Serpapi Search

Tool Detection

If you have a serpapi_search tool available, use it directly. Always pass mode="compact" to strip heavy metadata fields (search_metadata, search_parameters) for cleaner, token-efficient LLM responses:

serpapi_search(
  params={
    "engine": "google_light",
    "q": "query"
  },
  mode="compact"
)

Note: The block above is MCP pseudocode. Exact invocation syntax depends on your agent runtime.

The instructions below are for environments without a native tool.

Quick Start

Get fast web results using the google_light engine:

curl -G "https://serpapi.com/search.json" \
  --data-urlencode "q=coffee shops in Austin" \
  --data-urlencode "engine=google_light" \
  --data-urlencode "api_key=${SERPAPI_KEY}"

Or with the serpapi CLI (install: brew install serpapi/serpapi-cli/serpapi):

export SERPAPI_KEY=your_key_here
serpapi search engine=google_light q="coffee shops in Austin"

Setup

Before using this skill, set your SerpApi API key:

export SERPAPI_API_KEY="your-api-key-here"

Endpoint

GET https://serpapi.com/search.json

When to Use Which Engine

Use the following table to select the best engine for your use case.

Light vs Full: Use Light by default. Use full engine when you need: knowledge graph, local pack, inline shopping, or featured snippets.

Core Parameters

Note: The youtube engine uses search_query instead of q as its query parameter. All other engines use q.

Light Endpoints

SerpApi provides "Light" versions of popular engines that are optimized for speed and cost.

• google_light
• google_images_light
• google_news_light
• google_shopping_light
• google_videos_light
• duckduckgo_light

Faster response, lower cost, essential data. Use by default.

Response Format

All engines return JSON with search_metadata, search_parameters, and an engine-specific results array (see Engine Result Keys below).

{
  "search_metadata": { "status": "Success", "created_at": "..." },
  "search_parameters": { "engine": "google_light", "q": "..." },
  "organic_results": [
    {
      "position": 1,
      "title": "Example Result",
      "link": "https://example.com",
      "snippet": "This is a brief description of the result."
    }
  ],
  "serpapi_pagination": { "next": "..." }
}

Engine Result Keys: Different engines use different top-level array keys. Check the correct key for your engine:

Use serpapi_pagination.next to fetch subsequent pages.

Examples

Google News (Light)

Search for the latest technology news.

curl -G "https://serpapi.com/search.json" \
  --data-urlencode "q=artificial intelligence" \
  --data-urlencode "engine=google_news_light" \
  --data-urlencode "api_key=${SERPAPI_KEY}"

Bing Web Search

Alternative results for the same query.

curl -G "https://serpapi.com/search.json" \
  --data-urlencode "q=serpapi documentation" \
  --data-urlencode "engine=bing" \
  --data-urlencode "api_key=${SERPAPI_KEY}"

Google Shopping (Light)

Find product prices and availability.

curl -G "https://serpapi.com/search.json" \
  --data-urlencode "q=iphone 15" \
  --data-urlencode "engine=google_shopping_light" \
  --data-urlencode "api_key=${SERPAPI_KEY}"

Time-Filtered Search

Find results from the past week using tbs.

curl -G "https://serpapi.com/search.json" \
  --data-urlencode "q=latest AI models" \
  --data-urlencode "engine=google_light" \
  --data-urlencode "tbs=qdr:w" \
  --data-urlencode "api_key=${SERPAPI_KEY}"

Locale

Set gl and hl based on the user's context. Correct locale improves result relevance, ranking order, and availability of local features like knowledge panels.

Limits & Pricing

Free tier: 250 searches/month. Plans: serpapi.com/pricing

Error Reference

• 401 Unauthorized: Missing or invalid API key. Check your dashboard.
• 429 Rate Limit: Monthly limit reached. Upgrade your plan.
• 400 Bad Request: Missing required parameters like q or engine.

Links

• Full Documentation
• SerpApi Playground
• API Dashboard
• Engine Catalog