Jun 8, 2025
Best SERP APIs & Web Search APIs in 2025
Boris
COO
If you’re building SEO tools, AI chatbots, or any application that depends on fresh and reliable search data, you’ll need a SERP API or a Web Search API. These tools act as the backbone for extracting and delivering search engine data in real time.
In this guide, we’ll cover:
What SERP APIs and Web Search APIs are, and how they differ
How to evaluate providers and choose the right one
The top API providers in 2025 (with pros, cons, and pricing)
TL;DR — Linkup Web Search API is #1
The Linkup Web Search API is the most complete and versatile option in 2025. Unlike most providers that only focus on raw SERP scraping, Linkup is designed for both traditional SEO workflows and AI-first search applications.
Why Linkup Wins?
✅ Works as both a SERP API & Web Search API
✅ Built-in LLM connectors (LangChain, LlamaIndex, MCP)
✅ Handles millions of queries per day with ultra-fast response times
✅ Generous free trial to get started quickly
✅ Start for free
Whether you’re an SEO professional tracking rankings or a developer integrating real-time search into AI assistants, Linkup is the most future-ready option on the market.
SERP API vs. Web Search API: What’s the Difference?
It’s easy to confuse the two, but they serve different roles. In short: SERP APIs are best for structured SEO data, while Web Search APIs are ideal for AI-driven applications. Increasingly, top providers (like Linkup) offer both in one.
For agentic AI use cases—such as integrating LLMs, AI agents, and other AI-native workflows—we recommend using a Web Search API. This approach ensures real-time, accurate, and context-aware results, making it ideal for RAG pipelines, intelligent chatbots, and automated research tools. We’ve detailed the key reasons in one of our previous article.
Feature | SERP API | Web Search API |
|---|---|---|
Focus | Pulls data directly from search engine results pages (SERPs) | Provides broader search & semantic results |
Technology | Web scraping | AI algorithms, embeddings, custom ranking, return chunks |
Flexibility | Medium (engine-limited) | High (aggregated/custom) |
Data output | HTML / JSON | Natural language, raw context, JSON |
Use cases | SEO monitoring, keyword tracking, competitive research | AI assistants, RAG systems, real-time knowledge apps, Go-To-Market pipelines |
How We Ranked Providers
When comparing the best APIs, we used six key factors:
Supported search engines – Which engines are covered (Google, Bing, DuckDuckGo, Yandex, Baidu, etc.).
Supported scenarios – Whether it works as a SERP API, Web Search API, or both.
AI/LLM integration – Compatibility with tools like LangChain, MCP servers, and SDKs.
Scalability – Maximum queries per second/minute.
Free plan availability – Can you test it before committing?
Pricing model – Cost per query and entry-level plan options.
The Best SERP & Web Search APIs of 2025
Here’s our ranking of the top providers this year:
1. Linkup Web Search API (Best Overall)
Type: AI-first, hybrid SERP + Web Search API
Engines: Proprietary
AI/LLM Ready: Yes (LangChain, LlamaIndex, MCP)
Free Plan: Yes, with trial credits
Starting Price: $0.005/query
Scalability: Unlimited
2. Tavily – AI-Centric Web Search
Proprietary algorithm (sources undisclosed)
Free plan: 1,000 credits/month
Paid: from $0.008/credit
Great for AI-first projects
3. Exa – Semantic AI Search
Embedding-based results (not raw SERPs)
Best for RAG workflows & AI assistants
Free $10 credits for new users
4. SerpApi – Established SERP API Provider
Covers Google, Bing, DuckDuckGo, Baidu, Yandex
LLM-friendly with LangChain integration
Free: 100 queries/month
Paid plans: from $75/mo
5. DDGS – Open-Source Python Library
Originally “duckduckgo_search”
Now supports Google, Brave, Yahoo, Yandex
100% free, but requires coding setup
6. Serper – Google Specialist
Focused on Google SERPs only
Free: 2,500 queries
Paid from $50
Scales up to 300 queries/sec
7. Apify – Scraping Platform with SERP Actors
Full scraping automation platform
Dedicated “Actors” for SERPs
Free plan + massive scalability (250k req/min)
8. Firecrawl – Crawling + Search Add-On
Built as a crawler API with Search API powered by Serper
Very good scraping capabilities / requires to orient the search
Paid plans: from $19/mo
9. SearchApi – Affordable Real-Time SERP
Supports Google, Bing, Yahoo, DuckDuckGo, Naver
Free: 100 requests
Paid plans: from $40/mo
10. ZenSerp – SEO-Focused API
SERP data from Google, Bing, Yandex
Designed for rank tracking & keyword CPC data
Paid plans: from $49.99/mo
11. Brave Search API – Privacy-First Engine
Direct access to Brave’s independent search index
Free: 5,000 queries/month
Paid: from $5/1,000 requests
Quick Comparison Table
Provider | Engines | SERP API | Web Search API | AI/LLM Ready | Free Plan | Price | Scalability |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Linkup | Proprietary | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | $0.005/ | From 10 to 100 qps |
Tavily | n/a | ❌ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | $0.008/credit | 1k req/day |
Exa | Proprietary | ❌ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | Pay-as-you-go | 5 req/sec |
SerpApi | Google, Bing, DDG, Yandex, Baidu | ✅ | Partial | Partial | ✅ | $75/mo | Plan-based |
Serper | Google-only | ✅ | Partial | Partial | ✅ | $50 | 300 qps |
Apify | Many | ✅ | ✅ | Partial | ✅ | Varies | 250k req/min |
Firecrawl | Serper-powered | ❌ | Partial | ✅ | ✅ | $19/mo | 2,500/min |
SearchApi | Google, Bing, Yahoo, DDG, Naver | ✅ | Partial | Basic | ✅ | $40/mo | Plan-limited |
ZenSerp | Google, Bing, Yandex | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | ✅ | $49.99/mo | 400 connections |
Brave API | Proprietary | ✅ | Partial | Limited | ✅ | $5/1,000 | 50 qps |
FAQ
Q1: What is the best SERP API in 2025?
The Linkup Web Search API ranks #1 because it works as both a SERP API and Web Search API, supports major engines, integrates with LLMs, and scales affordably.
Q2: What’s the difference between a SERP API and a Web Search API?
A SERP API extracts structured data directly from search engine result pages. A Web Search API provides broader search results, often with semantic ranking and AI support.
Q3: Which API is best for AI chatbots and RAG systems?
For AI-first use cases, Linkup, Tavily, and Exa are the strongest options.
Q4: Are there free SERP APIs?
Yes. Providers like Linkup, Tavily, SerpApi, and Brave all offer free plans or trial credits. Open-source options like DDGS are completely free but require technical setup.
