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Business Intelligence · head to head

Exa vs Refact

Exa logo

Exa

Business Intelligence

Web search, built for AI agents

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Visit ExaFull review
Refact logo

Refact

Developer Tools

Autonomous AI coding agent for development tasks

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Visit RefactFull review

The short version

  • Refact is an autonomous AI coding agent.
  • Free plans on both; paid from $7/mo and $10/mo.
  • Where Exa falls short: usage-based pricing can be unpredictable without volume discounts upfront.
  • Where Refact falls short: requires configuration for optimal performance.
  • Prices and features on this page were last checked on 13 November 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Exa and Refact actually diverge.

Attributes where Exa and Refact differ
AttributeExaRefact
Pricing modelUsage-basedFreemium with paid tiers
PlatformsWebVS Code, Web
CategoryBusiness IntelligenceDeveloper Tools

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes).

Not yet recorded: founded for Exa.

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Exa

Nothing recorded that Refact does not also cover.

Only in Refact

  • Autonomous agent workflows
  • IDE chat
  • Real-time code completions
  • GitHub integration
  • Database integration
  • On-premise deployment
  • Multi-LLM support
  • 25+ language support

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Exa

  • Web search and research APIsnot Refact
  • Content extraction and analysisnot Refact
  • Real-time monitoring and alertsnot Refact

Refact

  • Autonomous code generation for development tasksnot Exa
  • End-to-end bug fixes and refactoringnot Exa
  • Multi-language software development accelerationnot Exa
  • Enterprise development with data privacy requirementsnot Exa

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Exa

  • Usage-based pricing can be unpredictable without volume discounts upfront
  • Enterprise customers need to contact sales for custom volume discount plans

Refact

  • Requires configuration for optimal performance
  • On-premise deployment adds operational complexity
  • Free tier limited by daily agent request quota
  • Coin system adds complexity to cost calculation

Pricing, plan by plan

Exa

Free
  • Free TierFree
    • $20 in free credits (approximately 2,800 searches)
    • $10 in monthly credits after first month
  • Search$7
    • Standard search functionality
  • Deep Search$12
    • In-depth search results
  • Contents$1/per 1000 pages
    • Content extraction

Refact

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Limited daily agent usage
    • Unlimited completions
    • 2,000 coins for agent and chat
  • Pro$10/mo
    • 40 daily agent requests
    • 64k context window
    • 10,000 coins monthly
  • EnterpriseOn request
    • On-premise deployment
    • Custom coin allocation
    • Fine-tuning support

Which should you pick?

Choose Exa if

  • You want to start without paying.
Exa review

Choose Refact if

  • You need autonomous agent workflows.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on VS Code, Web.
  • You also want ide chat.
Refact review

Questions people ask

Is Exa or Refact better?
Neither clearly leads. Exa starts at Free and Refact at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Exa or Refact?
Exa starts at Free and Refact at Free.
Does Exa or Refact run on more platforms?
Exa runs on Web. Refact runs on VS Code, Web.
Can I use Exa for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Exa best used for?
Exa is most often used for web search and research apis, content extraction and analysis, real-time monitoring and alerts. Of those, web search and research apis and content extraction and analysis are not what Refact is typically brought in for.
What can Exa do that Refact cannot?
Refact covers Autonomous agent workflows, IDE chat, Real-time code completions, GitHub integration.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Exa: How much does Exa API cost?

Exa uses pay-as-you-go pricing with no subscription or minimum spend required. Search costs USD$7 per 1000 requests, Deep Search costs USD$12-15 per 1000 requests, and Contents costs USD$1 per 1000 pages. Users load credits and are charged at these published rates.

Source
Refact: How many programming languages does Refact support?

Refact supports 25+ programming languages including Python, JavaScript, Go, Rust, Java, C++, and many others.

Source
Exa: Is there a free tier for Exa?

Yes, new accounts receive USD$20 in free credits (approximately 2,800 searches) plus USD$10 in additional credits every month. This allows developers to test the API before committing to paid usage.

Source
Refact: Can I deploy Refact on-premises?

Yes. Refact offers on-premise deployment options for organizations requiring complete data control and privacy.

Source
Exa: What other costs are associated with Exa?

Beyond the main API costs, Exa charges USD$1 per 1000 results beyond the first 10 returned, USD$1 per 1000 pages for AI summaries, and USD$0.10 per Agent Compute Unit for autonomous agent usage. Contact enrichment features cost USD$0.02 per email and USD$0.07 per phone number.

Source
Refact: What LLMs does Refact support?

Refact works with multiple LLMs including Claude, GPT-4, and open-source models, giving you flexibility in model selection.

Source
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