Head to head
unlob vs Grounding with Google Search
Google’s first-party grounding gives Gemini the best index in the world at $14 per 1,000 search queries — 35× unlob, and only usable from Gemini.
Verified 7 October 2026·Figures from vendors' own pages
On the headline rate that is 35× — $14 per 1,000 for Grounding with Google Search’s search queries on Gemini 3.x, its cheapest comparable mode, against $0.40per 1,000 searches. Other modes cost more; the pricing detail below lists them. Both figures are computed from the published plan tables rather than typed into this page, so they follow the vendors rather than drifting from them.
Price
- unlob$0.40
- Grounding with Google Search$14
| Provider | Own index? | $ / 1,000 searches | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
Priced: search queries on Gemini 3.x. $14 per 1,000 search queries on Gemini 3.x models after 5,000 free search requests a month (paid tier, shared across Gemini 3.x), plus model token charges. One prompt can trigger several billed queries. Gemini 2.5 models keep the older scheme: $35 per 1,000 grounded prompts after 1,500 free a day. | Yes Google's index | $14 | Gemini API pricing |
$29 per month for 50,000 credits, and a search is one credit. | Yes Our own crawl and index | $0.58 | This page |
$199 per month for 500,000 credits, and a search is one credit. | Yes Our own crawl and index | $0.40 | This page |
When Grounding with Google Search is the better choice
A comparison page that cannot name a scenario where the competitor wins is an advertisement. Here are the real ones.
Choose Grounding with Google Search
- Retrieval quality on broad consumer queries. It is Google’s index; nothing else in this market matches it for coverage.
- You are already committed to Gemini and want zero integration work.
- The 5,000 free prompts a month are generous for low-volume applications.
- First-party support and billing through an existing Google Cloud relationship.
Choose unlob
- Price: $0.40 against $14, and against $35 on Gemini 2.5 models.
- Model independence — the same API works with Claude, GPT, open models or none.
- Control over retrieval: around 30 filters, three modes, explicit sorting and deduplication.
- Graph traversal and coverage auditing, neither of which grounding provides.
The substantive differences
| Grounding with Google Search | unlob | |
|---|---|---|
| Billing shape | Per search query on top of token costs. One prompt can trigger several billed queries, so real cost exceeds the headline. | A fixed price per call, published before it runs: a search is 1 credit and ground 5, however much work either does on the server. |
| Lock-in | Gemini only. Changing model means changing retrieval. | A plain HTTP API and an MCP server — retrieval and model are independent choices. |
| Control | The model decides what to search for and what to use. You see citations, not a result set. | You issue the query and the filters; the agent sees exactly what you asked for. |
| Auditability | Citations for what was used; nothing about what was excluded. | why_not explains absence, and assemble_context attaches a reason to every included passage. |
Sources
Every figure on this page was read from the vendor's own pricing page or funding announcement on the date shown.
- Grounding with Google Search: Gemini API pricingread 7 October 2026
Frequently asked questions
How much does Google Search grounding cost?
$14 per 1,000 search queries on Gemini 3.x models after 5,000 free prompts per month. Gemini 2.5 models use an older scheme at $35 per 1,000 grounded prompts after 1,500 free requests a day. Note that a single prompt can trigger multiple billed search queries.
Can I use Google grounding with Claude or GPT?
No. Grounding with Google Search is a Gemini feature. If you need retrieval that survives a model change, you need a standalone search API.
Check the claims yourself
The free tier is 10,000 credits a month with no card. That is enough to test coverage, latency and result quality against your own queries — which is a better comparison than this page.