Jina AI Search vs Context.dev for AI agents
Jina AI Search is a search endpoint (s.jina.ai) that searches the web and returns the top results converted to clean, LLM-friendly text. Context.dev is a web data API for AI agents (scrape, search, crawl, extract) whose search endpoint can return page content with each result.
The short answer
- Jina AI Search: Getting search results already converted to clean full-page text in one call.
- Context.dev: One credit pool for search, scraping and extraction, with page Markdown attached to results.
Side by side
| Jina AI Search | Context.dev | |
|---|---|---|
| Searches | The web (the provider does not name the search engine behind it). | Ranked web results (the provider does not name the engine; its country option maps to Google's gl parameter). |
| Returns | The top five results with URL and page content as LLM-friendly text; Markdown, HTML, JSON or text formats. | 10 to 100 results with URL, title and snippet; optional page Markdown or relevant passages per result. |
| Before the first call | An API key: search is blocked without one. | An account and API key (Bearer); no card for the free tier. |
| Free | 10 million free tokens with every new API key; each search costs a fixed amount starting at 10,000 tokens (so roughly 1,000 searches at most). | 1,000 credits a month, no credit card (search costs 1 credit per 10 results). |
| Paid | Not stated on its pages | Developer plan $19/month for 7,500 credits; overage $2.20 per 1,000 credits. |
| Acting on a result | Through the web page each result links to | Through the web page each result links to |
| Limits on keeping or showing results | Not stated on its pages | Terms bar systematically retrieving data from the service to compile a database without written permission. |
| AI in its terms | Jina says it does not use customer request data, inputs or prompts to train its models; outputs may not be used to build competing services. | Context.dev may use customer data to train and improve its machine-learning models, unless a separate no-training agreement applies. |
| MCP server | Official MCP server: mcp.jina.ai (code: https://github.com/jina-ai/MCP) | Official MCP server: https://mcp.context.dev/mcp (OAuth or API key) |
Questions people ask
What do I need before I can use Jina AI Search?
An API key: search is blocked without one.
Is Jina AI Search free?
10 million free tokens with every new API key; each search costs a fixed amount starting at 10,000 tokens (so roughly 1,000 searches at most).
What do I need before I can use Context.dev?
An account and API key (Bearer); no card for the free tier.
Is Context.dev free?
1,000 credits a month, no credit card (search costs 1 credit per 10 results).
Sources
Every line about another company comes from its own pages. Prices and terms change, so check the source before you rely on one.
Jina AI Search, read on October 15, 2026:
- jina.ai/reader: “Every new API key comes with 10M free tokens!”
- jina.ai/reader: “Every request costs a fixed number of tokens, starting from 10,000 tokens”
- jina.ai/reader: “return the top five results with their URLs and contents, each in clean, LLM-friendly text”
- jina.ai/reader: “Add mcp.jina.ai as your MCP server to use our APIs in LLMs.”
- jina.ai/legal: “Jina AI does not use Customer request data, inputs, prompts, or uploaded content to train its models,”
- jina.ai/legal: “use any Output from the Services to develop applications or services that compete with the Services offered by Jina AI”
Context.dev, read on October 15, 2026:
- context.dev/pricing: “Start with 1,000 free credits/mo, no credit card required.”
- context.dev/pricing: “Web and news search cost 1 credit per 10 results.”
- docs.context.dev/api-reference/web-scraping/search: “Search the web and optionally return page content or relevant passages with each result.”
- docs.context.dev/api-reference/web-scraping/search: “Number of results to request and return (10–100). Defaults to 10.”
- context.dev/terms: “Systematically retrieve data or other content from the Services to create or compile”
- context.dev/terms: “Context.dev may use Customer IP to train and improve the machine learning”
- docs.context.dev/install-mcp: “https://mcp.context.dev/mcp”
- context.dev/pricing: “$19 /month Start building 7,500 credits per month”