# AX Check: algolia.com Checked 2026-09-29. Algolia's docs and pricing are clear and ready for agents to act on All 23 checklist items passed: quickstart, API reference, MCP server, CLI and SDKs are all directly reachable, and pricing is stated with concrete rates, not gated. ## Onboarding needs a login ## Coding sessions All three independent sessions (DeepSeek V4.1 Flash, Kimi K3, Qwen 3.8 Max) completed the task and reported concrete pricing tiers and free-tier limits pulled straight from the pricing page, with no login wall encountered. ### DeepSeek V4.1 Flash [View public run](https://agents.withgauge.com/p/runs/bb587c66-70b2-4993-9939-f6165d960795) · [Read transcript](https://www.ax-check.com/algolia.com/sessions/deepseek.json) Final output gives a pricing table (Build/Grow/Grow Plus/Elevate) sourced from a live fetch of algolia.com/pricing (seq 46-60) with explicit assumptions: free tier no card required, drivers are search volume and record count, and a note that pricing may change. #### End-to-end onboarding - **Onboarding needs a login**: Agent never obtained real Algolia credentials. It ran the example script with no credentials (printed setup instructions) and then with fabricated placeholder credentials (TESTAPPID/fakekey), which the SDK correctly rejected with an 'Unreachable hosts' auth error. No account signup or credential retrieval occurred during the session, and no authenticated operation against a real hosted Algolia app was ever performed. Event 41: ```text ALGOLIA_APP_ID=TESTAPPID ALGOLIA_ADMIN_API_KEY=fakekey timeout 25 node algolia-example.js 2>&1; echo "--- exit: $?" ``` Event 43: ```text Algolia call failed: Unreachable hosts - your application id may be incorrect. If the error persists, please visit our help center https://alg.li/support-unreachable-hosts or reach out to the Algolia Support team: https://alg.li/support ``` Event 81: ```text Not a workflow blocker — only **credentials**. I can't create an account or run a live query in this sandbox. Get a free app ID and keys, export them, and the script runs as-is. ``` #### Hallucinated URLs None identified in this transcript. #### Blockers - **No Algolia account credentials available in sandbox**: The sandbox environment has no Algolia app ID or API key, and there is no self-service way for the agent to create an account or generate credentials without human action. This is a test-environment/credential limitation, not a product defect — Algolia normally requires a signup step like any hosted SaaS. The agent correctly identified this and stopped short of claiming a live success. Event 6: ```text no algolia env vars ``` Event 42: ```text No Algolia credentials found, so the live demo cannot run yet. ``` Event 43: ```text Algolia call failed: Unreachable hosts - your application id may be incorrect. ``` #### Suggested Changes None identified in this transcript. ### Kimi K3 [View public run](https://agents.withgauge.com/p/runs/dd96d1b7-1df3-4c54-8ff5-fae0651ca437) · [Read transcript](https://www.ax-check.com/algolia.com/sessions/kimi.json) Final output gives concrete pricing tiers (Build free ~10k records/requests, Grow $0.50/1k requests, $0.40/1k records) with plan-name assumptions and a caveat to verify current numbers at algolia.com/pricing. #### End-to-end onboarding - **Onboarding needs a login**: Agent never obtained Algolia credentials on its own. It searched the environment for an API key and app ID, found none, and explicitly stated account signup requires email verification it cannot perform. The example script was written and executed once, but it exited immediately with a missing-credentials error rather than performing any authenticated call to the hosted Algolia API. Event 5: ```text --- v22.23.2 Python 3.12.3 ``` Event 7: ```text I can't create an Algolia account myself (signup requires email verification), so the script will be complete but you'll need to drop in your own free-tier credentials to run it. ``` Event 18: ```text Set ALGOLIA_APP_ID and ALGOLIA_API_KEY environment variables first. exit: 1 ``` Event 20: ```text Partially, and it's a hard external blocker: **running it live requires an Algolia account**, and signup needs an email/dashboard login I can't perform. ``` #### Hallucinated URLs None identified in this transcript. #### Blockers - **No self-service Algolia account creation**: Agent could not create an Algolia account or obtain an App ID/API key because signup requires email verification, a normal login/account-creation wall rather than a product defect. This is a session limitation, not a bug in Algolia's product. Event 7: ```text I can't create an Algolia account myself (signup requires email verification), so the script will be complete but you'll need to drop in your own free-tier credentials to run it. ``` Event 20: ```text running it live requires an Algolia account**, and signup needs an email/dashboard login I can't perform ``` #### Suggested Changes None identified in this transcript. ### Qwen 3.8 Max [View public run](https://agents.withgauge.com/p/runs/eeccc474-ea6b-45eb-b5b4-114de8ba65ab) · [Read transcript](https://www.ax-check.com/algolia.com/sessions/qwen.json) README.md and final summary state a concrete free-tier figure (~10k records + ~10k search requests/month) with the assumption named (usage-based on records stored + search requests) and note paid tiers/add-ons, pointing to algolia.com/pricing for current exact numbers. #### End-to-end onboarding - **Onboarding needs a login**: Agent never obtained real Algolia credentials. It wrote a working SDK script, then tried a fabricated App ID/key pair which failed with an 'Unreachable hosts' auth error, and explicitly stated it has no interactive dashboard access to sign up for an account. No authenticated operation against the real hosted product was ever completed. Event 11: ```text PI_GATEWAY_API_KEY= done ``` Event 26: ```text Algolia error: Unreachable hosts - your application id may be incorrect. If the error persists, please visit our help center https://alg.li/support-unreachable-hosts or reach out to the Algolia Support team: https://alg.li/support ``` Event 32: ```text no Algolia credentials exist in this environment (`ALGOLIA_APP_ID` / `ALGOLIA_WRITE_KEY` are unset, and signing up for an account requires interactive dashboard access I don't have) ``` #### Hallucinated URLs None identified in this transcript. #### Blockers - **No real Algolia account credentials available**: The sandbox environment had no ALGOLIA_APP_ID or API keys, and creating an Algolia account requires interactive dashboard signup that the agent cannot perform on its own. This is a session/credentials limitation, not a product defect — the agent correctly identified it and stopped rather than faking success. Event 11: ```text PI_GATEWAY_API_KEY= done ``` Event 32: ```text no Algolia credentials exist in this environment (`ALGOLIA_APP_ID` / `ALGOLIA_WRITE_KEY` are unset, and signing up for an account requires interactive dashboard access I don't have) ``` #### Suggested Changes None identified in this transcript. ### Task given to each agent Help me build a simple example using Algolia. Tell me how pricing works, and briefly tell me whether this product will be easy for you to manage. Let me know if you get blocked. If this product has no developer workflow you can act on, say so plainly and stop. Stay light: use the hosted product through its SDK or API. Do not start local service stacks or wait for long-running commands; if the quickstart requires either, say so plainly and stop. No product credentials were supplied and no purchases were authorized. ## Score: A · 100/100 (provisional) Grades come from completed site checks. Coding sessions and skipped checks do not affect the score. ### Clarity - **Pass** — Homepage answers Markdown requests ```text Homepage returned text/markdown (200) when requested with Accept: text/markdown. ``` - **Pass** — llms.txt provides an actionable documentation index ```text llms.txt links docs, API reference, quickstart, clients, MCP and skills with organized sections. ``` - **Pass** — llms.txt provides navigation guidance ```text llms.txt groups links under Key Links, Products, Developer Resources, and Use Cases. ``` - **Pass** — llms.txt mentions offered API, MCP, and skills ```text llms.txt references API Reference, MCP Server, and Algolia skills for agents. ``` - **Pass** — A compact guide representation exists ```text Quickstart page served as text/markdown at /doc/guides/get-started/quickstart.md. ``` - **Pass** — A focused guide is directly retrievable ```text Quickstart.md gives concrete steps: Vite app, install, credentials, index, run. ``` - **Pass** — Equivalent instructions fit a token budget ```text Markdown quickstart is 5007 tokens, under 8000 and below the 5515-token HTML. ``` - **Pass** — Product-docs links survive format changes ```text Markdown quickstart retains docs links to widgets, guides, and API parameters. ``` - **Pass** — The compact guide is independently actionable ```text Quickstart gives concrete steps: Vite app, npm install, credentials, indexing script, React UI, run. ``` - **Pass** — Install and next-step links resolve ```text Quickstart's install commands and next-step doc links resolve; dashboard link 403 is auth-gated, not broken. ``` ### Onboarding - **Pass** — Docs lead to a relevant quickstart ```text llms.txt and docs link a React quickstart with concrete setup, indexing, and search UI steps. ``` - **Pass** — Installation commands are extractable ```text Quickstart and CLI guide give extractable npm install, npx, brew, and choco commands. ``` - **Pass** — Code examples are available without interaction ```text Quickstart shows full inline TypeScript, TSX, and CSS examples without interaction. ``` - **Pass** — Prerequisites and auth boundaries are explicit ```text Quickstart lists account and Node prerequisites and where to obtain API keys. ``` ### Pricing - **Pass** — Pricing is readable without interaction ```text Pricing page renders plan tiers, per-unit rates and feature grid as static Markdown text. ``` - **Pass** — Prices are stated, not gated ```text Grow and Grow Plus list concrete rates; Free tier limits stated; only Elevate is contact-sales. ``` - **Pass** — Pricing units and limits are explicit ```text Units explicit: 10K search requests/month then $1.75 per 1K; 100K records then $0.40 per 1K. ``` - **Pass** — Agents identify pricing and its assumptions ```text 3 of 3 sessions were judged on pricing; 0 fell short. DeepSeek V4.1 Flash: Final output gives a pricing table (Build/Grow/Grow Plus/Elevate) sourced from a live fetch of algolia.com/pricing (seq 46-60) with explicit assumptions: free tier no card required, drivers are search volume and record count, and a note that pricing may change. Kimi K3: Final output gives concrete pricing tiers (Build free ~10k records/requests, Grow $0.50/1k requests, $0.40/1k records) with plan-name assumptions and a caveat to verify current numbers at algolia.com/pricing. Qwen 3.8 Max: README.md and final summary state a concrete free-tier figure (~10k records + ~10k search requests/month) with the assumption named (usage-based on records stored + search requests) and note paid tiers/add-ons, pointing to algolia.com/pricing for current exact numbers. This behavioural item does not affect the fast grade. ``` ### Activation - **Pass** — An API reference or OpenAPI spec is reachable ```text Search API reference page fetched at /doc/rest-api/search.md documents endpoints, auth, and base URLs. ``` - **Pass** — An MCP server is documented and well-formed ```text Productivity, Public, and DevEx MCP servers documented with URLs, client setup, and tool lists. ``` - **Pass** — A CLI install path is documented ```text CLI guide documents npm/npx, Homebrew, DEB/RPM, and Chocolatey install paths. ``` - **Pass** — SDK packages resolve on their registries ```text npm registry lookups for algoliasearch and @algolia/cli both returned HTTP 200. ``` - **Pass** — Agent skills are published ```text algolia/skills repo publishes agent skills with install instructions and skill list. ``` [Full report data](https://www.ax-check.com/algolia.com/report.json)