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Firecrawl vs Tavily · small jobs vs big jobs
The short answer
The short answer: pick Tavily if your agent runs a few thousand searches a month and wants ready text. Pick Firecrawl if you read many pages, need set fields as JSON, or crawl whole sites, because it costs less per page once you are on its Standard plan. Both are APIs, which is how your own code asks a service for data. Both charge in credits, a unit of use. One credit buys different work in each tool.
our pick
Our pick
Pick Tavily for small search jobs that want ready text. Pick Firecrawl for reading many pages, JSON fields or whole sites.
What each tool does
How the two tools compare
| Firecrawl | Tavily | |
|---|---|---|
| Search | 2 credits per 10 results. | 1 credit on basic, 2 on advanced. |
| Read a page | 1 credit per page. Asking for JSON, set fields pulled out of the page, adds 4 credits. | Basic extract costs 1 credit per 5 pages that work, and advanced costs 2 per 5. Failed pages are free. |
| Crawl a site | 1 credit per page. A crawl means following links to read a whole site. | A map (listing a site's pages) plus extract. 10 pages cost 3 credits on basic. |
| Entry paid plan | Hobby is $16 a month billed yearly, or $19 monthly, for 5,000 credits. | Project is $30 a month for 4,000 credits. |
| Middle plan | Standard is $83 a month billed yearly for 100,000 credits. | Bootstrap is $100 for 15,000. Startup is $220 for 38,000. Growth is $500 for 100,000. |
| Going over | Extra credit packs: 1,000 for $5 on Hobby, and 2,000 for $5 on Standard. | Pay as you go at $0.008 a credit. |
How to pick one if you only have 10 seconds
- A search costs Tavily 1 credit on basic and 2 on advanced. Firecrawl charges 2 credits per 10 results.
- Reading pages costs Tavily 1 credit per 5 pages that work on basic extract, and 2 per 5 on advanced. Failures are free. Firecrawl charges 1 credit per page, even for a page that returns an error.
- The math for one job that searches and reads the top 5 pages: Tavily 1 + 1 = 2 credits. Firecrawl 2 + 5 = 7 credits.
- The math at 2,000 jobs a month: Tavily needs 4,000 credits, so Project at $30. Firecrawl needs 14,000, so Hobby $16 billed yearly + 9 × $5 for extra 1,000-credit packs = $61.
- The math at 14,000 jobs a month: Tavily needs 28,000 credits, so Bootstrap $100 + 13,000 × $0.008 = $204, which beats Startup at $220. Firecrawl needs 98,000, so Standard at $83 a month billed yearly.
- Firecrawl's prices are billed yearly. Tavily's are monthly.
Who should buy each one
Pick Firecrawl if
- If you read company websites at volume for enrichment, use Firecrawl.
- If you need set fields pulled out as JSON, use Firecrawl.
- If you crawl whole sites, use Firecrawl, at 1 credit per page.
Pick Tavily if
- If your chat agent runs under about 2,000 search jobs a month, use Tavily Project.
- If your URL lists have many broken links, use Tavily, since failed extracts are free.
Common questions
Is Firecrawl better than Tavily?▾
It depends on volume and output. The math: at 2,000 jobs a month Tavily is $30 and Firecrawl is $61 on Hobby with extra packs. At 14,000 jobs, Tavily is $204 and Firecrawl is $83 a month billed yearly on Standard.
Is Tavily free to use?▾
Tavily's free plan has 1,000 credits a month. Firecrawl's free plan has 1,000 credits.
Can I use both?▾
Yes. You can use Tavily to find pages and Firecrawl to read them.
What does a job cost with JSON fields?▾
On Firecrawl, a search plus 5 pages as JSON costs 2 + 5 × 5 = 27 credits. Tavily's credit table has no JSON mode, so it can't do the same job.
what to do next
What to do next
Count your jobs for a normal week, then multiply by four. If you read many pages, need JSON, or crawl whole sites, start with Firecrawl's free plan and its 1,000 credits. If you run a small chat agent, Tavily's $30 Project plan fits. For Tavily's full credit table, read Tavily pricing. For Firecrawl's plans, read Firecrawl pricing. To compare more search tools, read Web search APIs. Prices are from Firecrawl pricing and Tavily's credits page, October 14, 2026. Try Firecrawl Next · Web search APIs groups the tools by what they return.