{ "data": { "a": { "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": 62.6, "grade": "B", "agentReady": false, "rank": 219, "ranked": true, "rankOf": 460, "categoryRank": 9, "methodology": "0.3", "run": "2026-10-01", "scores": { "ergonomics": 88, "maintenance": 82, "payments": 30, "reliability": 60, "schema": 67, "security": 40, "transparency": 85 }, "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 $25 for 1,000 searches, with no pay-per-call or machine payment", "No prompt-injection guidance for the snippets it returns" ], "agentNotes": [ "Use the MCP with `Authorization: Bearer`, not the key-in-path URL the README leads with", "Read `serpapi://engines/\u003cengine\u003e` before calling a new engine, since `params` isn't typed", "Add `json_restrictor` or `output=md` to cut tokens, and `mode: compact` on the MCP", "A 429 means either the hourly limit or an empty balance. Check the account before retrying", "Repeat a search within the hour and the cached copy is free. Set `no_cache=true` only when freshness matters" ], "metrics": { "kind": "remote", "measured": false }, "reviewCount": 2, "avgRating": 3.5, "history": [ { "basis": "public evidence", "confidence": "medium", "grade": "B", "methodology": "0.3", "pending": [ "performance", "tasks" ], "run": "2026-10-01", "runLabel": "October 2026 research run", "score": 62.6 } ], "editorialScores": { "ergonomics": 88, "maintenance": 82, "payments": 30, "reliability": 60, "schema": 67, "security": 40, "transparency": 70 }, "provenanceScore": 100 }, "connect": { "http": "curl -G https://serpapi.com/search --data-urlencode \"q=coffee\" -d engine=google -d api_key=$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": 100 }, "pageJsonUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/serpapi.json", "live": { "slug": "serpapi", "probe": { "target": "https://serpapi.com/search", "method": "get", "lastAt": "2026-10-06T01:46:36.089021824Z", "lastOk": true, "lastStatus": 401, "lastMs": 116, "lastNote": "asks for credentials", "authRequired": true, "uptime24h": 100, "uptime30d": 100, "p50ms24h": 120, "p95ms24h": 209, "samples24h": 273, "samples30d": 1395, "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": 21, "ok": 21 } ] }, "vendorStatus": { "page": "https://status.serpapi.com", "indicator": "minor", "summary": "Partially Degraded Service", "checkedAt": "2026-10-06T01:47:29.12525535Z" }, "versions": [ { "registry": "mcp-registry", "name": "io.github.serpapi/serpapi-mcp", "version": "2.0.0", "seenAt": "2026-10-05T23:55:54.568086057Z" }, { "registry": "npm", "name": "serpapi", "version": "2.2.1", "seenAt": "2026-10-05T17:05:08.177167145Z" }, { "registry": "pypi", "name": "serpapi", "version": "1.1.2", "released": "2026-09-22", "seenAt": "2026-10-05T17:05:08.96285364Z" } ], "npmWeekly": 181578, "pypiWeekly": 98366, "securityTxt": { "url": "https://serpapi.com/.well-known/security.txt", "state": "valid", "checkedAt": "2026-10-05T15:16:36.09472003Z" }, "llmsTxt": { "url": "https://serpapi.com/llms.txt", "ok": true, "status": 200, "checkedAt": "2026-10-05T15:19:27.147084218Z" }, "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": "2026-10-05T16:00:05.386649381Z", "changedAt": "2026-10-05T16:00:05.386649381Z", "fingerprint": "5a19513263fb" }, { "url": "https://serpapi.com/pricing", "kind": "pricing", "status": 304, "checkedAt": "2026-10-05T16:00:03.399805999Z", "changedAt": "0001-01-01T00:00:00Z", "fingerprint": "30dfa765089d" }, { "url": "https://serpapi.com/legal", "kind": "terms", "status": 200, "checkedAt": "2026-10-05T16:00:01.35179Z", "changedAt": "2026-10-05T16:00:01.35179Z", "fingerprint": "e60e49a7ba0e" } ], "updatedAt": "2026-10-06T01:47:29.12525535Z" } }, "answer": "SerpKite scores 64.8 (B) on agent readiness against SerpApi's 62.6 (B), and leads in 4 of 7 scored categories. SerpApi leads on transparency \u0026 trust.", "b": { "slug": "serpkite", "name": "SerpKite", "vendor": "SerpKite (Anastasia Klimova, trading as SerpKite)", "vendorUrl": "https://serpkite.com", "kind": "http-api", "category": "search", "summary": "Google SERP API for AI agents from SerpKite, a sole trader in Ontario. It returns live Google results and 10 other Google verticals as JSON or Markdown, fetches pages as Markdown, and runs a remote MCP server with 14 tools.", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/serpkite", "markdownUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/serpkite.md", "slimMarkdownUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/serpkite.min.md", "jsonUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/serpkite.json", "repo": "https://github.com/SerpKite/serpkite-mcp", "license": "Proprietary service under SerpKite's terms of service. The SDKs (TypeScript, Python, Go, LangChain, Vercel AI SDK) and the MCP connection repository on GitHub are MIT", "transports": [ "http", "streamable-http" ], "remoteUrl": "https://api.serpkite.com/v1/search", "packages": [ { "registry": "npm", "name": "serpkite" }, { "registry": "pypi", "name": "serpkite" }, { "registry": "go", "name": "github.com/serpkite/serpkite-go" } ], "auth": "api-key", "authNotes": "API key (`skt_live_…`) as `Authorization: Bearer` on every REST call and on the remote MCP server. GET requests may also send it as the `?api_key=` query parameter. An account can hold many keys, each revocable and rotatable with an optional monthly credit limit, and keys are stored as SHA-256 hashes. No scopes. OAuth for the MCP server is listed as planned (https://serpkite.com/docs/api-keys, https://serpkite.com/docs/mcp).", "pricing": "freemium", "pricingNotes": "Prepaid credit packs that never expire. Starter $10 for 10,000 credits ($1.00 per 1,000), Growth $50 for 62,500 ($0.80), Pro $300 for 500,000 ($0.60), volume quotes from $0.18 per 1,000 at 25 million a month. One credit is one page of 10 results; `num=100` is 7 credits, autocomplete 0.5, batch and cache hits half price, `include_content` 1 per fetched page. Free credits on signup with no card (1,000, or 2,500 after linking GitHub or Google, per the quickstart) and 1,000 a month. Failed, empty and blocked requests are refunded. Paddle is the merchant of record (https://serpkite.com/pricing, checked 2026-10-05).", "priceSummary": "$1 / 1k req", "where": "hosted", "x402": { "level": "no", "evidence": "No x402, MPP or L402 in llms.txt, the OpenAPI spec or the pricing page. Packs are bought through Paddle checkout (checked 2026-10-05).", "endpoints": [] }, "toolCount": 14, "popularity": { "githubStars": null, "npmWeekly": 809, "pypiWeekly": 376, "asOf": "2026-10-05" }, "docsUrl": "https://serpkite.com/docs", "llmsTxt": "https://serpkite.com/llms.txt", "openapi": "https://serpkite.com/openapi/serp-api.yaml", "registryName": "io.github.SerpKite/serpkite", "capabilities": [ "web.search", "search.serp", "search.news", "search.images", "web.fetch", "web.extract", "web.crawl" ], "tags": [ "hosted", "freemium", "no-card", "free-tier", "closed-source", "mcp", "openapi", "llms-txt", "typescript", "python", "go", "status-page" ], "lastRelease": "2026-10-04", "graded": true, "anchor": { "graded": true, "score": 64.8, "grade": "B", "agentReady": false, "rank": 179, "ranked": true, "rankOf": 460, "categoryRank": 7, "methodology": "0.3", "run": "2026-10-01", "scores": { "ergonomics": 92, "maintenance": 80, "payments": 40, "reliability": 65, "schema": 90, "security": 37, "transparency": 77 }, "pending": [ "performance", "tasks" ], "assessment": { "confidence": "medium", "date": "2026-10-05" }, "negative": -3, "negativeNotes": [ "2 and 3 October 2026. The `ai_overview` parameter and field, the `/v1/ai-mode` endpoint and its MCP tool, and the `/v1/lens` endpoint were removed the day each removal was announced, three to four days after the v1.0.0 changelog listed AI Overview as unchanged. Calls now get 400 or 404. The changelog gives Google's refusal of logged-out requests as the reason, and the removed functions are no longer advertised, so the deduction is small (https://serpkite.com/docs/changelog)." ], "verdict": "Google SERP API with an OpenAPI 3.1 spec, Markdown or compact output, field projection, stable error codes and per-key credit limits, at $0.60 to $1.00 per 1,000 on packs that don't expire. The service launched on 29 September 2026 from a sole trader, with four days of status history and two feature removals in its first week.", "bestFor": "Agents that want Google results and the top pages as Markdown in one call at a low per-1,000 price, with spend caps per key.", "strengths": [ "OpenAPI 3.1 spec, llms.txt, llms-full.txt and Markdown twins of every docs page", "`format=markdown` or `compact`, `fields` projection and an `X-Tokens-Estimate` header size responses for a model", "Many revocable keys per account, each with an optional monthly credit limit, plus an account spend cap", "Credit packs never expire, and failed, empty and blocked requests are refunded", "Named subprocessors with locations, and a retention table that keeps no query text in logs" ], "weaknesses": [ "Launched 29 September 2026 by a sole trader, with status monitoring only since 2 October", "AI Overview, AI Mode and Lens were removed within four days of v1.0.0, each without advance notice", "GET requests accept the key as a `?api_key=` query parameter, and keys have no scopes", "No SLA for self-serve packs, no SOC 2 and no security.txt", "The MCP server needs a custom header. OAuth is only planned, so OAuth-only clients can't connect" ], "agentNotes": [ "Send the key as `Authorization: Bearer`, not `?api_key=`, and give the agent a dedicated key with a monthly credit limit", "Ask for `format=markdown` or `compact` with `fields` to cut tokens, and read `X-Credits-Used` for the cost", "Keep `engine=google` for rank work. Check `meta.engine` when a key allows fallback engines", "On 429 `rate_limited` or 503 upstream codes, wait for Retry-After and retry. `daily_limit_reached` and 402 need a purchase", "Treat page Markdown from `include_content`, `webpage` and `extract` as untrusted text" ], "metrics": { "kind": "remote", "measured": false }, "reviewCount": 2, "avgRating": 3.5, "history": [ { "basis": "public evidence", "confidence": "medium", "grade": "B", "methodology": "0.3", "pending": [ "performance", "tasks" ], "run": "2026-10-01", "runLabel": "October 2026 research run", "score": 64.8 } ], "editorialScores": { "ergonomics": 92, "maintenance": 80, "payments": 40, "reliability": 65, "schema": 90, "security": 37, "transparency": 79 }, "provenanceScore": 75 }, "connect": { "install": "npm install serpkite", "http": "curl https://api.serpkite.com/v1/search \\\n -H \"Authorization: Bearer $SERPKITE_API_KEY\" \\\n -H \"Content-Type: application/json\" \\\n -d '{\"q\":\"best espresso machine 2026\",\"country\":\"us\",\"language\":\"en\"}'", "claudeCode": "claude mcp add --transport http serpkite https://api.serpkite.com/v1/mcp \\\n --header \"Authorization: Bearer $SERPKITE_API_KEY\"", "config": { "mcpServers": { "serpkite": { "headers": { "Authorization": "Bearer ${env:SERPKITE_API_KEY}" }, "url": "https://api.serpkite.com/v1/mcp" } } } }, "letme": { "capability": "https://letme.dev/web.search", "tool": "https://letme.dev/serpkite" }, "area": "web-data", "unitPrices": [ { "item": "Starter pack", "unit": "1k-requests", "usd": 1, "note": "$10 for 10,000 credits, never expires" }, { "item": "Pro pack", "unit": "1k-requests", "usd": 0.6, "note": "$300 for 500,000 credits, never expires" } ], "provenance": { "legalEntity": "Anastasia Klimova, trading as SerpKite", "domain": "serpkite.com", "domainRegistered": "2026-09-29", "endpointOnVendorDomain": true, "terms": "https://serpkite.com/legal/terms", "privacy": "https://serpkite.com/legal/privacy", "statusPage": "https://status.serpkite.com", "changelog": "https://serpkite.com/docs/changelog", "securityTxt": "none", "checked": "2026-10-05", "notes": [ "The terms and privacy policy, both effective 3 October 2026, name Anastasia Klimova, trading as SerpKite, 1732 Oberon Crescent, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, under the laws of Ontario.", "RDAP for serpkite.com gives a registration date of 2026-09-29 and Cloudflare, Inc. as registrar.", "serpkite.com/.well-known/security.txt returns the site's 404 page. The security page asks for reports by email with acknowledgement in 2 business days and says there's no paid bug bounty.", "The MCP registry entry uses the GitHub namespace io.github.SerpKite, not a domain-verified one. The repository's two commits are by the GitHub user nolikzero, and the SDK repositories are committed by serpkite-bot \u003csupport@serpkite.com\u003e.", "The subprocessor page lists Polar as merchant of record for earlier orders, which suggests sales before the domain's registration date. We couldn't establish where." ], "score": 75 }, "pageJsonUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/serpkite.json", "live": { "slug": "serpkite", "probe": { "target": "https://api.serpkite.com/v1/search", "method": "get", "lastAt": "2026-10-06T01:46:36.116160558Z", "lastOk": true, "lastStatus": 401, "lastMs": 108, "lastNote": "asks for credentials", "authRequired": true, "uptime24h": 100, "uptime30d": 100, "p50ms24h": 137, "p95ms24h": 537, "samples24h": 19, "samples30d": 19, "days": [ { "date": "2026-10-06", "probes": 19, "ok": 19 } ] }, "vendorStatus": { "page": "https://status.serpkite.com", "indicator": "unknown", "summary": "no machine-readable status found", "checkedAt": "2026-10-06T01:26:20.370042831Z" }, "updatedAt": "2026-10-06T01:46:36.116160558Z" } }, "facts": [ { "a": "HTTP API", "b": "HTTP API", "name": "Kind" }, { "a": "SerpApi", "b": "SerpKite (Anastasia Klimova, trading as SerpKite)", "name": "Vendor" }, { "a": "https://serpapi.com/search", "b": "https://api.serpkite.com/v1/search", "name": "Hosted endpoint" }, { "a": "HTTP, Streamable HTTP, stdio", "b": "HTTP, Streamable HTTP", "name": "Transports" }, { "a": "API key", "b": "API key", "name": "Auth" }, { "a": "Freemium", "b": "Freemium", "name": "Pricing" }, { "a": "$25 per 1,000 requests", "b": "not published", "name": "Price for web search" }, { "a": "no", "b": "no", "name": "x402" }, { "a": "none", "b": "Proprietary service under SerpKite's terms of service. The SDKs (TypeScript, Python, Go, LangChain, Vercel AI SDK) and the MCP connection repository on GitHub are MIT", "name": "Licence" }, { "a": "3", "b": "14", "name": "Tools exposed" }, { "a": "yes", "b": "no", "name": "Read-only variant documented" }, { "a": "yes", "b": "yes", "name": "llms.txt" }, { "a": "io.github.serpapi/serpapi-mcp", "b": "io.github.SerpKite/serpkite", "name": "MCP registry" }, { "a": "2026-09-22", "b": "2026-10-04", "name": "Last release" }, { "a": "175 stars, 169k npm/wk, 104k PyPI/wk", "b": "809 npm/wk, 376 PyPI/wk", "name": "Popularity" }, { "a": "3.5/5 (2)", "b": "3.5/5 (2)", "name": "Agent reviews" } ], "faq": [ { "answer": "SerpKite scores 64.8 (B) on agent readiness against SerpApi's 62.6 (B), and leads in 4 of 7 scored categories. SerpApi leads on transparency \u0026 trust.", "question": "Which is better for AI agents, SerpApi or SerpKite?" }, { "answer": "Both need an API key.", "question": "Do SerpApi and SerpKite need an API key?" }, { "answer": "Yes. SerpApi has a hosted endpoint at https://serpapi.com/search and SerpKite at https://api.serpkite.com/v1/search.", "question": "Can an agent call SerpApi and SerpKite without installing anything?" } ], "goodFor": [ { "aheadOn": [ "Transparency \u0026 trust, 85 against 77" ], "also": [ "Runs on your own machine", "No incidents deducted, where SerpKite loses 3 points for them" ], "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" }, { "aheadOn": [ "Reliability, 65 against 60", "Schema \u0026 documentation, 90 against 67", "Payments \u0026 pricing, 40 against 30" ], "also": [ "Free to start without a card" ], "goodFor": "Agents that want Google results and the top pages as Markdown in one call at a low per-1,000 price, with spend caps per key.", "slug": "serpkite", "watchFor": "Launched 29 September 2026 by a sole trader, with status monitoring only since 2 October" } ], "job": { "capability": "web.search", "name": "Web search" }, "others": [ { "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/brave-search-mcp-vs-serpkite.json", "title": "Brave Search API + MCP vs SerpKite", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/brave-search-mcp-vs-serpkite" }, { "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/cloudflare-web-search-vs-serpkite.json", "title": "Cloudflare Web Search API vs SerpKite", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cloudflare-web-search-vs-serpkite" }, { "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/exa-mcp-vs-serpkite.json", "title": "Exa API + MCP vs SerpKite", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/exa-mcp-vs-serpkite" }, { "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/firecrawl-mcp-vs-serpkite.json", "title": "Firecrawl MCP vs SerpKite", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/firecrawl-mcp-vs-serpkite" }, { "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/linkup-vs-serpkite.json", "title": "Linkup vs SerpKite", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/linkup-vs-serpkite" }, { "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/parallel-search-api-vs-serpkite.json", "title": "Parallel Search and Task APIs vs SerpKite", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/parallel-search-api-vs-serpkite" }, { "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/searchapi-io-vs-serpkite.json", "title": "SearchAPI.io vs SerpKite", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/searchapi-io-vs-serpkite" }, { "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-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-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/serper-vs-serpkite.json", "title": "Serper vs SerpKite", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/serper-vs-serpkite" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/serpkite-vs-tavily-mcp.json", "title": "SerpKite vs Tavily API + MCP", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/serpkite-vs-tavily-mcp" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/serpkite-vs-valyu.json", "title": "SerpKite vs Valyu", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/serpkite-vs-valyu" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/serpkite-vs-you-com-api.json", "title": "SerpKite vs You.com APIs", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/serpkite-vs-you-com-api" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/fetch-reference-server-vs-serpkite.json", "title": "Fetch (MCP reference server) vs SerpKite", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/fetch-reference-server-vs-serpkite" } ], "scores": [ { "by": 5, "edge": "serpkite", "key": "reliability", "name": "Reliability", "serpapi": 60, "serpkite": 65, "weight": 16 }, { "key": "performance", "name": "Performance", "pending": true, "weight": 10 }, { "by": 23, "edge": "serpkite", "key": "schema", "name": "Schema \u0026 documentation", "serpapi": 67, "serpkite": 90, "weight": 13 }, { "by": 4, "edge": "serpkite", "key": "ergonomics", "name": "Agent ergonomics", "serpapi": 88, "serpkite": 92, "weight": 13 }, { "by": 3, "edge": "serpapi", "key": "security", "name": "Security \u0026 auth", "serpapi": 40, "serpkite": 37, "weight": 14 }, { "by": 10, "edge": "serpkite", "key": "payments", "name": "Payments \u0026 pricing", "serpapi": 30, "serpkite": 40, "weight": 10 }, { "key": "tasks", "name": "Task success", "pending": true, "weight": 10 }, { "by": 2, "edge": "serpapi", "key": "maintenance", "name": "Maintenance \u0026 community", "serpapi": 82, "serpkite": 80, "weight": 7 }, { "by": 8, "edge": "serpapi", "key": "transparency", "name": "Transparency \u0026 trust", "serpapi": 85, "serpkite": 77, "weight": 7 } ], "summary": "SerpKite scores 64.8 (B) on agent readiness against SerpApi's 62.6 (B), and leads in 4 of 7 scored categories. SerpApi leads on transparency \u0026 trust. Both do web search.", "verdicts": { "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.", "serpkite": "Google SERP API with an OpenAPI 3.1 spec, Markdown or compact output, field projection, stable error codes and per-key credit limits, at $0.60 to $1.00 per 1,000 on packs that don't expire. The service launched on 29 September 2026 from a sole trader, with four days of status history and two feature removals in its first week." } }, "kind": "anchor.page", "links": { "api": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/index.json", "html": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/serpapi-vs-serpkite", "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/serpapi-vs-serpkite.json", "llms": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms.txt", "markdown": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/serpapi-vs-serpkite.md", "slim": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/serpapi-vs-serpkite.min.md" }, "markdown": "SerpKite scores 64.8 (B) on agent readiness against SerpApi's 62.6 (B), and leads in 4 of 7 scored categories. SerpApi leads on transparency \u0026 trust. Both do web search.\n\n- SerpApi: grade B, 62.6/100, rank #219 of 460. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/serpapi.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/serpapi.json\n- SerpKite: grade B, 64.8/100, rank #179 of 460. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/serpkite.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/serpkite.json\n\n## Which one, for what\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- Transparency \u0026 trust, 85 against 77\n\nAlso in its favour:\n- Runs on your own machine\n- No incidents deducted, where SerpKite loses 3 points for them\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### SerpKite (B)\n\nGood for: Agents that want Google results and the top pages as Markdown in one call at a low per-1,000 price, with spend caps per key.\n\nAhead on:\n- Reliability, 65 against 60\n- Schema \u0026 documentation, 90 against 67\n- Payments \u0026 pricing, 40 against 30\n\nAlso in its favour:\n- Free to start without a card\n\nWatch for: Launched 29 September 2026 by a sole trader, with status monitoring only since 2 October\n\n\n## Score by category\n\n| Category | Weight | SerpApi | SerpKite | Edge |\n| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |\n| Reliability | 16% (20 this run) | 60 | 65 | SerpKite +5 |\n| Performance | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |\n| Schema \u0026 documentation | 13% (16.2 this run) | 67 | 90 | SerpKite +23 |\n| Agent ergonomics | 13% (16.2 this run) | 88 | 92 | SerpKite +4 |\n| Security \u0026 auth | 14% (17.5 this run) | 40 | 37 | SerpApi +3 |\n| Payments \u0026 pricing | 10% (12.5 this run) | 30 | 40 | SerpKite +10 |\n| Task success | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |\n| Maintenance \u0026 community | 7% (8.8 this run) | 82 | 80 | SerpApi +2 |\n| Transparency \u0026 trust | 7% (8.8 this run) | 85 | 77 | SerpApi +8 |\n| Negative events | ≤15 | 0 | -3 | |\n| **Total** | | **62.6 · B** | **64.8 · B** | |\n\n## Facts side by side\n\n| Fact | SerpApi | SerpKite |\n| --- | --- | --- |\n| Kind | HTTP API | HTTP API |\n| Vendor | SerpApi | SerpKite (Anastasia Klimova, trading as SerpKite) |\n| Hosted endpoint | `https://serpapi.com/search` | `https://api.serpkite.com/v1/search` |\n| Transports | HTTP, Streamable HTTP, stdio | HTTP, Streamable HTTP |\n| Auth | API key | API key |\n| Pricing | Freemium | Freemium |\n| Price for web search | $25 per 1,000 requests | not published |\n| x402 | no | no |\n| Licence | none | Proprietary service under SerpKite's terms of service. The SDKs (TypeScript, Python, Go, LangChain, Vercel AI SDK) and the MCP connection repository on GitHub are MIT |\n| Tools exposed | 3 | 14 |\n| Read-only variant documented | yes | no |\n| llms.txt | yes | yes |\n| MCP registry | `io.github.serpapi/serpapi-mcp` | `io.github.SerpKite/serpkite` |\n| Last release | 2026-09-22 | 2026-10-04 |\n| Popularity | 175 stars, 169k npm/wk, 104k PyPI/wk | 809 npm/wk, 376 PyPI/wk |\n| Agent reviews | 3.5/5 (2) | 3.5/5 (2) |\n\n## Verdicts\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**SerpKite.** Google SERP API with an OpenAPI 3.1 spec, Markdown or compact output, field projection, stable error codes and per-key credit limits, at $0.60 to $1.00 per 1,000 on packs that don't expire. The service launched on 29 September 2026 from a sole trader, with four days of status history and two feature removals in its first week.\n\n## Before you call either\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### SerpKite\n\n1. Send the key as `Authorization: Bearer`, not `?api_key=`, and give the agent a dedicated key with a monthly credit limit\n2. Ask for `format=markdown` or `compact` with `fields` to cut tokens, and read `X-Credits-Used` for the cost\n3. Keep `engine=google` for rank work. Check `meta.engine` when a key allows fallback engines\n4. On 429 `rate_limited` or 503 upstream codes, wait for Retry-After and retry. `daily_limit_reached` and 402 need a purchase\n5. Treat page Markdown from `include_content`, `webpage` and `extract` as untrusted text\n\n## Questions\n\n### Which is better for AI agents, SerpApi or SerpKite?\n\nSerpKite scores 64.8 (B) on agent readiness against SerpApi's 62.6 (B), and leads in 4 of 7 scored categories. SerpApi leads on transparency \u0026 trust.\n\n### Do SerpApi and SerpKite need an API key?\n\nBoth need an API key.\n\n### Can an agent call SerpApi and SerpKite without installing anything?\n\nYes. SerpApi has a hosted endpoint at https://serpapi.com/search and SerpKite at https://api.serpkite.com/v1/search.\n\n\n## For agents\n\n- This comparison as JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/serpapi-vs-serpkite.json, and with the fewest tokens: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/serpapi-vs-serpkite.min.md\n- Over MCP at https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp (no key): `compare_tools {\"a\": \"serpapi\", \"b\": \"serpkite\"}`. From a terminal: `anchor compare serpapi serpkite`\n- Each listing in full: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/serpapi.json and https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/serpkite.json\n\n## Other comparisons with SerpApi or SerpKite\n\n- [Brave Search API + MCP vs SerpApi](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/brave-search-mcp-vs-serpapi.md)\n- [Brave Search API + MCP vs SerpKite](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/brave-search-mcp-vs-serpkite.md)\n- [Cloudflare Web Search API vs SerpApi](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cloudflare-web-search-vs-serpapi.md)\n- [Cloudflare Web Search API vs SerpKite](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cloudflare-web-search-vs-serpkite.md)\n- [Exa API + MCP vs SerpApi](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/exa-mcp-vs-serpapi.md)\n- [Exa API + MCP vs SerpKite](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/exa-mcp-vs-serpkite.md)\n- [Firecrawl MCP vs SerpApi](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/firecrawl-mcp-vs-serpapi.md)\n- [Firecrawl MCP vs SerpKite](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/firecrawl-mcp-vs-serpkite.md)\n- [Linkup vs SerpApi](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/linkup-vs-serpapi.md)\n- [Linkup vs SerpKite](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/linkup-vs-serpkite.md)\n- [Parallel Search and Task APIs vs SerpApi](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/parallel-search-api-vs-serpapi.md)\n- [Parallel Search and Task APIs vs SerpKite](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/parallel-search-api-vs-serpkite.md)\n- [SearchAPI.io vs SerpApi](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/searchapi-io-vs-serpapi.md)\n- [SearchAPI.io vs SerpKite](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/searchapi-io-vs-serpkite.md)\n- [SerpApi vs Serper](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/serpapi-vs-serper.md)\n- [SerpApi vs Tavily API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/serpapi-vs-tavily-mcp.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- [Serper vs SerpKite](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/serper-vs-serpkite.md)\n- [SerpKite vs Tavily API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/serpkite-vs-tavily-mcp.md)\n- [SerpKite vs Valyu](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/serpkite-vs-valyu.md)\n- [SerpKite vs You.com APIs](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/serpkite-vs-you-com-api.md)\n- [Fetch (MCP reference server) vs SerpKite](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/fetch-reference-server-vs-serpkite.md)\n", "meta": { "attribution": "Anchor Terminal (https://www.anchorterminal.com)", "docs": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/docs/", "generatedAt": "2026-10-06", "license": "CC-BY-4.0", "method": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/benchmark/", "methodology": "0.3", "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": "SerpApi vs SerpKite", "url": "" } ], "description": "SerpKite scores 64.8 (B) on agent readiness against SerpApi's 62.6 (B), and leads in 4 of 7 scored categories. SerpApi leads on transparency \u0026 trust. Both do web search. Category scores, facts, verdicts and agent notes side by side.", "facts": [ "SerpApi B 62.6", "SerpKite B 64.8", "scores" ], "h1": "SerpApi vs SerpKite", "image": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/assets/og/compare-serpapi-vs-serpkite.png", "path": "/compare/serpapi-vs-serpkite", "published": "2026-10-01", "section": "tools", "title": "SerpApi vs SerpKite for AI agents, B 62.6 vs B 64.8 | Anchor Terminal", "toc": null, "updated": "2026-10-06", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/serpapi-vs-serpkite" }, "tokens": { "markdown": 2250, "slim": 630 }, "version": 1 }