Pricing

PincerAPI charges based on usage. No monthly subscriptions — you pay only for what you use.

Pricing Lanes

Each API in the directory uses one of three pricing lanes:

Instant (Platform Key)

PincerAPI holds a master API key and proxies your request through it.

• Cost: Proxy fee ($0.001) + provider cost + markup (typically 15%)
• Setup: None — just call the endpoint
• Best for: Quick testing, low-volume usage

BYOK (Bring Your Own Key)

You register your own API key with PincerAPI. The proxy uses your key.

• Cost: Proxy fee only ($0.001 per call)
• Setup: Store your key via Dashboard → My APIs, or POST /api/v1/connect/{api_id}
• Best for: Cost-conscious usage, APIs where you already have an account

Managed

PincerAPI manages a subscription/account on your behalf and meters usage.

• Cost: Per-unit pricing set per API (e.g. $0.005 per search)
• Setup: None — metered automatically
• Best for: APIs with complex billing that you don't want to manage

Content Reads

Some endpoints charge a small fee for retrieving structured content:

Balance & Funding

• Prepaid balance model — add funds before making calls
• Minimum deposit: $5 via Stripe
• Auto-reload available: set threshold + reload amount
• Balance shown in dashboard and in X-Pincer-Balance response header

Free Tier

These endpoints are always free:

• GET /api/v1/apis — List/search APIs
• GET /api/v1/cookbooks — List cookbooks
• GET /api/v1/health — Health check
• GET /api/v1/balance — Check your balance
• GET /api/v1/categories — List categories
• GET /api/v1/docs/search — Search docs