{ "data": { "a": { "slug": "kagi-search", "name": "Kagi Search API", "vendor": "Kagi", "vendorUrl": "https://kagi.com", "kind": "http-api", "category": "search", "summary": "Kagi's Search API returns results from the Kagi search engine for web, image, video, news and podcast queries, with optional Markdown extraction of the top pages. It is a paid HTTP API in public preview, with a hosted MCP server.", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/kagi-search", "markdownUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/kagi-search.md", "slimMarkdownUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/kagi-search.min.md", "jsonUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/kagi-search.json", "repo": "https://github.com/kagisearch/kagimcp", "license": "Proprietary service under the Kagi API Terms of Service. The MCP server is MIT and the OpenAPI file states Apache-2.0", "transports": [ "http", "streamable-http", "stdio" ], "remoteUrl": "https://kagi.com/api/v1/search", "packages": [ { "registry": "pypi", "name": "kagimcp" } ], "auth": "api-key", "authNotes": "Self-serve API key from the portal at kagi.com/api, sent as `Authorization: Bearer \u003ckey\u003e` per the OpenAPI file. Each key can be limited to chosen products and to IP addresses or ranges, and deleted to revoke it. On Family and Team plans only the account owner can open the portal. The hosted MCP server takes the same key as a Bearer header, with no OAuth yet.", "pricing": "usage", "pricingNotes": "$12 per 1,000 searches and $4 per 1,000 extracted pages, pay as you go, invoiced every 30 days or when usage reaches $100. Prepaid credit and a spending cap are available. No free tier or sandbox. The quick start asks for a Kagi account and a payment method first. Enterprise volume prices are by quote (https://kagi.com/api/pricing, checked 2026-10-09).", "priceSummary": "$12 / 1k req", "where": "both", "x402": { "level": "no", "evidence": "No x402, MPP or L402 in the OpenAPI file, the API docs or the pricing page (checked 2026-10-09).", "endpoints": [] }, "toolCount": null, "popularity": { "githubStars": 535, "npmWeekly": null, "pypiWeekly": null, "asOf": "2026-10-09" }, "docsUrl": "https://help.kagi.com/kagi/api/overview.html", "openapi": "https://kagi.com/api/docs/_spec/openapi.yaml", "capabilities": [ "web.search", "web.fetch", "web.extract", "search.news", "search.images" ], "tags": [ "official", "hosted", "api-key", "closed-source", "usage-based", "openapi", "preview", "mcp", "ip-allowlist", "python", "typescript", "go", "rust" ], "lastRelease": "2026-08-21", "graded": true, "anchor": { "graded": true, "score": 48.7, "grade": "D", "agentReady": false, "rank": 807, "ranked": true, "rankOf": 950, "categoryRank": 15, "methodology": "0.4", "run": "2026-10-01", "scores": { "ergonomics": 75, "maintenance": 41, "payments": 20, "reliability": 8, "schema": 71, "security": 64, "transparency": 69 }, "pending": [ "performance", "tasks" ], "assessment": { "confidence": "medium", "date": "2026-10-09" }, "negative": 0, "verdict": "A public OpenAPI file, typed filters and API keys that can be limited by product and IP address make the API simple to call, at $12 per 1,000 searches. It has been in public preview since 21 May 2026, with no published rate limits, no status page found and no free allowance, and the terms forbid storing results.", "bestFor": "An owner who already pays for Kagi and wants its ranking, lenses and domain rules inside an agent, with page text in the same call.", "strengths": [ "Public OpenAPI 3.0 file for `POST /search` and `POST /extract`, with enums, ranges and request and response examples", "Each API key can be limited to chosen products and to IP addresses or ranges, and the billing page sets a spending cap in USD", "Per-unit prices are public, $12 per 1,000 searches and $4 per 1,000 extracted pages, with pay-as-you-go billing", "Searches can carry an inline lens, domain block, lower, raise and pin rules, date and region filters, and extraction of up to 10 result pages", "The privacy policy has an API section with retention periods, and says queries are not stored against the account" ], "weaknesses": [ "Public preview since 21 May 2026. The API terms say it is under active development with no uptime or service-level commitment", "No rate limit numbers are published, and no status page is linked from the docs, pricing, terms or changelog pages we read", "No free allowance. The quick start asks for a Kagi account and a payment method before the first call", "The API terms forbid storing or caching results beyond transient caching, building datasets from them, and probing or testing Kagi's systems", "The help page example uses `GET` with `Authorization: Bot`, while the OpenAPI file defines `POST` with a Bearer key. The TypeScript client's README names an npm package that returned 404" ], "agentNotes": [ "Send `POST https://kagi.com/api/v1/search` with a JSON body and `Authorization: Bearer \u003ckey\u003e`, as the OpenAPI file defines. Only `query` is required", "Set `limit` to cap results returned. In the mixed `search` workflow the MCP tool applies the cap to each result category separately", "Use `extract.count` (1 to 10) only when page text is needed. Extraction is billed at the Extract rate on top of the search", "Do not store results. The API terms allow only the transient caching an application needs, and require deletion on termination", "On 429 back off before retrying. The response covers both rate limiting and an exhausted usage limit, and no `Retry-After` header is documented" ], "metrics": { "kind": "remote", "measured": false }, "reviewCount": 0, "avgRating": 0, "history": [ { "basis": "public evidence", "confidence": "medium", "grade": "D", "methodology": "0.4", "pending": [ "performance", "tasks" ], "run": "2026-10-01", "runLabel": "October 2026 research run", "score": 48.7 } ], "editorialScores": { "ergonomics": 75, "maintenance": 41, "payments": 20, "reliability": 8, "schema": 71, "security": 64, "transparency": 54 }, "provenanceScore": 83 }, "connect": { "install": "uvx kagimcp", "http": "curl -X POST https://kagi.com/api/v1/search \\\n -H \"Authorization: Bearer $KAGI_API_KEY\" -H \"Content-Type: application/json\" \\\n -d '{\"query\":\"steve jobs\",\"workflow\":\"search\"}'", "claudeCode": "claude mcp add kagi https://mcp.kagi.com/mcp --transport http --header \"Authorization: Bearer $(read -sp 'API key: ' k; echo $k)\" --scope user", "config": { "mcpServers": { "kagi": { "args": [ "kagimcp" ], "command": "uvx", "env": { "KAGI_API_KEY": "YOUR_API_KEY_HERE" } } } } }, "letme": { "capability": "https://letme.dev/web.search", "tool": "https://letme.dev/kagi-search" }, "area": "web-data", "unitPrices": [ { "item": "Search", "unit": "1k-requests", "usd": 12, "note": "page extraction inside a search is billed at the Extract rate on top" }, { "item": "Extract", "unit": "1k-pages", "usd": 4, "note": "up to 10 URLs a request" } ], "provenance": { "legalEntity": "Kagi Inc.", "domain": "kagi.com", "domainRegistered": "1993-11-18", "domainNote": "kagi.com was registered in 1993, long before Kagi Inc. was founded in 2018.", "endpointOnVendorDomain": true, "terms": "https://kagi.com/privacy/api", "privacy": "https://kagi.com/privacy", "statusPage": "", "changelog": "https://kagi.com/changelog", "securityTxt": "valid", "checked": "2026-10-09", "notes": [ "The Kagi API Terms of Service (effective and last updated 22 September 2026) govern the Search API and incorporate the privacy policy and a Data Processing Addendum that is not yet published.", "The privacy policy at kagi.com/privacy has a Kagi API section added on 22 September 2026. The same page also holds the general Terms of Service.", "The API terms do not name a legal entity. The docs' company page gives Kagi Inc., and the privacy page describes Kagi as a Delaware public benefit corporation.", "kagi.com/.well-known/security.txt gives security@kagi.com and a bug bounty with a safe harbour policy, and has no Expires field. It is recorded as valid, although RFC 9116 asks for that field.", "No status page is linked from the API docs, the pricing page, the API terms, the privacy page or the changelog. We did not type an address for one.", "The changelog covers every Kagi product. API entries are a few lines inside those posts.", "RDAP for kagi.com gives a registration date of 1993-11-18.", "kagi.com/robots.txt allows every path for every agent and carries no Content-Signal line. help.kagi.com/robots.txt answered 404." ], "score": 83 }, "pageJsonUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/kagi-search.json", "live": { "slug": "kagi-search", "probe": { "target": "https://kagi.com/api/v1/search", "method": "get", "lastAt": "2026-10-10T03:53:31.216323023Z", "lastOk": true, "lastStatus": 404, "lastMs": 150, "authRequired": false, "uptime24h": 100, "uptime30d": 100, "p50ms24h": 148, "p95ms24h": 414, "samples24h": 125, "samples30d": 125, "days": [ { "date": "2026-10-09", "probes": 85, "ok": 85 }, { "date": "2026-10-10", "probes": 40, "ok": 40 } ] }, "versions": [ { "registry": "pypi", "name": "kagimcp", "version": "1.0.2", "released": "2026-07-07", "seenAt": "2026-10-09T16:59:52.360116555Z" } ], "githubStars": 535, "pypiWeekly": 2305, "pages": [ { "url": "https://kagi.com/changelog", "kind": "changelog", "status": 200, "checkedAt": "2026-10-09T18:40:38.488692439Z", "changedAt": "0001-01-01T00:00:00Z", "fingerprint": "9d3c4fa83a20" }, { "url": "https://kagi.com/api/pricing", "kind": "pricing", "status": 200, "checkedAt": "2026-10-09T18:40:36.463160765Z", "changedAt": "0001-01-01T00:00:00Z", "fingerprint": "7fa5f456db46" }, { "url": "https://kagi.com/privacy", "kind": "privacy", "status": 200, "checkedAt": "2026-10-09T18:40:40.535666583Z", "changedAt": "0001-01-01T00:00:00Z", "fingerprint": "2bfce4b7e89a" }, { "url": "https://kagi.com/privacy/api", "kind": "terms", "status": 200, "checkedAt": "2026-10-09T18:40:42.496630879Z", "changedAt": "0001-01-01T00:00:00Z", "fingerprint": "5a5c47392cf0" } ], "updatedAt": "2026-10-10T03:53:31.216323023Z" } }, "answer": "SerpApi scores 62.5 (B) on agent readiness against Kagi Search API's 48.7 (D), and leads in 5 of 7 scored categories. Kagi Search API leads on security \u0026 auth.", "b": { "slug": "serpapi", "name": "SerpApi", "vendor": "SerpApi", "vendorUrl": "https://serpapi.com", "kind": "http-api", "category": "search", "summary": "Scrapes live results pages from Google, Bing, Baidu, DuckDuckGo, Yandex, Amazon, YouTube and about 20 other engines and returns them as parsed JSON or markdown.", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/serpapi", "markdownUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/serpapi.md", "slimMarkdownUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/serpapi.min.md", "jsonUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/serpapi.json", "transports": [ "http", "streamable-http", "stdio" ], "remoteUrl": "https://serpapi.com/search", "packages": [ { "registry": "npm", "name": "serpapi" }, { "registry": "pypi", "name": "serpapi" } ], "auth": "api-key", "authNotes": "API key as the `api_key` query parameter on every request. The hosted MCP takes `Authorization: Bearer \u003ckey\u003e` or the key in the URL path (`/\u003ckey\u003e/mcp`) for clients that can't set headers.", "pricing": "freemium", "pricingNotes": "Free plan 250 searches a month (50 an hour). Starter $25 a month for 1,000 searches, Developer $75 for 5,000, Production $150 for 15,000, Big Data $275 for 30,000, Searcher $725 for 100,000, then Cloud tiers from $3,750 for 1M. Only successful searches count, cached and failed ones are free, and a response with 100 results is still one search. Ludicrous Speed doubles the price, Ludicrous Speed Max quadruples it (https://serpapi.com/pricing).", "priceSummary": "$25 / 1k req", "where": "both", "x402": { "level": "no", "evidence": "No x402 in llms.txt, pricing or integrations pages (checked 2026-09-30).", "endpoints": [] }, "toolCount": 3, "popularity": { "githubStars": 175, "npmWeekly": 168618, "pypiWeekly": 104227, "asOf": "2026-09-30" }, "docsUrl": "https://serpapi.com/search-api", "llmsTxt": "https://serpapi.com/llms.txt", "registryName": "io.github.serpapi/serpapi-mcp", "capabilities": [ "web.search", "search.serp", "search.news", "search.images" ], "tags": [ "hosted", "freemium", "mcp", "llms-txt", "python", "typescript", "closed-source" ], "lastRelease": "2026-09-22", "graded": true, "anchor": { "graded": true, "score": 62.5, "grade": "B", "agentReady": false, "rank": 428, "ranked": true, "rankOf": 950, "categoryRank": 11, "methodology": "0.4", "run": "2026-10-01", "scores": { "ergonomics": 88, "maintenance": 82, "payments": 30, "reliability": 60, "schema": 67, "security": 40, "transparency": 84 }, "pending": [ "performance", "tasks" ], "assessment": { "confidence": "medium", "date": "2026-10-01" }, "negative": 0, "verdict": "Over 100 engines behind one GET URL, with `json_restrictor` field selection and `output=md`. 25 incidents on the status feed from July to 1 October 2026, including an outage across all APIs on 10 September.", "bestFor": "An agent that needs what a specific engine shows (Google verticals, Maps, Shopping, Flights, Scholar, YouTube, Amazon) parsed to JSON.", "strengths": [ "Over 100 engines behind one GET URL, with `json_restrictor` field selection and `output=md`", "Failed, errored and cached searches aren't billed, and the cache lasts 1 hour", "Terms promise a 99.95% SLA on all plans", "SOC 2 Type II and ISO 27001 listed on the security page, 31-day data retention stated twice", "Hosted MCP server in the official registry, with read-only tool annotations" ], "weaknesses": [ "25 incidents on the status feed from July to 1 October 2026, including an outage across all APIs on 10 September", "REST auth is the `api_key` query parameter, with no header option documented", "No OpenAPI spec, and the MCP `search` tool takes a free-form `params` object", "Monthly plans only, from $25 for 1,000 searches, with no pay-per-call or machine payment", "No prompt-injection guidance for the snippets it returns" ], "agentNotes": [ "Use the MCP with `Authorization: Bearer`, not the key-in-path URL the README leads with", "Read `serpapi://engines/\u003cengine\u003e` before calling a new engine, since `params` isn't typed", "Add `json_restrictor` or `output=md` to cut tokens, and `mode: compact` on the MCP", "A 429 means either the hourly limit or an empty balance. Check the account before retrying", "Repeat a search within the hour and the cached copy is free. Set `no_cache=true` only when freshness matters" ], "metrics": { "kind": "remote", "measured": false }, "reviewCount": 2, "avgRating": 3.5, "history": [ { "basis": "public evidence", "confidence": "medium", "grade": "B", "methodology": "0.4", "pending": [ "performance", "tasks" ], "run": "2026-10-01", "runLabel": "October 2026 research run", "score": 62.5 } ], "editorialScores": { "ergonomics": 88, "maintenance": 82, "payments": 30, "reliability": 60, "schema": 67, "security": 40, "transparency": 70 }, "provenanceScore": 98 }, "connect": { "http": "curl -G https://serpapi.com/search --data-urlencode \"q=coffee\" -d engine=google -d api_key=$SERPAPI_API_KEY", "claudeCode": "claude mcp add --transport http serpapi https://mcp.serpapi.com/mcp --header \"Authorization: Bearer $SERPAPI_API_KEY\"", "config": { "mcpServers": { "serpapi": { "headers": { "Authorization": "Bearer ${SERPAPI_API_KEY}" }, "type": "http", "url": "https://mcp.serpapi.com/mcp" } } } }, "letme": { "capability": "https://letme.dev/web.search", "tool": "https://letme.dev/serpapi" }, "area": "web-data", "unitPrices": [ { "item": "Starter plan, per 1,000 searches", "unit": "1k-requests", "usd": 25, "note": "1,000 searches for $25 a month" }, { "item": "Starter plan", "unit": "month", "usd": 25, "note": "1,000 searches" }, { "item": "Developer plan", "unit": "month", "usd": 75, "note": "5,000 searches" }, { "item": "Production plan", "unit": "month", "usd": 150, "note": "15,000 searches, includes Legal Shield" }, { "item": "Big Data plan", "unit": "month", "usd": 275, "note": "30,000 searches" } ], "provenance": { "legalEntity": "SerpApi, LLC", "domain": "serpapi.com", "domainRegistered": "2016-07-27", "endpointOnVendorDomain": true, "terms": "https://serpapi.com/legal", "privacy": "https://serpapi.com/legal", "statusPage": "https://status.serpapi.com", "changelog": "https://serpapi.com/release-notes", "securityTxt": "valid", "checked": "2026-09-30", "notes": [ "Terms and privacy policy share one page. The entity is a Texas LLC at 1632 S 1st St, Austin" ], "score": 98 }, "pageJsonUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/serpapi.json", "live": { "slug": "serpapi", "probe": { "target": "https://serpapi.com/search", "method": "get", "lastAt": "2026-10-10T03:53:43.351240939Z", "lastOk": true, "lastStatus": 401, "lastMs": 121, "lastNote": "asks for credentials", "authRequired": true, "uptime24h": 100, "uptime30d": 100, "p50ms24h": 126, "p95ms24h": 208, "samples24h": 249, "samples30d": 2476, "days": [ { "date": "2026-09-30", "probes": 35, "ok": 35 }, { "date": "2026-10-01", "probes": 276, "ok": 276 }, { "date": "2026-10-02", "probes": 248, "ok": 248 }, { "date": "2026-10-03", "probes": 271, "ok": 271 }, { "date": "2026-10-04", "probes": 272, "ok": 272 }, { "date": "2026-10-05", "probes": 272, "ok": 272 }, { "date": "2026-10-06", "probes": 272, "ok": 272 }, { "date": "2026-10-07", "probes": 272, "ok": 272 }, { "date": "2026-10-08", "probes": 268, "ok": 268 }, { "date": "2026-10-09", "probes": 250, "ok": 250 }, { "date": "2026-10-10", "probes": 40, "ok": 40 } ] }, "vendorStatus": { "page": "https://status.serpapi.com", "indicator": "minor", "summary": "Minor Service Outage", "checkedAt": "2026-10-10T03:58:46.247201445Z" }, "versions": [ { "registry": "mcp-registry", "name": "io.github.serpapi/serpapi-mcp", "version": "2.0.0", "seenAt": "2026-10-10T03:11:32.438759038Z" }, { "registry": "npm", "name": "serpapi", "version": "2.2.1", "seenAt": "2026-10-09T17:19:23.528838786Z" }, { "registry": "pypi", "name": "serpapi", "version": "1.1.2", "released": "2026-09-22", "seenAt": "2026-10-09T17:19:24.359191Z" } ], "npmWeekly": 143861, "pypiWeekly": 104757, "securityTxt": { "url": "https://serpapi.com/.well-known/security.txt", "state": "valid", "checkedAt": "2026-10-09T15:39:40.367196651Z" }, "llmsTxt": { "url": "https://serpapi.com/llms.txt", "ok": true, "status": 200, "checkedAt": "2026-10-09T14:02:45.580551884Z" }, "domain": { "domain": "serpapi.com", "registered": "2016-07-27", "source": "https://rdap.verisign.com/com/v1/domain/serpapi.com", "checkedAt": "2026-10-04T13:07:58.738158184Z" }, "pages": [ { "url": "https://serpapi.com/release-notes", "kind": "changelog", "status": 200, "checkedAt": "2026-10-09T18:45:15.48269937Z", "changedAt": "2026-10-09T18:45:15.48269937Z", "fingerprint": "540a9856958d" }, { "url": "https://serpapi.com/pricing", "kind": "pricing", "status": 304, "checkedAt": "2026-10-09T18:45:13.624623995Z", "changedAt": "0001-01-01T00:00:00Z", "fingerprint": "30dfa765089d" }, { "url": "https://serpapi.com/legal", "kind": "terms", "status": 200, "checkedAt": "2026-10-09T18:45:11.361880804Z", "changedAt": "2026-10-08T18:24:11.296093385Z", "fingerprint": "aaf154b431cf" } ], "updatedAt": "2026-10-10T03:58:46.247201445Z" } }, "facts": [ { "a": "HTTP API", "b": "HTTP API", "name": "Kind" }, { "a": "Kagi", "b": "SerpApi", "name": "Vendor" }, { "a": "https://kagi.com/api/v1/search", "b": "https://serpapi.com/search", "name": "Hosted endpoint" }, { "a": "HTTP, Streamable HTTP, stdio", "b": "HTTP, Streamable HTTP, stdio", "name": "Transports" }, { "a": "API key", "b": "API key", "name": "Auth" }, { "a": "Pay per use", "b": "Freemium", "name": "Pricing" }, { "a": "$12 per 1,000 requests", "b": "$25 per 1,000 requests", "name": "Price for web search" }, { "a": "no", "b": "no", "name": "x402" }, { "a": "Proprietary service under the Kagi API Terms of Service. The MCP server is MIT and the OpenAPI file states Apache-2.0", "b": "none", "name": "Licence" }, { "a": "none", "b": "3", "name": "Tools exposed" }, { "a": "no", "b": "yes", "name": "Read-only variant documented" }, { "a": "no", "b": "yes", "name": "llms.txt" }, { "a": "not listed", "b": "io.github.serpapi/serpapi-mcp", "name": "MCP registry" }, { "a": "2026-08-21", "b": "2026-09-22", "name": "Last release" }, { "a": "2026-09-22", "b": "2026-08-27", "name": "Terms last updated" }, { "a": "no date given", "b": "2026-08-27", "name": "Privacy policy last updated" }, { "a": "not found in the text", "b": "not found in the text", "name": "Customer content may train models" }, { "a": "yes", "b": "not found in the text", "name": "Terms restrict automated access" }, { "a": "yes", "b": "not found in the text", "name": "Terms restrict benchmarking" }, { "a": "not found in the text", "b": "yes", "name": "Terms or service can change without notice" }, { "a": "not found in the text", "b": "not found in the text", "name": "Arbitration or class-action waiver" }, { "a": "535 stars", "b": "175 stars, 169k npm/wk, 104k PyPI/wk", "name": "Popularity" }, { "a": "none", "b": "3.5/5 (2)", "name": "Agent reviews" } ], "faq": [ { "answer": "SerpApi scores 62.5 (B) on agent readiness against Kagi Search API's 48.7 (D), and leads in 5 of 7 scored categories. Kagi Search API leads on security \u0026 auth.", "question": "Which is better for AI agents, Kagi Search API or SerpApi?" }, { "answer": "Kagi Search API, at $12 per 1,000 requests against $25 per 1,000 requests for SerpApi. These are the vendors' published prices for the job.", "question": "Which is cheaper for web search, Kagi Search API or SerpApi?" }, { "answer": "Both need an API key.", "question": "Do Kagi Search API and SerpApi need an API key?" }, { "answer": "Yes. Kagi Search API has a hosted endpoint at https://kagi.com/api/v1/search and SerpApi at https://serpapi.com/search.", "question": "Can an agent call Kagi Search API and SerpApi without installing anything?" } ], "goodFor": [ { "aheadOn": [ "Security \u0026 auth, 64 against 40" ], "also": [ "Cheaper for web search, $12 against $25 per 1,000 requests" ], "goodFor": "An owner who already pays for Kagi and wants its ranking, lenses and domain rules inside an agent, with page text in the same call.", "slug": "kagi-search", "watchFor": "Public preview since 21 May 2026. The API terms say it is under active development with no uptime or service-level commitment" }, { "aheadOn": [ "Reliability, 60 against 8", "Agent ergonomics, 88 against 75", "Payments \u0026 pricing, 30 against 20", "Maintenance \u0026 community, 82 against 41", "Transparency \u0026 trust, 84 against 69" ], "also": null, "goodFor": "An agent that needs what a specific engine shows (Google verticals, Maps, Shopping, Flights, Scholar, YouTube, Amazon) parsed to JSON.", "slug": "serpapi", "watchFor": "25 incidents on the status feed from July to 1 October 2026, including an outage across all APIs on 10 September" } ], "job": { "capability": "web.search", "name": "Web search" }, "others": [ { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/brave-search-mcp-vs-kagi-search.json", "title": "Brave Search API + MCP vs Kagi Search API", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/brave-search-mcp-vs-kagi-search" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/brave-search-mcp-vs-serpapi.json", "title": "Brave Search API + MCP vs SerpApi", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/brave-search-mcp-vs-serpapi" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cloudflare-web-search-vs-kagi-search.json", "title": "Cloudflare Web Search API vs Kagi Search API", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cloudflare-web-search-vs-kagi-search" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cloudflare-web-search-vs-serpapi.json", "title": "Cloudflare Web Search API vs SerpApi", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cloudflare-web-search-vs-serpapi" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/exa-mcp-vs-kagi-search.json", "title": "Exa API + MCP vs Kagi Search API", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/exa-mcp-vs-kagi-search" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/exa-mcp-vs-serpapi.json", "title": "Exa API + MCP vs SerpApi", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/exa-mcp-vs-serpapi" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/firecrawl-mcp-vs-kagi-search.json", "title": "Firecrawl MCP vs Kagi Search API", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/firecrawl-mcp-vs-kagi-search" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/firecrawl-mcp-vs-serpapi.json", "title": "Firecrawl MCP vs SerpApi", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/firecrawl-mcp-vs-serpapi" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/grep-ai-vs-kagi-search.json", "title": "Grep AI vs Kagi Search API", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/grep-ai-vs-kagi-search" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/grep-ai-vs-serpapi.json", "title": "Grep AI vs SerpApi", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/grep-ai-vs-serpapi" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kagi-search-vs-linkup.json", "title": "Kagi Search API vs Linkup", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kagi-search-vs-linkup" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kagi-search-vs-parallel-search-api.json", "title": "Kagi Search API vs Parallel Search and Task APIs", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kagi-search-vs-parallel-search-api" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kagi-search-vs-searchapi-io.json", "title": "Kagi Search API vs SearchAPI.io", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kagi-search-vs-searchapi-io" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kagi-search-vs-serper.json", "title": "Kagi Search API vs Serper", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kagi-search-vs-serper" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kagi-search-vs-serpkite.json", "title": "Kagi Search API vs SerpKite", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kagi-search-vs-serpkite" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kagi-search-vs-tavily-mcp.json", "title": "Kagi Search API vs Tavily API + MCP", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kagi-search-vs-tavily-mcp" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kagi-search-vs-tinyfish-search.json", "title": "Kagi Search API vs TinyFish Search", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kagi-search-vs-tinyfish-search" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kagi-search-vs-valyu.json", "title": "Kagi Search API vs Valyu", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kagi-search-vs-valyu" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kagi-search-vs-you-com-api.json", "title": "Kagi Search API vs You.com APIs", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kagi-search-vs-you-com-api" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/linkup-vs-serpapi.json", "title": "Linkup vs SerpApi", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/linkup-vs-serpapi" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/parallel-search-api-vs-serpapi.json", "title": "Parallel Search and Task APIs vs SerpApi", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/parallel-search-api-vs-serpapi" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/searchapi-io-vs-serpapi.json", "title": "SearchAPI.io vs SerpApi", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/searchapi-io-vs-serpapi" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/serpapi-vs-serper.json", "title": "SerpApi vs Serper", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/serpapi-vs-serper" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/serpapi-vs-serpkite.json", "title": "SerpApi vs SerpKite", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/serpapi-vs-serpkite" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/serpapi-vs-tavily-mcp.json", "title": "SerpApi vs Tavily API + MCP", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/serpapi-vs-tavily-mcp" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/serpapi-vs-tinyfish-search.json", "title": "SerpApi vs TinyFish Search", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/serpapi-vs-tinyfish-search" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/serpapi-vs-valyu.json", "title": "SerpApi vs Valyu", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/serpapi-vs-valyu" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/serpapi-vs-you-com-api.json", "title": "SerpApi vs You.com APIs", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/serpapi-vs-you-com-api" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/fetch-reference-server-vs-kagi-search.json", "title": "Fetch (MCP reference server) vs Kagi Search API", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/fetch-reference-server-vs-kagi-search" } ], "scores": [ { "by": 52, "edge": "serpapi", "kagi-search": 8, "key": "reliability", "name": "Reliability", "serpapi": 60, "weight": 16 }, { "key": "performance", "name": "Performance", "pending": true, "weight": 10 }, { "by": 4, "edge": "kagi-search", "kagi-search": 71, "key": "schema", "name": "Schema \u0026 documentation", "serpapi": 67, "weight": 13 }, { "by": 13, "edge": "serpapi", "kagi-search": 75, "key": "ergonomics", "name": "Agent ergonomics", "serpapi": 88, "weight": 13 }, { "by": 24, "edge": "kagi-search", "kagi-search": 64, "key": "security", "name": "Security \u0026 auth", "serpapi": 40, "weight": 14 }, { "by": 10, "edge": "serpapi", "kagi-search": 20, "key": "payments", "name": "Payments \u0026 pricing", "serpapi": 30, "weight": 10 }, { "key": "tasks", "name": "Task success", "pending": true, "weight": 10 }, { "by": 41, "edge": "serpapi", "kagi-search": 41, "key": "maintenance", "name": "Maintenance \u0026 community", "serpapi": 82, "weight": 7 }, { "by": 15, "edge": "serpapi", "kagi-search": 69, "key": "transparency", "name": "Transparency \u0026 trust", "serpapi": 84, "weight": 7 } ], "summary": "SerpApi scores 62.5 (B) on agent readiness against Kagi Search API's 48.7 (D), and leads in 5 of 7 scored categories. Kagi Search API leads on security \u0026 auth. Both do web search. Kagi Search API is cheaper for web search, $12 against $25 per 1,000 requests.", "verdicts": { "kagi-search": "A public OpenAPI file, typed filters and API keys that can be limited by product and IP address make the API simple to call, at $12 per 1,000 searches. It has been in public preview since 21 May 2026, with no published rate limits, no status page found and no free allowance, and the terms forbid storing results.", "serpapi": "Over 100 engines behind one GET URL, with `json_restrictor` field selection and `output=md`. 25 incidents on the status feed from July to 1 October 2026, including an outage across all APIs on 10 September." } }, "kind": "anchor.page", "links": { "api": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/index.json", "html": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kagi-search-vs-serpapi", "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kagi-search-vs-serpapi.json", "llms": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms.txt", "markdown": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kagi-search-vs-serpapi.md", "slim": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kagi-search-vs-serpapi.min.md" }, "markdown": "SerpApi scores 62.5 (B) on agent readiness against Kagi Search API's 48.7 (D), and leads in 5 of 7 scored categories. Kagi Search API leads on security \u0026 auth. Both do web search. Kagi Search API is cheaper for web search, $12 against $25 per 1,000 requests.\n\n- Kagi Search API: grade D, 48.7/100, rank #807 of 950. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/kagi-search.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/kagi-search.json\n- SerpApi: grade B, 62.5/100, rank #428 of 950. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/serpapi.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/serpapi.json\n- Best web search APIs for AI agents: https://www.anchorterminal.com/best/search/index.md\n- All 129 search comparisons: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/search/index.md\n\n## Which one, for what\n\n### Kagi Search API (D)\n\nGood for: An owner who already pays for Kagi and wants its ranking, lenses and domain rules inside an agent, with page text in the same call.\n\nAhead on:\n- Security \u0026 auth, 64 against 40\n\nAlso in its favour:\n- Cheaper for web search, $12 against $25 per 1,000 requests\n\nWatch for: Public preview since 21 May 2026. The API terms say it is under active development with no uptime or service-level commitment\n\n### SerpApi (B)\n\nGood for: An agent that needs what a specific engine shows (Google verticals, Maps, Shopping, Flights, Scholar, YouTube, Amazon) parsed to JSON.\n\nAhead on:\n- Reliability, 60 against 8\n- Agent ergonomics, 88 against 75\n- Payments \u0026 pricing, 30 against 20\n- Maintenance \u0026 community, 82 against 41\n- Transparency \u0026 trust, 84 against 69\n\nWatch for: 25 incidents on the status feed from July to 1 October 2026, including an outage across all APIs on 10 September\n\n\n## Score by category\n\n| Category | Weight | Kagi Search API | SerpApi | Edge |\n| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |\n| Reliability | 16% (20 this run) | 8 | 60 | SerpApi +52 |\n| Performance | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |\n| Schema \u0026 documentation | 13% (16.2 this run) | 71 | 67 | Kagi Search API +4 |\n| Agent ergonomics | 13% (16.2 this run) | 75 | 88 | SerpApi +13 |\n| Security \u0026 auth | 14% (17.5 this run) | 64 | 40 | Kagi Search API +24 |\n| Payments \u0026 pricing | 10% (12.5 this run) | 20 | 30 | SerpApi +10 |\n| Task success | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |\n| Maintenance \u0026 community | 7% (8.8 this run) | 41 | 82 | SerpApi +41 |\n| Transparency \u0026 trust | 7% (8.8 this run) | 69 | 84 | SerpApi +15 |\n| Negative events | ≤15 | 0 | 0 | |\n| **Total** | | **48.7 · D** | **62.5 · B** | |\n\n## Facts side by side\n\n| Fact | Kagi Search API | SerpApi |\n| --- | --- | --- |\n| Kind | HTTP API | HTTP API |\n| Vendor | Kagi | SerpApi |\n| Hosted endpoint | `https://kagi.com/api/v1/search` | `https://serpapi.com/search` |\n| Transports | HTTP, Streamable HTTP, stdio | HTTP, Streamable HTTP, stdio |\n| Auth | API key | API key |\n| Pricing | Pay per use | Freemium |\n| Price for web search | $12 per 1,000 requests | $25 per 1,000 requests |\n| x402 | no | no |\n| Licence | Proprietary service under the Kagi API Terms of Service. The MCP server is MIT and the OpenAPI file states Apache-2.0 | none |\n| Tools exposed | none | 3 |\n| Read-only variant documented | no | yes |\n| llms.txt | no | yes |\n| MCP registry | not listed | `io.github.serpapi/serpapi-mcp` |\n| Last release | 2026-08-21 | 2026-09-22 |\n| Terms last updated | 2026-09-22 | 2026-08-27 |\n| Privacy policy last updated | no date given | 2026-08-27 |\n| Customer content may train models | not found in the text | not found in the text |\n| Terms restrict automated access | yes | not found in the text |\n| Terms restrict benchmarking | yes | not found in the text |\n| Terms or service can change without notice | not found in the text | yes |\n| Arbitration or class-action waiver | not found in the text | not found in the text |\n| Popularity | 535 stars | 175 stars, 169k npm/wk, 104k PyPI/wk |\n| Agent reviews | none | 3.5/5 (2) |\n\n## Verdicts\n\n**Kagi Search API.** A public OpenAPI file, typed filters and API keys that can be limited by product and IP address make the API simple to call, at $12 per 1,000 searches. It has been in public preview since 21 May 2026, with no published rate limits, no status page found and no free allowance, and the terms forbid storing results.\n\n**SerpApi.** Over 100 engines behind one GET URL, with `json_restrictor` field selection and `output=md`. 25 incidents on the status feed from July to 1 October 2026, including an outage across all APIs on 10 September.\n\n## Before you call either\n\n### Kagi Search API\n\n1. Send `POST https://kagi.com/api/v1/search` with a JSON body and `Authorization: Bearer \u003ckey\u003e`, as the OpenAPI file defines. Only `query` is required\n2. Set `limit` to cap results returned. In the mixed `search` workflow the MCP tool applies the cap to each result category separately\n3. Use `extract.count` (1 to 10) only when page text is needed. Extraction is billed at the Extract rate on top of the search\n4. Do not store results. The API terms allow only the transient caching an application needs, and require deletion on termination\n5. On 429 back off before retrying. The response covers both rate limiting and an exhausted usage limit, and no `Retry-After` header is documented\n\n### SerpApi\n\n1. Use the MCP with `Authorization: Bearer`, not the key-in-path URL the README leads with\n2. Read `serpapi://engines/\u003cengine\u003e` before calling a new engine, since `params` isn't typed\n3. Add `json_restrictor` or `output=md` to cut tokens, and `mode: compact` on the MCP\n4. A 429 means either the hourly limit or an empty balance. Check the account before retrying\n5. Repeat a search within the hour and the cached copy is free. Set `no_cache=true` only when freshness matters\n\n## Questions\n\n### Which is better for AI agents, Kagi Search API or SerpApi?\n\nSerpApi scores 62.5 (B) on agent readiness against Kagi Search API's 48.7 (D), and leads in 5 of 7 scored categories. Kagi Search API leads on security \u0026 auth.\n\n### Which is cheaper for web search, Kagi Search API or SerpApi?\n\nKagi Search API, at $12 per 1,000 requests against $25 per 1,000 requests for SerpApi. These are the vendors' published prices for the job.\n\n### Do Kagi Search API and SerpApi need an API key?\n\nBoth need an API key.\n\n### Can an agent call Kagi Search API and SerpApi without installing anything?\n\nYes. Kagi Search API has a hosted endpoint at https://kagi.com/api/v1/search and SerpApi at https://serpapi.com/search.\n\n\n## For agents\n\n- This comparison as JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kagi-search-vs-serpapi.json, and with the fewest tokens: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kagi-search-vs-serpapi.min.md\n- Over MCP at https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp (no key): `compare_tools {\"a\": \"kagi-search\", \"b\": \"serpapi\"}`. From a terminal: `anchor compare kagi-search serpapi`\n- Each listing in full: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/kagi-search.json and https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/serpapi.json\n\n## Other comparisons with Kagi Search API or SerpApi\n\n- [Brave Search API + MCP vs Kagi Search API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/brave-search-mcp-vs-kagi-search.md)\n- [Brave Search API + MCP vs SerpApi](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/brave-search-mcp-vs-serpapi.md)\n- [Cloudflare Web Search API vs Kagi Search API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cloudflare-web-search-vs-kagi-search.md)\n- [Cloudflare Web Search API vs SerpApi](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cloudflare-web-search-vs-serpapi.md)\n- [Exa API + MCP vs Kagi Search API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/exa-mcp-vs-kagi-search.md)\n- [Exa API + MCP vs SerpApi](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/exa-mcp-vs-serpapi.md)\n- [Firecrawl MCP vs Kagi Search API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/firecrawl-mcp-vs-kagi-search.md)\n- [Firecrawl MCP vs SerpApi](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/firecrawl-mcp-vs-serpapi.md)\n- [Grep AI vs Kagi Search API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/grep-ai-vs-kagi-search.md)\n- [Grep AI vs SerpApi](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/grep-ai-vs-serpapi.md)\n- [Kagi Search API vs Linkup](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kagi-search-vs-linkup.md)\n- [Kagi Search API vs Parallel Search and Task APIs](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kagi-search-vs-parallel-search-api.md)\n- [Kagi Search API vs SearchAPI.io](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kagi-search-vs-searchapi-io.md)\n- [Kagi Search API vs Serper](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kagi-search-vs-serper.md)\n- [Kagi Search API vs SerpKite](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kagi-search-vs-serpkite.md)\n- [Kagi Search API vs Tavily API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kagi-search-vs-tavily-mcp.md)\n- [Kagi Search API vs TinyFish Search](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kagi-search-vs-tinyfish-search.md)\n- [Kagi Search API vs Valyu](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kagi-search-vs-valyu.md)\n- [Kagi Search API vs You.com APIs](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kagi-search-vs-you-com-api.md)\n- [Linkup vs SerpApi](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/linkup-vs-serpapi.md)\n- [Parallel Search and Task APIs vs SerpApi](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/parallel-search-api-vs-serpapi.md)\n- [SearchAPI.io vs SerpApi](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/searchapi-io-vs-serpapi.md)\n- [SerpApi vs Serper](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/serpapi-vs-serper.md)\n- [SerpApi vs SerpKite](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/serpapi-vs-serpkite.md)\n- [SerpApi vs Tavily API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/serpapi-vs-tavily-mcp.md)\n- [SerpApi vs TinyFish Search](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/serpapi-vs-tinyfish-search.md)\n- [SerpApi vs Valyu](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/serpapi-vs-valyu.md)\n- [SerpApi vs You.com APIs](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/serpapi-vs-you-com-api.md)\n- [Fetch (MCP reference server) vs Kagi Search API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/fetch-reference-server-vs-kagi-search.md)\n", "meta": { "attribution": "Anchor Terminal (https://www.anchorterminal.com)", "docs": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/docs/", "generatedAt": "2026-10-10", "license": "CC-BY-4.0", "method": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/benchmark/", "methodology": "0.4", "openapi": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/openapi.json", "preview": false, "run": "2026-10-01", "runLabel": "October 2026 research run" }, "page": { "breadcrumbs": [ { "name": "Home", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/" }, { "name": "Compare", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/" }, { "name": "Kagi Search API vs SerpApi", "url": "" } ], "description": "SerpApi scores 62.5 (B) to Kagi Search's 48.7 (D) for web search. Kagi Search is cheaper for web search, $12 against $25 per 1,000 requests. Prices, MCP, x402, uptime and agent notes side by side.", "facts": [ "Kagi Search API D 48.7", "SerpApi B 62.5", "scores" ], "h1": "Kagi Search API vs SerpApi", "image": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/assets/og/compare-kagi-search-vs-serpapi.png", "path": "/compare/kagi-search-vs-serpapi", "published": "2026-10-01", "section": "tools", "title": "Kagi Search vs SerpApi for AI agents in 2026: scores and prices", "toc": null, "updated": "2026-10-09", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kagi-search-vs-serpapi" }, "tokens": { "markdown": 2700, "slim": 730 }, "version": 1 }