⚠️ Important Update (2025):
Google Custom Search JSON API is closed to new customers as of 2025. Existing users can continue using the API until January 1, 2027, after which it will be fully retired. Google now recommends Vertex AI Search as a replacement. If you are looking for a new site search solution, you will need to choose an alternative — read on for a full pricing comparison.
Google Site Search Pricing in 2025: Complete Guide to Google CSE Replacement Options
If you’ve been searching for “google search api pricing” or “google programmable search engine pricing,” you’ve likely discovered that the landscape has changed dramatically. Google has deprecated its Custom Search JSON API for new signups, leaving thousands of website owners scrambling for alternatives.
This guide breaks down every Google site search option still available in 2025 — including exact pricing — and compares them with ExpertRec, the most popular Google CSE replacement for content websites and ecommerce stores.
Google Custom Search JSON API Pricing (Legacy — Closed to New Customers)
The Google Custom Search JSON API was the go-to programmatic search solution for developers who needed search results in JSON format. Here is the pricing structure that existing users still pay:
- Free tier: 100 queries per day (no cost)
- Paid tier: $5 per 1,000 queries, up to a maximum of 10,000 queries per day
- Daily cap: 10,000 queries/day is the hard limit — you cannot exceed this even if you pay more
What Does Google Custom Search JSON API Cost at Scale?
Let’s do the math for different usage levels:
| Daily Queries | Daily Cost | Monthly Cost (30 days) | Annual Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| 100 (free tier) | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| 500 | $2.00 | $60 | $720 |
| 1,000 | $4.50 | $135 | $1,620 |
| 5,000 | $24.50 | $735 | $8,820 |
| 10,000 (max) | $49.50 | $1,485 | $17,820 |
Key limitation: The 10,000 queries/day hard cap means the maximum monthly volume is approximately 300,000 queries — with a price tag of nearly $1,500/month. For sites that need more, Google’s JSON API simply cannot scale further.
For a detailed technical walkthrough of the API itself, see our guide on Google Custom Search JSON API simplified.
Google Programmable Search Engine Pricing (Free Tier — Still Available)
Google Programmable Search Engine (formerly Google Custom Search Engine) is the free, embeddable search widget that still works in 2025. Here’s what you get:
- Cost: Free to use
- Ads: Google displays ads within your search results — you cannot remove them on the free tier
- Customization: Basic look-and-feel settings, limited branding control
- Results quality: Powered by Google’s index, but limited to pages Google has crawled
- Analytics: Minimal search analytics — no insight into what users search for
- Autocomplete: Not available on the free tier
- Support: Community forums only — no dedicated support
The free Programmable Search Engine is suitable for personal blogs or hobby sites where search quality and branding don’t matter. However, for any business or professional website, the ads in your search results look unprofessional and may drive visitors away to competitor sites. Google may display ads from your direct competitors within your own search results, effectively giving away traffic you’ve worked hard to attract.
Another significant limitation: the free tier does not provide any search analytics. You have no visibility into what your visitors are searching for, which queries return zero results, or how search behavior correlates with engagement. These insights are essential for improving content strategy and user experience on any serious website.
Vertex AI Search: Google’s Recommended Replacement (Enterprise Pricing)
Google now directs new customers to Vertex AI Search (part of Google Cloud) as the replacement for the Custom Search JSON API. Here’s what you need to know about its pricing:
- Requires a Google Cloud Platform (GCP) account with billing enabled
- Query pricing: Starts at $2.50 per 1,000 queries for basic search
- Data ingestion: Charges apply for indexing documents and websites
- Storage costs: Separate charges for storing indexed data in GCP
- AI features: Advanced AI-powered results (summarization, recommendations) cost significantly more
- Minimum commitment: Enterprise-oriented — pricing is designed for large-scale deployments
While Vertex AI Search is technically powerful, it requires significant GCP expertise to set up and manage. You will need to create a Google Cloud project, enable billing, configure service accounts, and manage data stores — tasks that require a developer familiar with the GCP ecosystem.
The pricing model is complex and usage-based, making monthly costs unpredictable. Unlike flat-rate alternatives, your Vertex AI Search bill will fluctuate based on query volume, indexing frequency, and which AI features you enable. For most small-to-medium websites, Vertex AI Search is overkill and overpriced — it’s designed for enterprises processing millions of documents, not blogs or mid-size content sites.
ExpertRec: The Most Popular Google CSE Replacement
ExpertRec offers a purpose-built site search solution with transparent, predictable pricing. Unlike Google’s per-query billing, ExpertRec uses fixed monthly plans so you always know what you’ll pay. ExpertRec offers two product lines depending on your needs:
ExpertRec Content Search (Search-Only Plans)
Built for blogs, documentation sites, media outlets, and any content-focused website that needs fast, accurate site search. Plans available at expertrec.com/content-search-for-custom-stack:
| Plan | Pages Indexed | Search Requests/Month | Monthly Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starter | 1,000 pages | 50,000 requests | $49/mo |
| Growth | 5,000 pages | 100,000 requests | $81/mo |
| Pro | 10,000 pages | 200,000 requests | $159/mo |
All Content Search plans include: AI-powered autocomplete, typo tolerance, faceted filters, search analytics dashboard, custom ranking controls, responsive UI, and dedicated support. Unlike Google’s per-query billing, these are flat monthly rates — your cost stays the same regardless of traffic spikes within your plan’s limits.
ExpertRec Ecommerce Combo (Search + Recommendations + Collections)
For online stores that need product search combined with AI-powered product recommendations and curated collections. Available at expertrec.com/ecommerce-search:
- Ecommerce Combo: Starting from $359/mo — includes site search, product recommendations engine, and collections/merchandising tools
- Designed for Shopify, WooCommerce, Magento, and custom ecommerce platforms
- Includes conversion-focused features like “Customers also bought” and smart product groupings
Side-by-Side Pricing Comparison: Google CSE vs. ExpertRec
| Feature | Google CSE Free | Google CSE Paid (JSON API) | ExpertRec Content Search | ExpertRec Ecommerce Combo |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Starting Price | Free | $5 per 1,000 queries | $49/mo | $359/mo |
| Accepting New Customers | Yes | No (closed 2025) | Yes | Yes |
| Ads in Results | Yes (cannot remove) | No | No | No |
| Monthly Query Limit | ~3,000/mo (100/day) | Up to ~300,000/mo | 50,000 to 200,000/mo | Plan-specific limits |
| Autocomplete | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| Typo Tolerance | Limited | Limited | Yes | Yes |
| Faceted Filters | No | Basic | Yes | Yes |
| Search Analytics | Minimal | Basic | Full dashboard | Full dashboard |
| Custom Ranking | No | Limited | Yes | Yes |
| Product Recommendations | No | No | No | Yes |
| Dedicated Support | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| UI Customization | Basic | Basic | Full (CSS + layout) | Full (CSS + layout) |
Cost Calculator: Google CSE vs. ExpertRec at Different Query Volumes
One of the biggest differences between Google’s per-query pricing and ExpertRec’s flat-rate plans is predictability. Here’s how costs compare at different monthly search volumes:
| Monthly Queries | Google CSE JSON API Cost | ExpertRec Content Search Plan | You Save with ExpertRec |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3,000 (free tier) | $0 (100/day limit) | $49/mo (Starter — 50K requests) | Google is cheaper, but no features |
| 15,000 | ~$60/mo | $49/mo (Starter — 50K requests) | $11/mo + autocomplete, analytics, filters |
| 50,000 | ~$235/mo | $49/mo (Starter — 50K requests) | $186/mo (79% savings) |
| 100,000 | ~$485/mo | $81/mo (Growth — 100K requests) | $404/mo (83% savings) |
| 200,000 | ~$985/mo | $159/mo (Pro — 200K requests) | $826/mo (84% savings) |
| 300,000 (Google max) | ~$1,485/mo | $159/mo (Pro) + custom plan available | $1,326/mo (89% savings) |
Bottom line: Once you exceed the free tier’s 100 queries/day, ExpertRec’s Content Search plans deliver dramatically better value — with far more features included. At 200,000 monthly queries, you’d pay nearly $1,000/month with Google’s JSON API versus just $159/month with ExpertRec’s Pro plan.
Note that the Google JSON API cost calculations above assume even distribution of queries across all 30 days. In reality, traffic patterns are uneven — if you hit the 10,000 daily cap on busy days, some searches will simply fail. ExpertRec’s monthly request limits are more flexible since they allow natural traffic fluctuations without daily caps cutting off search on your busiest days.
How to Migrate from Google Custom Search to ExpertRec
Switching from Google CSE to ExpertRec takes about 10 minutes:
- Sign up at cse.expertrec.com — enter your website URL
- Crawling starts automatically — ExpertRec indexes your site within minutes
- Customize the search UI to match your site’s branding (colors, fonts, layout)
- Install by adding a single JavaScript snippet to your site — replaces the old Google CSE code
- Monitor searches through the analytics dashboard to see what visitors search for
Try ExpertRec free — migrate from Google CSE in minutes
Why Are Google Search Engine Prices Rising?
Google has been steadily moving away from affordable, developer-friendly search products. Here is the timeline:
- 2017: Google Site Search (the paid, ad-free product) was retired
- 2023: Google Search API was replaced by the Custom Search JSON API
- 2025: Custom Search JSON API closed to new customers
- 2027: Custom Search JSON API will be fully retired for all users
Google’s strategy is clear: push site search customers toward Vertex AI Search on GCP, which generates significantly higher revenue per customer. For small and medium businesses, this means Google search engine prices are effectively being priced out of reach — making third-party alternatives like ExpertRec the practical choice.
If you are currently using the Google Custom Search JSON API, don’t wait until the January 2027 deadline to migrate. Starting early gives you time to test the replacement, customize the search experience, and ensure your visitors don’t experience any disruption when Google finally shuts the API down.
If your Google site search is not working you can refer Google custom search support to find a solution. A static website with a dynamic search function? Yes, Hugo provides an alternative to embeddable scripts from Google or other search engines for static websites. Check out hugo themes with search Google search script for sites is an easy and effective way to add search capabilities to your site. You can learn more about Google custom search JS examples Read more on google custom search alternatives You can also try searching multiple websites at once. Looking for google custom search bar htmlThe Google Custom Search JSON API offers 100 free queries per day. Beyond that, it costs $5 per 1,000 queries, with a hard cap of 10,000 queries per day. At maximum usage, this works out to approximately $1,485 per month. However, the API is now closed to new customers as of 2025 — existing users can continue until January 1, 2027.
Yes, Google Programmable Search Engine is free to use, but it displays Google ads within your search results that you cannot remove. The ad-free JSON API access costs $5 per 1,000 queries after the first 100 free daily queries. The free version also lacks autocomplete, advanced analytics, and dedicated support.
ExpertRec is the most popular Google Custom Search replacement. Content Search plans start at $49 per month for 1,000 pages and 50,000 search requests, and include features Google CSE lacks such as AI-powered autocomplete, typo tolerance, faceted filters, search analytics, and custom ranking controls. For ecommerce sites, ExpertRec also offers a Combo plan starting at $359 per month that adds product recommendations and collections.
Google Custom Search JSON API charges $5 per 1,000 queries with a 10,000 queries per day cap, which means 200,000 monthly queries would cost approximately $985. ExpertRec Content Search Pro plan covers 200,000 requests per month for a flat $159, saving you over $800 monthly. ExpertRec also includes autocomplete, filters, analytics, and support at no extra cost.
Google Custom Search JSON API will be fully retired on January 1, 2027. The API is already closed to new customers as of 2025. Google recommends migrating to Vertex AI Search on Google Cloud Platform, but this requires GCP expertise and has enterprise-level pricing. Alternatives like ExpertRec offer simpler migration with transparent monthly pricing starting at $49 per month.
