Tavily
$8/ 1,000 basic searches
Pay-as-you-go Search
- Basic search
- 1 credit / request
- Advanced search
- 2 credits / request
- Optional Project plan
- $30/month · 4,000 credits
Tavily vs Firecrawl: choose research context or a site corpus
Tavily
- What it is
- A web research API for search, page extraction, site crawling and cited reports.
- Best for
- Gathering source context and optional answers for an agent in one search request.
- Typical output
- Ranked sources, relevance scores, content snippets and optional answers.
Firecrawl
- What it is
- A web scraping and crawling API that turns website pages into reusable content.
- Best for
- Capturing known URLs or collecting linked pages from a documentation site.
- Typical output
- Markdown, HTML and page metadata from selected URLs.
Need both?
Paste this prompt into your agent.
set up https://glasser.ai/SKILL.md
Show me how to use Tavily and Firecrawl together through Glasser.What can Tavily and Firecrawl do?
| Capability | Tavily | Firecrawl |
|---|---|---|
| Web discovery | ||
| Content retrieval | ||
| Site collection | ||
| Research & answers | Not covered here |
Limits & data comparison
| Compare by | Tavily | Firecrawl |
|---|---|---|
| Limits | 1,000 requests / minute with production keys Direct Crawl: 100/min; Research creation: 20/min. Search can return up to 20 results. | Hobby: 5 concurrent browsers Direct Hobby allows 100 scrape requests/min; crawl submissions have a separate 20/min limit. |
| Data fields | Title, URL, relevance score and matched content Optional raw content and generated answer; Extract reports failed URLs separately. | Markdown, HTML and page metadata Direct APIs also offer optional JSON and screenshots; the selected Glasser scrape is basic content capture. |
| Collection & context controls | Search depth, domains, dates and topics Crawl and Map offer path/depth controls; instructions focus collection on a task. | Known URLs, site paths and crawl depth Collect a site corpus; use cache controls when freshness matters. |
| Execution & Reliability | Search and Extract return in the request; Research is a job Extract has a configurable wait and per-URL failures. Poll Research status; respect Retry-After on 429 responses. | Direct scrape is synchronous; crawl is asynchronous Scrape timeout is configurable; monitor crawl status and page errors before treating a corpus as complete. |
| Glasser access | Search, Extract, Crawl, Map and Research All five operations are available through Glasser; depth and volume affect the charge. | Basic Scrape, Search, Crawl and Map The selected Glasser scrape produces Markdown/HTML; advanced formats need a supporting operation. |
Tavily vs Firecrawl pricing
Firecrawl
$19/ month
Hobby · billed monthly
- Included
- 5,000 credits / month
- Basic scraping
- 1 credit / page
- Concurrency
- 5 browsers
Task-based cost example
Tavily: 1,000 basic searches + Firecrawl: 1,000 successful basic page scrapes
| Task volume | Direct: entry spend | Glasser: task charges |
|---|---|---|
| Tavily: 1,000 basic searches | $8.001,000 × $0.008; no subscription | $8.001,000 × $0.008 |
| Firecrawl: 1,000 successful basic page scrapes | $19.00Hobby monthly plan · 5,000 credits | $1.071,000 × $0.001071 |
| Entry spend / task charges | $27.00 | $9.07 |
Inputs and outputs
Tavily
- InputA question, domains and search depth
- OperationSearch and collect context
- OutputScored sources and optional answer
Firecrawl
- InputA public URL or site root
- OperationScrape or crawl
- OutputMarkdown / HTML and page metadata
Still unsure? Choose based on your task
Research a question with sources
Use Tavily Search when you start with a question and want source context before deciding which pages to read.
Collect a documentation site
Use Firecrawl when you already know the site and need linked pages as Markdown or HTML for a reusable corpus.
Find vendors and capture their details
Search for candidate vendors with Tavily, then capture selected documentation or pricing pages with Firecrawl.
Why Use Tavily and Firecrawl Through Glasser?
One API Key
Access both providers with one Glasser key.
One Balance
Use one shared balance for both providers.
Pay as You Go
Pay per use, with no Glasser subscription.
Agent-Ready Integration
Connect your agent via Skill, MCP or CLI.
Questions before you choose
Can both products crawl websites?
Yes. Tavily offers Crawl and Map as well as search and extraction. Firecrawl also provides Crawl and Map. Compare path controls, content formats and per-page billing for the site you intend to collect.
Should I start with search or a URL?
Use search when you still need to discover sources. Use a scrape or crawl when the target URLs are known. Tavily and Firecrawl overlap, so choose the operation around the required output rather than the product name alone.
Can I use Tavily and Firecrawl together in one AI agent?
Yes, for their connected operations. Use Tavily to discover vendor pages and Firecrawl to capture the selected pages as Markdown. Your agent coordinates the requests using one Glasser key and shared balance.
Can my agent automatically choose between Tavily and Firecrawl?
A tool-using agent can discover endpoints, inspect their inputs and prices, and select an operation for your task. Tell it which output, source filters and request volume you need. Ask for approval before paid calls; Glasser does not make that routing decision for the agent.
How do I control API spending through Glasser?
Search and Inspect are free. Ask your agent to estimate the planned batch, inspect the charge rules and wait for approval before running it. Keep batches small and review final charges; failures can be billable under the endpoint’s rules. The comparison excludes free allowances and does not promise lower unit prices.
Can I use Glasser with Claude Code, Codex and ChatGPT?
Use the Glasser Skill and CLI with local coding agents such as Claude Code or Codex. ChatGPT can connect through the Glasser MCP integration. Follow the setup guide for your client, then inspect the selected operation before making a paid call.