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Head to head · Seo rankings · October 2026 research run

Google Search Console API vs Semrush API + MCP

Google Search Console API scores 59 (C) on agent readiness against Semrush API + MCP's 53.1 (D), and leads in 6 of 7 scored categories. Semrush API + MCP leads on transparency & trust. Both do seo rankings.

Google Search Console APIGoogle · HTTP API C59/100#508 of 841 Semrush API + MCPSemrush Inc. (an Adobe company) · HTTP API D53.1/100#641 of 841

Which one, for what

Google Search Console API C

Good for An agent reporting on or monitoring search performance and index status for sites its user owns, with first-party click and impression counts.

Ahead on

  • Schema & documentation, 75 against 70
  • Agent ergonomics, 82 against 77
  • Payments & pricing, 40 against 17
  • Maintenance & community, 71 against 57

Watch for

Data covers only properties the signed-in user has owner, full or read access to. It cannot be asked about any other domain

Semrush API + MCP D

Good for Teams already paying for Semrush who want an agent to pull keyword, backlink, ranking and traffic estimates in one place, mainly through the MCP server.

Ahead on

  • Transparency & trust, 67 against 58

Watch for

Domain, URL, Trends, Position Tracking and Site Audit reports are version 3 only, where the one key is a URL parameter and can't be revoked

Score by category

CategoryWeight this runGoogle Search Console APISemrush API + MCPEdge
Reliability16%203734Google Search Console API +3
Performance10%pendingpendingpendingnot scored in this run
Schema & documentation13%16.27570Google Search Console API +5
Agent ergonomics13%16.28277Google Search Console API +5
Security & auth14%17.55654Google Search Console API +2
Payments & pricing10%12.54017Google Search Console API +23
Task success10%pendingpendingpendingnot scored in this run
Maintenance & community7%8.87157Google Search Console API +14
Transparency & trust7%8.85867Semrush API + MCP +9
Negative events≤1500
Total59 · C53.1 · D

Facts side by side

FactGoogle Search Console APISemrush API + MCP
KindHTTP APIHTTP API
VendorGoogleSemrush Inc. (an Adobe company)
Hosted endpointhttps://searchconsole.googleapis.comhttps://api.semrush.com
TransportsHTTPHTTP, Streamable HTTP
AuthOAuthOAuth or key
PricingFreePaid
x402nono
LicenceProprietary service under the Google APIs Terms of Service. The client libraries are Apache-2.0Proprietary service under the Semrush terms of service
Tools exposednone14
Read-only variant documentedyesyes
llms.txtnoyes
Last release2026-09-232026-09-04
Terms last updated2021-11-092026-08-25
Privacy policy last updated2026-10-012025-10-13
Customer content may train modelsyesnot found in the text
Terms restrict automated accessyesyes
Terms restrict benchmarkingnot found in the textyes
Terms or service can change without noticenot found in the textnot found in the text
Arbitration or class-action waivernot found in the textyes
Popularity12k stars, 70k npm/wk, 31.8M PyPI/wknone

Verdicts

Google Search Console API

The API is free, with published quotas of 1,200 Search Analytics queries a minute per site and typed filters that accept regular expressions. It covers only properties the signed-in user manages, returns at most 50,000 rows a day per search type, and has no status page, SLA or dedicated changelog. A person must complete OAuth consent first.

Semrush API + MCP

The hosted MCP server exposes 14 tools that load a report's parameters on demand, and version 4 API keys can be read-only, time-limited and revoked. Most reports still sit in version 3, whose single key travels in the URL and can't be revoked. No status page, OpenAPI file or API unit price was found.

Before you call either

Google Search Console API

  1. URL-encode the property in the path. A URL-prefix property needs its trailing slash, and a Domain property is written sc-domain:example.com
  2. Query one day at a time and page with startRow in steps of 25,000 until a response has no rows
  3. Leave page and query out of dimensions when totals must be accurate. Grouping by either drops some data
  4. Ask for webmasters.readonly unless the task adds or deletes properties or sitemaps
  5. After a quota exceeded error wait 15 minutes. If it repeats, the daily load quota is spent, so shorten date ranges and drop page or query grouping

Semrush API + MCP

  1. Use the MCP server at https://mcp.semrush.com/v2/mcp where the host supports it. Call a discovery tool, then get_report_schema, then execute_report
  2. Set limit or display_limit on every per-line report. A backlinks row costs 40 to 45 units and a historical keyword row 50
  3. Check the unit balance before large pulls. A per-line report returns only the lines the balance covers, with no error
  4. Send the version 4 key as Authorization: Apikey <key>, never as ?key=. Version 3 accepts only the query parameter, so keep those URLs out of logs
  5. Stay under 10 requests a second and 10 concurrent requests per account, and retry only when error.retryable is true

Questions

Which is better for AI agents, Google Search Console API or Semrush API + MCP?

Google Search Console API scores 59 (C) on agent readiness against Semrush API + MCP's 53.1 (D), and leads in 6 of 7 scored categories. Semrush API + MCP leads on transparency & trust.

Do Google Search Console API and Semrush API + MCP need an API key?

Google Search Console API uses an OAuth sign-in. Semrush API + MCP takes an API key or an OAuth sign-in.

Can an agent call Google Search Console API and Semrush API + MCP without installing anything?

Yes. Google Search Console API has a hosted endpoint at https://searchconsole.googleapis.com and Semrush API + MCP at https://api.semrush.com.

Other comparisons with Google Search Console API or Semrush API + MCP

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