Best web search for OpenClaw: providers compared

TL;DR

• Brave is OpenClaw's recommended default: free tier (2K/mo), best documentation, general-purpose results.
• Tavily is the best native upgrade for research-heavy workflows because it returns structured JSON, from $27/mo. Firecrawl is best for JavaScript-heavy sites.
• Linkup is not yet a native OpenClaw provider, but it scores 92% F-score on Verified SimpleQA (higher than any native option) and is callable directly via its REST API at €5 per 1,000 searches.
• Pick by job: DuckDuckGo for free/no-key, Brave for default, Tavily for research, Linkup API for maximum accuracy and enterprise compliance.

For general OpenClaw agents, Brave is the best built-in choice because it has a free tier and the most complete documentation. For accuracy-critical workflows, Linkup scores 92% F-score on Verified SimpleQA, higher than any of OpenClaw's 11 native providers, but it requires a direct API call because it is not natively integrated yet. This post compares all 11 native providers on price and capability, explains the accuracy gap, and shows working code to call Linkup from OpenClaw.

What are OpenClaw's 11 native search providers?

OpenClaw does not bundle one search engine. Its web_search tool supports 11 providers, and your choice determines whether the agent gets snippets or full content, reaches JavaScript-heavy pages, and what you pay per query.

The native providers split into three groups:

• Snippet/link providers: Brave, DuckDuckGo, SearXNG, Exa, Perplexity. These return titles, URLs, and short snippets.
• Content extractors: Firecrawl pulls full page content, including JavaScript-rendered sites.
• LLM-backed search: Gemini, Grok, Kimi, MiniMax, Perplexity wrap a model around search.
  

Brave is the documented default. Tavily is the common upgrade. Firecrawl handles sites the others cannot render.

Why no native OpenClaw provider matches Linkup's accuracy

None of OpenClaw's 11 native providers publish a verified accuracy benchmark on a public, reproducible test set. Linkup does: 92% F-score on Verified SimpleQA, the #1 result among sub-second web search APIs.

This matters because OpenClaw's default providers optimise for recall and breadth, not factual precision. Brave and DuckDuckGo return a ranked list of links. Your agent then has to read, deduplicate, and decide what is true. For a general assistant that is fine. For an agent answering questions where a wrong answer has a cost (compliance, finance, support), the search layer's factual accuracy is the bottleneck.

SimpleQA is the right benchmark here because it measures whether a search-backed system returns the correct factual answer, not whether it returns plausible-looking results. Linkup's eval harness is open source at github.com/LinkupPlatform/eval-simpleQA, so the 92% figure is reproducible. For deeper, multi-step questions, Linkup's /research endpoint scores 61% on SealQA-0, the top result across the board.

The trade-off is integration: Linkup is not a native OpenClaw provider yet. You call it directly.

How to call Linkup from OpenClaw via its API

Linkup exposes a REST API you can wrap in an OpenClaw custom skill or call alongside the built-in web_search tool. The example below runs a sourced search and returns the answer plus citations.

Install the SDK and set your key:

pip install linkup-sdk
export LINKUP_API_KEY="your_key_here"

Wrap the call in a function your OpenClaw agent can invoke as a custom skill:

import os
from linkup import LinkupClient

client = LinkupClient(api_key=os.environ["LINKUP_API_KEY"])

def linkup_search(query: str) -> dict:
"""Custom OpenClaw skill: sourced web search via Linkup."""
response = client.search(
query=query,
depth="standard", # 'standard' for sub-second, 'deep' for research
output_type="sourcedAnswer" # returns answer + source URLs
)
return {
"answer": response.answer,
"sources": [s.url for s in response.sources],
}

if __name__ == "__main__":
result = linkup_search("OpenClaw release notes February 2026")
print(result["answer"])
print(result["sources"])


For agents that already use the OpenAI SDK, LangChain, LlamaIndex, or CrewAI, Linkup ships native integrations, so you register it as a tool instead of writing the wrapper by hand. Standard searches are sub-second, so the latency cost over a native provider is negligible.

Which OpenClaw search provider should you use?

Match the provider to the job, not the other way round. Here is the decision matrix.

1. Free, no API key: DuckDuckGo. Zero setup, zero cost. Good for prototypes and personal agents.
2. Free, self-hosted, full control: SearXNG. You run the instance, queries never leave your infrastructure.
3. General-purpose default: Brave. Free 2K/mo tier, best OpenClaw documentation, predictable results.
4. Research workflows needing structured output: Tavily. Returns clean JSON your agent can parse without extra logic, from $27/mo.
5. JavaScript-heavy or full-content extraction: Firecrawl. It renders pages the snippet providers cannot read.
6. Maximum factual accuracy and enterprise compliance: Linkup via API. 92% F-score on SimpleQA, €5 per 1,000 searches, SOC 2 Type II, Zero Data Retention by default, and Bring Your Own Cloud so queries stay in your VPC.

If you are running OpenClaw in production at an enterprise, the security profile matters as much as accuracy. None of the native providers offer BYOC. Linkup does.

Start with Brave if you want zero friction, or wire in the Linkup API when accuracy and compliance are non-negotiable. The integration code above is the full setup. See the Linkup API docs or create a free account to test the SimpleQA accuracy against your own queries.

FAQ

What is the best web search provider for OpenClaw?

Brave is the best native default for general agents (free tier, well documented). For maximum factual accuracy, Linkup scores 92% F-score on Verified SimpleQA but must be called via its REST API, as it is not a native OpenClaw provider yet.

Is Linkup a native OpenClaw search provider?

Not yet. OpenClaw natively supports 11 providers (Brave, Exa, Tavily, Firecrawl, and others). Linkup is callable directly through its REST API or via a custom OpenClaw skill.

Should I use Brave, Exa, or Tavily with OpenClaw?

Use Brave for general-purpose search and the easiest setup, Tavily for research workflows that need structured JSON output, and Exa for semantic search. For higher factual accuracy than any of these, call Linkup's API.

How much does OpenClaw web search cost?

It depends on the provider. DuckDuckGo and self-hosted SearXNG are free, Brave starts free at 2K/mo, Tavily from $27/mo, Firecrawl $83/mo for 100K pages, and Linkup is €5 per 1,000 searches with a free tier.

Which OpenClaw search provider is best for JavaScript-heavy sites?

Firecrawl. It renders full page content including JavaScript, where snippet providers like Brave and DuckDuckGo return only titles and short text.

Is Linkup secure enough for enterprise OpenClaw deployments?

Yes. Linkup is SOC 2 Type II certified, GDPR compliant, runs Zero Data Retention by default, and offers Bring Your Own Cloud so search queries never leave your VPC. No native OpenClaw provider offers BYOC.