Perplexity Sonar Pro Search: answers from the live web
Perplexity
Services found: 1
| # | AI model | Capabilities | API $/1M (in / out) | Context window | Price / mo | Output $/1M | Overview | Visit site |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Sonar Pro Search Perplexity |    | $3 / $15 | 200K tokens | API only | 15 | View |
Browse by need
Perplexity contributes Sonar Pro Search at $3 input and $15 output per 1M tokens. It is a search-first model: the answer is assembled from live retrieval with citations, rather than recalled from training data.
That makes it a different product from a general chat model. For time-sensitive questions — prices, news, availability, regulation — it removes the staleness problem at the cost of per-query search fees layered on top of tokens.
Search-firstRetrieval is the design centre, not an add-on tool.
Citations includedAnswers come with sources attached.
Not a general modelPoor value for tasks that need no fresh data.
Models from this vendor
1 Perplexity model in this rating. Prices are input and output per 1M tokens from the vendor official price list; for dirhams multiply by 3.6725. Tap a card to open the model page.
How to choose
- Benchmark against a comparable model from a larger vendor before committing production traffic — line-ups this size get less independent testing.
- Start with Sonar Pro Search at $3 / $15 per 1M tokens; it is the cheapest entry point here.
- Check the context window against your longest input — the largest here is Sonar Pro Search at 200K tokens.
- Confirm support terms and deprecation policy, which smaller vendors document less thoroughly.
Common mistakes
Assuming parity with the majorsOn the hardest tasks the frontier labs remain ahead; compare on your own cases.
Skipping the exit planA smaller vendor can change terms or availability faster. Identify a fallback model before you depend on this one.
Who this suits
Cost-driven teamsSonar Pro Search at $3 / $15 undercuts most mainstream options.
EvaluatorsA useful comparison point when benchmarking the single model against larger line-ups.
Regional usersRelevant where this vendor platform or language coverage matters more than raw capability.
Related filters
Text & chat228 models for text generation and chat
Vision156 models that read images
Reasoning169 models that think before answering
Tool calling166 models that call your functions
Alibaba (Qwen)34 models in this rating
OpenAI30 models in this rating
Google DeepMind17 models in this rating
Frequently asked questions
When should I use Sonar?
When the answer depends on current information rather than stored knowledge.
Does it cite sources?
Yes, and citation display is part of the product.
Is it cheaper than grounding a general model?
Depends on query volume — compare against per-query grounding fees.
How many Perplexity models are in this rating?
1, covering text & chat, vision, reasoning.
Is Perplexity a good default choice?
For most teams no — start with a mainstream vendor and use this one where its pricing or specialisation gives a concrete advantage.
Frequently searched
By capabilityReasoningCodingVisionLong context 1M+Free tierOpen weightsLow latencyRealtime voiceImage generation
By vendorAnthropic (13)OpenAI (30)Google DeepMind (17)xAI (8)Meta (6)DeepSeek (9)Mistral AI (11)Alibaba (Qwen) (34)Z.ai (12)Moonshot AI (5)
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