Exa: Free plan first-month credits cut from $30 to $20
What happened
Between the Sep 21, 2026 and Sep 28, 2026 captures of Exa's pricing page, Pulse recorded one change: Free/Starter plan sign-up credit terms changed from $20 sign-up bonus plus $10/month to $10/month plus a $10 onboarding bonus, cutting first-month total credits from $30 to $20. Pulse files it as a packaging change (freemium change) with a neutral direction. Pulse's latest capture (Oct 5, 2026) lists Search at $7 per 1k requests, up to 10 results + $1 per 1k page AI summaries, Agent at $0.01 per search tool call + $0.1 per request (Medium effort), Contents at $1 per 1k pages, per content type + $1 per 1k page AI summaries, Deep Search at $12 per 1k requests, up to 10 results + $1 per 1k requests, additional result above 10 and Deep-Reasoning Search at $1 per 1k page AI summaries + $1 per 1k requests, additional result above 10.
It lands 21 days after Exa's previous change, "Exa boosts Starter agent concurrency 3→50 and doubles QPS limits" (Sep 7, 2026). Before that Pulse recorded "Exa: Answer endpoint overage + AI-summary fees removed" (Aug 3, 2026), "Exa: Free tier switched to credit-based model ($20 signup + $10/mo)" (Jul 20, 2026) and "Exa halves Agent per-run price ceiling to $1.00, matching X-high tier" (Jul 6, 2026). Exa has been tracked since 2024-11-17.
In the same window Google and You.com also changed their AI & Machine Learning pricing pages. Those moves are listed further down, and the Pulse Agent can compare them side by side.
- Starter · Free tier−33%$30$20
| Plan | Field | Before | After | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Starter | Free tier | $30 | $20 | −33% |
Values as written on Exa's public pricing page in the two captures Pulse compared; where the page states no number, the cells give the wording before and after.
Evidence
The two captures Pulse comparedFull-page captures of Exa's pricing page (exa.ai) from Sep 21, 2026 and Sep 28, 2026; the change is marked near the top of the page, where starter free tier reads $30 and then $20.
Sign in to see the evidence
The two full-page captures with this change marked up are free with an account.
Exa, the last 90 days
Full history- Oct 5, 2026packagingExa launches $4/1k Instant Search, cutting Search entry price from $7
- Sep 28, 2026packagingExa: Free plan first-month credits cut from $30 to $20 · this change
- Sep 7, 2026improvedExa boosts Starter agent concurrency 3→50 and doubles QPS limits
- Aug 3, 2026decreaseExa: Answer endpoint overage + AI-summary fees removed
- Jul 20, 2026packagingExa: Free tier switched to credit-based model ($20 signup + $10/mo)
- Jul 6, 2026decreaseExa halves Agent per-run price ceiling to $1.00, matching X-high tier
- Jun 30, 2026improvedExa launches Connect GA, taps leading external data providers
- Jul 2, 2026improvedExa: Free tier limit increased 1,000 → 20,000 requests/month
Across AI & Machine Learning in the same window
All AI & Machine Learning changes- GoogleSep 7Google Workspace: promo discount cut from 50% to 30%/20% off
- You.comAug 4You.com: Web Search API now freemium (free 100/day + $5/1k after)
- GoogleJul 6Google Vertexai delays Agent Gateway billing to July 13, extends free window
- GoogleJul 3Google Workspace: new Workspace Studio feature; AI Ultra Access dropped
- GoogleJul 3Google Cloud: AI Commerce Search pricing revealed ($2.50-$6.00/1000 queries)
Questions about this change
Did Exa raise prices in September 2026?
No list-price increase was recorded between Sep 21, 2026 and Sep 28, 2026. The change Pulse detected was a packaging change: freemium change.
What changed on Exa's pricing page between Sep 21, 2026 and Sep 28, 2026?
Starter free tier: $30 → $20 (−33%). Pulse compared the captures it took on Sep 21, 2026 and Sep 28, 2026; the before/after table above lists each item as written on the page.
How often does Exa change its pricing?
Pulse recorded 6 other pricing-page changes for Exa in the 90 days before this one; the previous change was "Exa boosts Starter agent concurrency 3→50 and doubles QPS limits" on Sep 7, 2026; Exa has been tracked since 2024-11-17.