---
title: "Switch from Abstract API to LookValid"
url: "https://lookvalid.com/switch-from/abstract-api.md"
canonical_url: "https://lookvalid.com/switch-from/abstract-api"
last_updated: "2026-10-26"
type: "how-to"
summary: "What moves from Abstract API to LookValid, what stays, and what changes in plans and prices."
related: ["https://lookvalid.com/pricing.md", "https://lookvalid.com/docs/quickstart.md", "https://lookvalid.com/docs/credits-and-billing.md", "https://lookvalid.com/docs/errors.md", "https://lookvalid.com/docs/mcp.md", "https://lookvalid.com/integrations.md"]
---

# Switch from Abstract API to LookValid

> **For AI agents:** the complete index of LookValid pages is [llms.txt](https://lookvalid.com/llms.txt). Every page is also served as markdown at its URL plus .md.

What moves from Abstract API to LookValid, what stays, and what changes in plans and prices.

Abstract API sells separate email, phone and IP APIs, each metered on its own plan. If you call its API today, moving the lookups LookValid covers takes 11 steps: 5 in the LookValid dashboard and 6 in your own code. All 3 lookups listed below have a LookValid counterpart. 2 of them answer a narrower question than Abstract API's, as the overlap table explains. This page shows which is which, what you edit, and how plans and prices compare.

## What moves over

| Item | On Abstract API | On LookValid and what you do |
| --- | --- | --- |
| API key and sign-in | The key goes in an api_key parameter, or in an Authorization header as a Bearer token. ([source](https://docs.abstractapi.com/api/phone-intelligence)) | Send the key in an Authorization header as a Bearer token; X-API-Key also works for a client that cannot set that header. A LookValid key is created on the Keys tab, and keys do not transfer between providers. |
| Address and request format | Each API has its own host: phoneintelligence.abstractapi.com/v1/ for phones, emailreputation.abstractapi.com/v1/ for email and ip-intelligence.abstractapi.com/v1/ for IP addresses. ([source](https://docs.abstractapi.com/api/phone-intelligence)) | Each lookup is a POST with a JSON body to https://YOUR_API_HOST/v1/<product>. The product names and parameters differ, so each call is remapped using the overlap table. |
| Rate limits and back-off | Rate limits cap requests per second, separately from the monthly quota; the free plans allow 3 requests a second on email and phone and 1 on IP. ([source](https://www.abstractapi.com/pricing)) | 200 requests per 10 seconds on each key, on every plan. A 429 carries Retry-After, so a back-off that reads it keeps working. |
| What a lookup costs | Each API is priced and billed on its own meter, so email, phone and IP are separate lines on the bill. ([source](https://www.abstractapi.com/pricing)) | Phone Numbering-Plan Validation: 1 credit per valid number; IP Intelligence: 1 credit per lookup; Email Domain Check: 1 credit per address checked. Every lookup draws credits from one plan balance. |
| Running out of quota | A request over the quota on a free plan answers 422, and one over the per-second limit answers 429. ([source](https://docs.abstractapi.com/api/phone-intelligence)) | A call that would take the balance below zero answers 402 insufficient_credits, and a request over the limit answers 429 rate_limited with Retry-After. |

### Lookups that overlap

| Lookup | On Abstract API | On LookValid |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Phone validation | GET phoneintelligence.abstractapi.com/v1/ with a phone parameter. ([source](https://docs.abstractapi.com/api/phone-intelligence)) | [Phone Numbering-Plan Validation](https://lookvalid.com/products/phone.md): POST /v1/phone, 1 credit per valid number, charged only when the lookup finds something. LookValid checks a number against its numbering plan: format, country and number type. It does not test whether the line is active. |
| Email validation | GET emailreputation.abstractapi.com/v1/ with an email parameter. ([source](https://docs.abstractapi.com/api/email-reputation)) | [Email Domain Check](https://lookvalid.com/products/email-domain-check.md): POST /v1/email-domain-check, 1 credit per address checked, charged only when the lookup finds something. LookValid checks the domain behind an address: mail servers, DNS setup and provider type. It does not test whether one mailbox exists. |
| IP address lookup | GET ip-intelligence.abstractapi.com/v1/ with an ip_address parameter. ([source](https://docs.abstractapi.com/api/ip-intelligence)) | [IP Intelligence](https://lookvalid.com/products/ip.md): POST /v1/ip, 1 credit per lookup, charged only when the lookup finds something. |

### Error codes

| Abstract API | LookValid |
| --- | --- |
| 400 Bad request ([source](https://docs.abstractapi.com/api/phone-intelligence)) | `invalid_input`, HTTP 400 |
| 401 Unauthorized, usually a missing or wrong key ([source](https://docs.abstractapi.com/api/phone-intelligence)) | `unauthorized`, HTTP 401 |
| 422 Quota reached, on free plans ([source](https://docs.abstractapi.com/api/phone-intelligence)) | `insufficient_credits`, HTTP 402 |
| 429 Too many requests ([source](https://docs.abstractapi.com/api/phone-intelligence)) | `rate_limited`, HTTP 429 |
| 500 Internal server error ([source](https://docs.abstractapi.com/api/phone-intelligence)) | `internal_error`, HTTP 500 |
| 503 Service unavailable ([source](https://docs.abstractapi.com/api/phone-intelligence)) | `provider_unavailable`, HTTP 503 |

## How much work it is

11 steps: 5 in the LookValid dashboard and 6 in your own code.

1. **Start a LookValid plan** (dashboard). Starter, Growth and Professional each start with a 7-day trial for $1 that allows 100 credits. The trial runs next to your current provider, so nothing has to stop first.
2. **Create an API key** (dashboard). Open the Keys tab and create one key per application or environment. A key is shown once, so store it before you close the dialog.
3. **Run one lookup by hand** (dashboard). Use the quick lookup on the dashboard overview with a value you already know the answer to, so you see the real response before you write any code.
4. **Point your client at the new address and key** (your code). Requests go to https://YOUR_API_HOST/v1/<product> with the key in an Authorization header as a Bearer token. Abstract accepts the key as an api_key parameter or as a Bearer header, so a client that already sends the header keeps its auth code. Read the key from LOOKVALID_API_KEY.
5. **Map each endpoint you call** (your code). Use the overlap table above to swap each path. Anything that has no LookValid counterpart stays with its current provider.
6. **Update how you read a response** (your code). Branch on found instead of success, read the result from data, and read the cost from credits_charged and credits_remaining.
7. **Update how you handle errors** (your code). Error codes are lower case and each carries a retryable flag. Use the error table above to rename the codes your handler branches on.
8. **Keep your retry logic** (your code). A 429 carries Retry-After and the X-RateLimit headers on LookValid too, so a back-off that reads Retry-After carries over. The limit is 200 requests per 10 seconds on each key.
9. **Move list jobs to the Jobs tab** (dashboard). If you run lists, upload a CSV, pick the column and the product, and download the results when the job finishes. A file holds up to 10,000 rows.
10. **Reconnect AI clients and automations** (your code). If you use them, point each MCP client at https://YOUR_API_HOST/v1/mcp and send the same style of Bearer key. Rebuild each Zapier, Make or n8n workflow as a request step that calls LookValid with a Bearer key; the integrations pages have a recipe for each tool.
11. **Compare balances, then end the old plan** (dashboard). Check the first runs against the credits LookValid reports for them. When you are satisfied, stop sending those lookups to Abstract API and end its plan.

## What changes

### Plans and prices

| Plan | Abstract API | LookValid |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Email validation, Starter | $17 a month billed annually, for 60,000 requests a year. ([source](https://www.abstractapi.com/pricing)) | Email Domain Check: 1 credit per address checked, $2.00 to $4.95 per 1,000 lookups across the plans |
| Phone validation, Starter | $17 a month billed annually, for 60,000 requests a year. ([source](https://www.abstractapi.com/pricing)) | Phone Numbering-Plan Validation: 1 credit per valid number, $2.00 to $4.95 per 1,000 lookups across the plans |
| IP geolocation, Starter | $17 a month billed annually, for 2,400,000 requests a year. ([source](https://www.abstractapi.com/pricing)) | IP Intelligence: 1 credit per lookup, $2.00 to $4.95 per 1,000 lookups across the plans |
| Free tier | $0 a month for 100 requests on email and phone and 1,000 on IP, with the full response. ([source](https://www.abstractapi.com/pricing)) | LookValid has no free plan. The free tools run a set of the same lookups with no account. |

### Differences

| Topic | Abstract API | LookValid |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Free plan | Every API has a free tier with no card, and every plan returns the full response. ([source](https://www.abstractapi.com/pricing)) | LookValid sells paid plans only (Starter, Growth, Professional online, Enterprise on a call). The free tools on the website run a set of the same lookups with no account. |
| Getting started | The free tier needs no credit card. ([source](https://www.abstractapi.com/pricing)) | Starter, Growth and Professional start with a 7-day trial for $1 at signup that allows 100 credits. If the allowance runs out first, lookups pause until you start the plan yourself. When the 7 days end, the plan starts and your card is charged for the first month unless you cancel. |
| Enterprise | Enterprise volume, a commercial license and a dedicated account manager are arranged by contact. ([source](https://www.abstractapi.com/pricing)) | Enterprise starts at $1,999 a month for 1,000,000 credits and is set up on a call; larger volumes are quoted there. |

## Questions

### Do I have to change code to move from Abstract API?

Yes. The address, the key, the paths, the response fields and the error codes differ, so the calls you make and the code that reads their answers are edited. 6 of the 11 steps are code or configuration changes, and 5 happen in the dashboard.

### Can I run LookValid next to Abstract API while I test?

Yes. A LookValid trial starts without ending anything else, so you can send the same inputs to both and compare the first runs before you change your Abstract API plan.

### Which of my Abstract API lookups can I move?

All 3 lookups listed below have a LookValid counterpart. 2 of them answer a narrower question than Abstract API's, as the overlap table explains.

### Do I end up with one bill instead of three?

Yes. Abstract API meters email, phone and IP separately, so each is its own plan and its own line. On LookValid the same three lookups draw from one credit balance on one plan.

### Do I get a LookValid balance to match what is left on my old plan?

No. LookValid credits come from a LookValid plan, and the trial allows 100 credits. Plan credits stay spendable for 3 months after they arrive.

## Sources

- [Abstract API pricing page](https://www.abstractapi.com/pricing), read 2026-10-26
- [Abstract Phone Intelligence API reference](https://docs.abstractapi.com/api/phone-intelligence), read 2026-10-26
- [Abstract Email Reputation API reference](https://docs.abstractapi.com/api/email-reputation), read 2026-10-26
- [Abstract IP Intelligence API reference](https://docs.abstractapi.com/api/ip-intelligence), read 2026-10-26

Spot something wrong or out of date? Write to hello@meralume.com and we will review it.

## Related

- [Plans, trial and credit pricing](https://lookvalid.com/pricing.md)
- [Quickstart](https://lookvalid.com/docs/quickstart.md)
- [Credits and billing](https://lookvalid.com/docs/credits-and-billing.md)
- [Errors](https://lookvalid.com/docs/errors.md)
- [MCP server](https://lookvalid.com/docs/mcp.md)
- [Tool integrations for phone, email and IP checks](https://lookvalid.com/integrations.md)