SearchApi alternative: Why teams choose cloro for AI scraping

SearchApi is fast and flexible. With sub-second response times for Google Search and support for 40+ search platforms, they’ve built a solid SERP API. Their Developer plan starts at $40/month with monthly subscriptions.

However, they require monthly commitments and focus primarily on traditional search engines. While they support Google’s AI Mode, they don’t offer native monitoring of other AI platforms like ChatGPT, Perplexity, or Copilot.

The search landscape has shifted

Modern teams need different tools:

1. AI platform coverage – ChatGPT, Perplexity, Copilot (not just search engines)
2. Extended Google parsing – AI Overviews, citations, knowledge panels
3. Better pricing at scale – $0.90 per 1,000 vs $4-10 per 1,000
4. AI monitoring – Track your brand across AI platforms

SearchApi was built for traditional search engine scraping. cloro was built for AI scraping and monitoring.

What SearchApi does well

SearchApi has solid fundamentals:

• Blazing fast – Sub-second response times
• Platform variety – 40+ search platforms supported
• Google AI Mode – Support for Google’s AI-generated results
• Good SERP parsing – Structured data from search results
• Accessible pricing – $40/month Developer plan

For traditional search engine scraping, SearchApi is reliable.

Where cloro wins

1. AI Platform Coverage

SearchApi: Traditional search engines plus Google AI Mode.

cloro: Native support across 6+ AI platforms.

• ChatGPT – Scraping with citation extraction
• Perplexity – Source parsing and answer tracking
• Copilot – Microsoft AI result monitoring
• Google Search – With AI Overview parsing
• Gemini & Grok – Multi-platform AI coverage

SearchApi supports Google’s AI. cloro supports all AI platforms.

2. Pricing Model

SearchApi: Monthly subscription with per-search costs.

• Developer: $40/month (10K searches = $4 per 1,000)
• Production: $100/month (10K searches = $10 per 1,000)
• Pay for successful searches
• Costs add up at high volume

cloro: $0.90 per 1,000 for Google Search with extended parsing

For high-volume monitoring, get AI Overviews and citations at a reasonable price.

3. AI Platform Monitoring

SearchApi: Google AI Mode only.

cloro: Monitoring across all AI platforms.

• ChatGPT monitoring – Track what GPT says about your brand
• Perplexity tracking – Monitor citations and source appearances
• Copilot watching – Microsoft AI result monitoring
• Change alerts – Get notified when AI responses change

4. Response Data

SearchApi: Good SERP parsing, AI Mode responses.

cloro: Rich parsed objects with citations and sources.

Every cloro response follows the same clean structure with extracted citations.

5. Use Case Focus

SearchApi: General-purpose search API for multiple engines.

cloro: Purpose-built for AI platform scraping.

We optimize specifically for AI engines, not trying to support every search engine.

When to choose SearchApi

Choose SearchApi if you need:

• Multiple search engines – Google, Bing, Yahoo, DuckDuckGo, etc.
• Sub-second speed – Fast response times are critical
• Google AI Mode – Support for Google’s AI-generated results
• Monthly subscription – Fixed cost model works for you
• Platform variety – 40+ search platforms supported

When to choose cloro

Choose cloro if you need:

• AI platform scraping – ChatGPT, Perplexity, Copilot, Gemini, Grok
• Extended Google parsing – AI Overviews, citations, knowledge panels
• AI visibility tracking – Monitor your brand across AI platforms
• Rich structured data – Citations, sources, parsed objects
• High-volume monitoring – Better pricing at scale

The bottom line

SearchApi is excellent for traditional search engine scraping with sub-second response times.

But for AI scraping and monitoring, cloro offers:

• AI platform coverage – 6+ AI platforms vs Google AI Mode only
• Extended Google parsing – AI Overviews, citations vs basic SERP
• Better pricing – $0.90 per 1,000 vs $4-10 per 1,000
• AI visibility – Brand monitoring across AI platforms
• Clean data – Parsed objects with citations

Most teams use SearchApi for search engine scraping and add cloro for AI platform monitoring.

Switch from SearchApi for comprehensive AI platform coverage with extended Google parsing.