Grok answers API

What the Grok API returns

Grok's answers are long and list many options. Each one comes back read the same way as the other engines: brands in order with whether Grok actually recommends them, every citation typed, and the raw response kept as proof.

Grok searches X as well as the web

Unlike the other engines, Grok's search can read posts on X as well as web pages. Every citation comes back with its URL and a source type, and X posts are typed as social, so you can see when an answer about a brand leans on what people post rather than on articles. For the CRM question, all eight of Grok's sources were web pages: roundups and review sites such as stackbytrade.com, dupple.com and whichcrms.com.

One question, three different answers

We asked “best CRM for early-stage startups” on each engine from the US on the same morning. Each card is what the API returned: how the answer opens, the brands it named in order, and the first sites it cited.

Where each answer ranks each brand (1 = named first; – = not named)

Brand	Grok	ChatGPT	Perplexity
HubSpot	1	2	1
Attio	2	1	3
Pipedrive	3	3	4
Zoho CRM	4	4	5
Bigin	5 (not recommended)	– not named	6
Folk	6 (not recommended)	– not named	9
Freshsales	7 (not recommended)	– not named	– not named
Close	– not named	5	– not named
Less Annoying CRM	– not named	– not named	2
Salesforce Starter	– not named	– not named	7

All three name HubSpot, Attio and Pipedrive. Grok names nine brands but recommends only four; the other five are listed as alternatives, and the API's recommended field tells them apart. Grok's sources don't overlap with Perplexity's at all, and it shares just stackbytrade.com and dupple.com with ChatGPT.

Named isn't the same as recommended

Grok tends to list alternatives after its top picks. For the CRM question it named nine brands but recommended four: HubSpot, Attio, Pipedrive and Zoho CRM. Bigin, Folk, Freshsales, Salesflare and Copper were mentioned without being recommended. A simple mention count would treat all nine the same. The API returns recommended and sentiment for every brand, so a tracker can tell a recommendation from a passing mention.

Track brand mentions in Grok

Grok is the most expensive engine to ask because its search costs the most to run, so most teams track it on fewer questions or weekly. Put a brand, its competitors and its buyers' questions in a project with a schedule, then read how often Grok names and recommends the brand, competitor share, the sites it cites and the history. A webhook tells your server when each run is done.

Call the Grok API from TypeScript or Python

The SDKs wrap the same request, retry safely without charging twice, and wait for the answers for you. Free sandbox keys (aiv_test_…) return realistic sample answers, so you can build the whole feature before spending a credit.

TypeScript (npm install @aivisibilityskill/sdk)

import { Aiv } from "@aivisibilityskill/sdk";

const aiv = new Aiv({ apiKey: process.env.AIV_KEY! });

const job = await aiv.checks.create({
  questions: ["best CRM for early-stage startups"],
  engines: ["grok"],
  locale: "en-US",
});
const done = await aiv.jobs.wait(job.id);

for (const answer of done.answers ?? []) {
  console.log(answer.brands?.map((b) => `${b.rank}. ${b.name}`));
  console.log(answer.citations?.map((c) => c.domain));
}

Python (pip install aivisibilityskill)

import os
from aivisibilityskill import Aiv

aiv = Aiv(api_key=os.environ["AIV_KEY"])

job = aiv.checks.create(
    ["best CRM for early-stage startups"],
    engines=["grok"],
    locale="en-US",
)
done = aiv.jobs.wait(job["id"])

for answer in done["answers"]:
    print([(b["rank"], b["name"]) for b in answer["brands"]])
    print([c["domain"] for c in answer["citations"]])

For thousands of questions, send them as one batch of up to 20,000 answers and get one webhook when it's done. Full guides: SDKs, API reference, OpenAPI 3.1 spec.

Prefer a ready-made tool? llm-brand-tracker on GitHub tracks your brand against competitors on all 8 engines every week, free on GitHub Actions. Free and MIT licensed.

Grok API pricing

You pay per answer, in credits. Grok is asked live, one call per answer, so there's one speed. A dollar buys 1,000 credits on a pack; monthly and volume plans include more. An answer reused from a recent identical one (max_age_hours) costs half, and an answer that fails costs nothing.

Every account gets the same API and every engine, starting with 500 free credits and no card. Volume plans start at $500 a month for 750,000 credits, with invoicing and a 99.5% uptime commitment: see volume plans.

Countries and languages

Grok is asked through its API, so it isn't answering from a location. For any locale other than en-US, it's told which country the buyer is in, for any of 250 countries and territories, and it answers in the question's language (de-DE, pt-BR, ja-JP…). The app and search engines answer from the country itself: ChatGPT in 192, Gemini, Google AI Overviews and AI Mode in 240. GET /v1/locales lists every pair for free.