# 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. Category scores, facts, verdicts and agent notes side by side.

- Canonical: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/google-search-console-vs-semrush
- Markdown: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/google-search-console-vs-semrush.md (~2,300 tokens)
- Slim: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/google-search-console-vs-semrush.min.md (~730 tokens, same facts, less prose, for token-sensitive contexts)
- JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/google-search-console-vs-semrush.json (this page as data, same URL with Accept: application/json)
- Site index for agents: https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms.txt (full text: https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms-full.txt)
- API: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/index.json
- Updated: 2026-10-09

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 API: grade C, 59/100, rank #508 of 842. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/google-search-console.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/google-search-console.json
- Semrush API + MCP: grade D, 53.1/100, rank #641 of 842. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/semrush.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/semrush.json

## 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

| Category | Weight | Google Search Console API | Semrush API + MCP | Edge |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Reliability | 16% (20 this run) | 37 | 34 | Google Search Console API +3 |
| Performance | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Schema & documentation | 13% (16.2 this run) | 75 | 70 | Google Search Console API +5 |
| Agent ergonomics | 13% (16.2 this run) | 82 | 77 | Google Search Console API +5 |
| Security & auth | 14% (17.5 this run) | 56 | 54 | Google Search Console API +2 |
| Payments & pricing | 10% (12.5 this run) | 40 | 17 | Google Search Console API +23 |
| Task success | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Maintenance & community | 7% (8.8 this run) | 71 | 57 | Google Search Console API +14 |
| Transparency & trust | 7% (8.8 this run) | 58 | 67 | Semrush API + MCP +9 |
| Negative events | ≤15 | 0 | 0 | |
| **Total** | | **59 · C** | **53.1 · D** | |

## Facts side by side

| Fact | Google Search Console API | Semrush API + MCP |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Kind | HTTP API | HTTP API |
| Vendor | Google | Semrush Inc. (an Adobe company) |
| Hosted endpoint | `https://searchconsole.googleapis.com` | `https://api.semrush.com` |
| Transports | HTTP | HTTP, Streamable HTTP |
| Auth | OAuth | OAuth or key |
| Pricing | Free | Paid |
| x402 | no | no |
| Licence | Proprietary service under the Google APIs Terms of Service. The client libraries are Apache-2.0 | Proprietary service under the Semrush terms of service |
| Tools exposed | none | 14 |
| Read-only variant documented | yes | yes |
| llms.txt | no | yes |
| Last release | 2026-09-23 | 2026-09-04 |
| Terms last updated | 2021-11-09 | 2026-08-25 |
| Privacy policy last updated | 2026-10-01 | 2025-10-13 |
| Customer content may train models | yes | not found in the text |
| Terms restrict automated access | yes | yes |
| Terms restrict benchmarking | not found in the text | yes |
| Terms or service can change without notice | not found in the text | not found in the text |
| Arbitration or class-action waiver | not found in the text | yes |
| Popularity | 12k stars, 70k npm/wk, 31.8M PyPI/wk | none |

## 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.


## For agents

- This comparison as JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/google-search-console-vs-semrush.json, and with the fewest tokens: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/google-search-console-vs-semrush.min.md
- Over MCP at https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp (no key): `compare_tools {"a": "google-search-console", "b": "semrush"}`. From a terminal: `anchor compare google-search-console semrush`
- Each listing in full: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/google-search-console.json and https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/semrush.json

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

- [Ahrefs vs Google Search Console API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ahrefs-vs-google-search-console.md)
- [Ahrefs vs Semrush API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ahrefs-vs-semrush.md)
- [DataForSEO vs Google Search Console API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/dataforseo-vs-google-search-console.md)
- [DataForSEO vs Semrush API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/dataforseo-vs-semrush.md)
- [Manifold vs Semrush API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/manifold-mcp-vs-semrush.md)
- [Moz API vs Semrush API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/moz-api-vs-semrush.md)
- [SE Ranking API + MCP vs Semrush API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/se-ranking-vs-semrush.md)
- [Semrush API + MCP vs Similarweb](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/semrush-vs-similarweb.md)
- [Google Search Console API vs Manifold](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/google-search-console-vs-manifold-mcp.md)
- [Google Search Console API vs Moz API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/google-search-console-vs-moz-api.md)
- [Google Search Console API vs SE Ranking API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/google-search-console-vs-se-ranking.md)
- [Google Search Console API vs Similarweb](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/google-search-console-vs-similarweb.md)