DeepSeek
DeepSeek Search and Fetch APIs explained: price and how they work
DeepSeek has opened its own web search and page-reading tools to all developers building AI agents, at RMB 5 per 1,000 successful requests.
The answer
DeepSeek opened Search and Fetch APIs to all developers, charging RMB 5 per 1,000 successful requests.
DeepSeek has opened two new tools to all developers: a web search service and a page-reading service. They let AI agents, which are programs that carry out tasks for you, look things up online using DeepSeek's own search engine.
What happened
DeepSeek released a Search API and a Fetch API. An API is a way for one piece of software to ask another for something. According to TechNode, the two tools work like this:
- Search returns structured web results, meaning the results come back in an organised format that software can read easily.
- Fetch takes a webpage and extracts its title and content as Markdown, a simple text format.
Each service costs RMB 5 per 1,000 successful requests. DeepSeek does not charge for failed requests, empty search results or timeouts. Developers use their existing DeepSeek API credentials, so there is no separate sign-up step mentioned.
Server-side calls made through DeepSeek Harness, Claude Code and Codex are currently unbilled. TechNode quotes the timing: "Charging for those calls will begin at midnight Beijing time on November 1."
The launch follows DeepSeek's V4.1-Flash-1017 model update, published on 17 October. TechNode's details come from DeepSeek's API documentation, which is in Chinese.
What it means for you
If you simply chat with AI tools, nothing changes directly. These APIs are aimed at developers who build agents, so the effects reach you through the products they make.
For developers, the pricing is simple to work out. At RMB 5 per 1,000 successful requests, you pay only when a search or page fetch works. Failed calls, empty results and timeouts are free.
If you use DeepSeek Harness, Claude Code or Codex and they call these services from the server side, you will not be billed for now. That ends at midnight Beijing time on 1 November, when charging begins. The notes do not say what those calls will cost beyond the standard rate, so check DeepSeek's documentation before then.
What happens next
The one date set out so far is 1 November, when charging begins for server-side calls through DeepSeek Harness, Claude Code and Codex. Nothing further about the rollout is stated yet. The full details are in DeepSeek's API documentation, though it is currently available in Chinese.
Sources
- DeepSeek launches web search and page-fetching APIs for AI agents — TechNode, 19 October 2026