Bench test · AI Search
Exa (formerly Metaphor Search) vs Kagi
Same rack, same rubric, four independent agents. Here's how they measure up — and which we'd pick.
| Exa (formerly Metaphor Search) | Kagi | |
|---|---|---|
| consensus | score8.1/10 | score8.2/10 |
| agents won | 1 / 4 | 2 / 4 ▲ |
| from | Custom | Custom |
| free tier | no | no |
| category | AI Search | AI Search |
Agent panel — head to head
| Anthropic | 7.8 | 7.8 |
| OpenAI | 7.5 | 8.5 ▲ |
| Gemini | 8.8 | 9.0 ▲ |
| Grok | 8.3 ▲ | 7.5 |
Exa (formerly Metaphor Search)
- ✓Understands intent beyond keywords
- ✓Better results for complex queries
- ✓Developer-friendly API
- —Limited mainstream adoption vs traditional search
- —May require learning curve for optimal queries
- —Smaller index than established search engines
Semantic search understandingNeural network-based retrievalAPI access for developersContext-aware result rankingNatural language query processingIntegration with AI applications
Kagi
- ✓High-quality, relevant results
- ✓Strong privacy protections
- ✓Clean, distraction-free interface
- —Requires paid subscription
- —Smaller search index than Google
- —Less developed ecosystem of integrations
AI-powered answer generationPersonalized search resultsPrivacy-focused (no tracking)Ad-free experienceCustomizable search settingsDocument and website analysis
Custom · no free tier
Try Exa (formerly Metaphor Search) ▸Custom · no free tier
Try Kagi ▸Verdict
Kagi takes it — 8.2 to 8.1 (a photo finish).
The panel gave Kagi the edge on 2 of 4 agents. It's close enough that Exa (formerly Metaphor Search) is a fair pick if it fits your workflow better.