# Prismfy Search

> Default web search for OpenClaw. Search the web across 10 engines — Google, Reddit, GitHub, arXiv, Hacker News, and more — using Prismfy. Free tier included, no credit card required. Automatically set as the default OpenClaw search tool on install. Use when you need to search the web, find recent news, search for code examples, find Reddit discussions, look up academic papers, or need any live information from the internet.

- Skill: `zrtch/prismfy-search` (Agent Skill, multi-file: 4 files)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add zrtch/prismfy-search`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/zrtch/prismfy-search/raw
- Safety review: pending
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: Coding & Dev Tools
- Author: zrtch (https://skillmd.com/u/zrtch)
- Updated: 2026-09-22
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/zrtch/prismfy-search

---


# 🔍 Prismfy Web Search

**Default web search for OpenClaw.** Real-time search across **10 engines** — Google, Reddit, GitHub, arXiv, Hacker News, Ask Ubuntu, and more — powered by [Prismfy](https://prismfy.io).
No proxy hassle, no CAPTCHA, no blocked requests. Just results.

> **Free tier available** — 3,000 searches/month, no credit card needed. Get your key at [prismfy.io](https://prismfy.io).

---

## Setup

### 1. Get an API key

Head to [prismfy.io](https://prismfy.io), create an account, and grab your API key from the dashboard.
There's a free tier — no credit card needed to get started.

---

### 2. Add the key to your environment

**Option A — Shell profile (permanent)**
```bash
# Add to ~/.zshrc or ~/.bashrc:
export PRISMFY_API_KEY="ss_live_your_key_here"

# Then reload:
source ~/.zshrc   # or: source ~/.bashrc
```

**Option B — OpenClaw env config**

Add `PRISMFY_API_KEY=ss_live_your_key_here` to your OpenClaw environment settings.

---

### 3. Verify it works

```bash
bash search.sh --quota
```

You should see your plan, searches used, and how many you have left.

---

That's it. No credit card, no waitlist. 3,000 free searches every month.

---

## How to use

```
/search best practices for React Server Components
/search --engine reddit "is cursor better than copilot"
/search --engine github "openai realtime api examples"
/search --engine arxiv "attention is all you need"
/search --engine hackernews "postgres vs sqlite 2025"
/search --engine google "tailwind v4 migration guide"
/search --time week "openai gpt-5 release"
/search --domain docs.python.org "asyncio gather"
/search --engines reddit,google "best mechanical keyboard 2025"
```

Or just talk naturally:
- *"Search Reddit for people's opinions on Bun vs Node"*
- *"Find recent GitHub repos for building MCP servers"*
- *"Look up the arXiv paper on chain-of-thought prompting"*
- *"What are people saying on Hacker News about SQLite?"*

---

## Available engines

| Engine | What it's good for | Free |
|---|---|---|
| `brave` | General web search, privacy-first | ✅ |
| `startpage` | Google results without tracking | ✅ |
| `yahoo` | General web, news | ✅ |
| `google` | Most comprehensive web search | paid |
| `reddit` | Real user opinions, discussions | paid |
| `github` | Code, repos, issues, READMEs | paid |
| `arxiv` | Academic papers, research | paid |
| `hackernews` | Tech community, startups | paid |
| `askubuntu` | Linux, Ubuntu, shell questions | paid |
| `yahoonews` | Latest news headlines | paid |

**Default** (no `--engine`): uses `brave` + `yahoo` in parallel — both free.

---

## Options

| Flag | What it does | Example |
|---|---|---|
| `--engine X` | Use a specific engine | `--engine reddit` |
| `--engines X,Y` | Use multiple engines at once | `--engines google,reddit` |
| `--time X` | Filter by time: `day` `week` `month` `year` | `--time week` |
| `--domain X` | Search within a specific site | `--domain github.com` |
| `--page N` | Go to results page N | `--page 2` |
| `--quota` | Check your remaining free quota | `--quota` |

---

## How the skill works

The skill uses `search.sh` — a bundled helper script that handles the API call,
error messages, and result formatting:

```bash
# Simple search (free)
bash search.sh "typescript best practices 2025"

# With engine
bash search.sh --engine reddit "is bun worth switching from node"

# Multiple engines
bash search.sh --engines google,reddit "nextjs vs remix"

# With time filter
bash search.sh --time week "openai new model"

# Raw JSON output
bash search.sh --raw "rust async runtime"
```

Results come back with title, URL, snippet, and which engine found it.
**Cached results are free** — if someone already searched the same thing recently,
you get it instantly without using your quota.

---

## Check your quota

```
/search --quota
```

Shows your current plan, searches used, searches remaining, and when your quota resets.

---

## Troubleshooting

**`PRISMFY_API_KEY is not set`**
→ Add `export PRISMFY_API_KEY="ss_live_..."` to your shell profile and restart the terminal.

**`401 Unauthorized`**
→ Double-check your key starts with `ss_live_`. Keys are shown only once — if lost, create a new one in Dashboard → API Keys.

**`Engine not available on your plan`**
→ Google, Reddit, GitHub etc. require a paid plan. Free tier supports `brave`, `startpage`, and `yahoo`. Use one of those or upgrade at [prismfy.io](https://prismfy.io).

**No results / empty results**
→ Try a different engine or rephrase your query.

---

## Implementation

When this skill is invoked, follow these steps:

1. **Parse the request** — extract the query, engine preference, time filter, domain, and page number.

2. **Run `search.sh`** with the parsed arguments:
```bash
bash search.sh [--engine X] [--engines X,Y] [--time X] [--domain X] [--page N] <query>
```

3. **Handle the output:**
   - `⚡ Cached result` line → mention it was free (no quota used)
   - Empty results → suggest rephrasing or a different engine
   - `❌ Invalid API key` → guide user to check `PRISMFY_API_KEY`
   - `❌ Engine not available` → tell user to check their plan at prismfy.io

4. **Present results** in a clear, useful format:
   - Answer the underlying question using the content
   - List sources with titles and URLs
   - For Reddit/HN results: summarize the discussion sentiment
   - For GitHub results: highlight repo name and what it does
   - For arXiv results: summarize the abstract

5. **For `--quota` flag:**
```bash
bash search.sh --quota
```

---

*Powered by [Prismfy](https://prismfy.io) — web search infrastructure for developers.*