacircle.dev/web-search-apis/keenable/free-keyless/llms.txt), at $0.00 per 1,000 searches.
[Context.dev](https://datacircle.dev/web-search-apis/context-dev/300-monthly/llms.txt), [Serpex](https://datacircle.dev/web-search-apis/serpex/top-up-from-50/llms.txt) and [Search1API](https://datacircle.dev/web-search-apis/search1api/499-monthly-enterprise-post-search-search-full/llms.txt) are the best web search API providers in our benchmark.

- This page: https://datacircle.dev/web-search-apis/spider-cloud/free-credits-post-search-search-and-crawl
- [Best web search API in 2026](https://datacircle.dev/best-web-search-api.txt)
- Get it: https://spider.cloud/pricing
- Request: `POST https://api.spider.cloud/search`, Search and crawl
- API key: with the plan, on https://spider.cloud/pricing
- Its API docs: https://spider.cloud/api/search
- Sold by: Spider Cloud (https://spider.cloud)
- Checked: 2026-10-27

## In the answer

- Completeness: 17%
- Text: ✓

## Price

- $ per 1,000 searches: $0.00
- Per: call
- Billing: free

## Aggregators

- Aggregators: none

## Charges

- Also pays for: from the same budget: Crawl · Scrape · Links · Screenshot · Transform · Search

## Not found

- $ per 1,000: $0.00

## In their words

- Their pitch: The web search API that returns pages, not links.

## Data

- Freshness: live
- Keep data: no limit
- Use data: Spider may not be used for malicious or illegal activity, including: Hacking, Spamming or unsolicited bulk email, Phishing, Distributing malware, Unauthorized data collection, Fraud, Denial-of-service attacks [...] You are responsible for any data you acquire through Spider and any downstream use of that data [...] Spider may also limit, deprioritize or suspend traffic that harms the network or other customers, such as sustained bulk downloads of large files, media streaming, or reselling or relaying access to Spider.

## Plan

- Pay: $0
- You get: 2,500 credits
- Enough for: about 83 calls
- Expires: never

## Rate limit

- Per second: 166.67

## Speed

- Answer: in the call

## The call

- You send: search, fetch_page_content "true". Optional: search_limit, num, page, location, country, language, tbs, quick_search, auto_pagination, latitude, longitude, radius, return_format, limit
- Method: POST
- Path: /search

## About the plan

- Plan: Free credits
- Who can get it: anyone whose signup passes Spider's checks, no card required

## The 10 fields the plan's answer can hold

URL, page content, HTTP status, duration, total cost, file cost, compute cost, bytes transferred cost, AI cost, transform cost

## Spider Cloud's plans (15)

- [Spider Cloud, free, credits, POST /search, Search and crawl](https://datacircle.dev/web-search-apis/spider-cloud/free-credits-post-search-search-and-crawl/llms.txt): $0.00 per 1,000, 17% complete, live
- [Spider Cloud, top-up from $1, Pay as you go, POST /search, Search and crawl](https://datacircle.dev/web-search-apis/spider-cloud/top-up-from-1-pay-as-you-go-post-search-search-and-crawl/llms.txt): $3.00 per 1,000, 17% complete, live
- [Spider Cloud, top-up from $500, Pay as you go, $500 or more (+5% credits), POST /search, Search and crawl](https://datacircle.dev/web-search-apis/spider-cloud/top-up-from-500-pay-as-you-go-500-or-more-5-credits-post-search-search-and-crawl/llms.txt): $2.857 per 1,000, 17% complete, live
- [Spider Cloud, top-up from $1,000, Pay as you go, $1,000 or more (+8% credits), POST /search, Search and crawl](https://datacircle.dev/web-search-apis/spider-cloud/top-up-from-1000-pay-as-you-go-1000-or-more-8-credits-post-search-search-and-crawl/llms.txt): $2.778 per 1,000, 17% complete, live
- [Spider Cloud, top-up from $2,000, Pay as you go, $2,000 or more (+12% credits), POST /search, Search and crawl](https://datacircle.dev/web-search-apis/spider-cloud/top-up-from-2000-pay-as-you-go-2000-or-more-12-credits-post-search-search-and-crawl/llms.txt): $2.679 per 1,000, 17% complete, live
- [Spider Cloud, top-up from $5,000, Pay as you go, $5,000 or more (+15% credits), POST /search, Search and crawl](https://datacircle.dev/web-search-apis/spider-cloud/top-up-from-5000-pay-as-you-go-5000-or-more-15-credits-post-search-search-and-crawl/llms.txt): $2.609 per 1,000, 17% complete, live
- [Spider Cloud, $6 monthly](https://datacircle.dev/web-search-apis/spider-cloud/6-monthly/llms.txt): 17% complete, live
- [Spider Cloud, $30 monthly](https://datacircle.dev/web-search-apis/spider-cloud/30-monthly/llms.txt): 17% complete, live
- [Spider Cloud, $125 monthly](https://datacircle.dev/web-search-apis/spider-cloud/125-monthly/llms.txt): 17% complete, live
- [Spider Cloud, $600 monthly](https://datacircle.dev/web-search-apis/spider-cloud/600-monthly/llms.txt): 17% complete, live
- [Spider Cloud, $60 yearly](https://datacircle.dev/web-search-apis/spider-cloud/60-yearly/llms.txt): 17% complete, live
- [Spider Cloud, $300 yearly](https://datacircle.dev/web-search-apis/spider-cloud/300-yearly/llms.txt): 17% complete, live
- [Spider Cloud, $1,250 yearly](https://datacircle.dev/web-search-apis/spider-cloud/1250-yearly/llms.txt): 17% complete, live
- [Spider Cloud, $6,000 yearly](https://datacircle.dev/web-search-apis/spider-cloud/6000-yearly/llms.txt): 17% complete, live
- [Spider Cloud, contact us](https://datacircle.dev/web-search-apis/spider-cloud/contact-us/llms.txt): 17% complete, live

## Spider Cloud's calls (3)

- `POST /search`, Search: [Spider Cloud, free, credits, POST /search, Search](https://datacircle.dev/web-search-apis/spider-cloud/free-credits-post-search-search/llms.txt)
- `POST /search`, Search and crawl: [Spider Cloud, free, credits, POST /search, Search and crawl](https://datacircle.dev/web-search-apis/spider-cloud/free-credits-post-search-search-and-crawl/llms.txt)
- `POST /ai/search`: [Spider Cloud, $6 monthly](https://datacircle.dev/web-search-apis/spider-cloud/6-monthly/llms.txt)

## Spider Cloud's APIs (1)

- [Spider Cloud: web search API pricing, 15 plans, POST /search, Search and crawl](https://datacircle.dev/web-search-apis/spider-cloud/free-credits-post-search-search-and-crawl/llms.txt)

## Spider Cloud: web search API alternatives

- [Staan, pay as you go, Pay for what you use, POST /search/web, Web Search API](https://datacircle.dev/web-search-apis/staan/pay-as-you-go-pay-for-what-you-use-post-search-web-web-search-api/llms.txt): $2.251 per 1,000, 17% complete, live
- [Social Fetch, $59 pack](https://datacircle.dev/web-search-apis/social-fetch/59-pack/llms.txt): $2.36 per 1,000, 17% complete, live
- [Search1API, $4,990 yearly, Enterprise (annual), POST /search, Search, full](https://datacircle.dev/web-search-apis/search1api/4990-yearly-enterprise-annual-post-search-search-full/llms.txt): $2.495 per 1,000, 33% complete, live
- [ContextFetch, top-up from $500, Pay as you go, +20% on top-ups from $500, POST /tavily/search, Tavily-compatible search, advanced](https://datacircle.dev/web-search-apis/contextfetch/top-up-from-500-pay-as-you-go-20-on-top-ups-from-500-post-tavily-search-tavily-compatible-search-advanced/llms.txt): $2.50 per 1,000, 50% complete, live

## Sources

From each provider's own pricing page and docs, and from what providers tell us. We read this row from these pages on 2026-10-27.

- https://spider.cloud/api/search
- https://spider.cloud/docs/core/rate-limits
- https://spider.cloud/eula
- https://spider.cloud/guides/pricing-and-plans
- https://spider.cloud/guides/search
- https://spider.cloud/pricing
- https://spider.cloud/use-cases/price-monitoring