The Best SERP APIs for 2024
Search engine results pages (SERPs) contain a wealth of valuable data for SEO, marketing, brand monitoring, and more. But collecting this data at scale is tricky due to CAPTCHAs, IP blocking, and other anti-bot measures employed by Google. SERP APIs provide an easy solution by handling the crawling and parsing for you.
In this post, we‘ll look at the best SERP APIs on the market in 2024, analyzing their features, performance, and pricing to help you choose the right one for your needs. But first, let‘s consider the alternatives to using a SERP API.
Why Use a SERP API?
When you need to extract a lot of data from Google, there are a few different approaches you can take:
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Build your own SERP scraper using Python libraries like Beautiful Soup. This gives you complete control but requires constant development to keep up with Google‘s algorithm changes.
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Use a general web scraping tool and set it up to crawl SERPs. Some scrapers can handle CAPTCHA solving, but there‘s no guarantee of successful data delivery. You‘ll also need to parse the raw HTML yourself.
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Use a SERP API that is purpose-built for search engine scraping. These tools not only extract the data but also structure it into an easy-to-use format. The best ones boast near 100% success rates.
While building your own scraper may seem like the cheapest option, it quickly becomes expensive when you factor in development time and the opportunity cost of maintaining it. Web scraping tools are more practical but still require manual setup for each site.
SERP APIs simplify the whole process by abstracting away the complexities of scraping. They manage the proxy rotation, CAPTCHA solving, and parsing on their end, so you can focus on working with the data. For most use cases, SERP APIs are the most efficient and reliable way to acquire search results at scale.
Top SERP APIs Compared
Now that we understand the value of SERP APIs, let‘s compare some of the top providers head to head. We‘ll look at seven options, assessing their features, performance, documentation, pricing, and overall ease of use.
- Bright Data‘s SERP API
Bright Data is the biggest proxy provider and its SERP API reflects that pedigree. It supports all major search engines (Google, Bing, Yandex, etc.) and enables precise location targeting down to the city level. The API handles JavaScript rendering and delivers structured JSON data for organic results, ads, featured snippets, and other SERP features.
In our tests, Bright Data‘s SERP API was the fastest, returning results in just 4.62 seconds on average. The 500ms API timeout helps keep latency low for impatient devs. However, it was less comprehensive than some rivals, only picking up 32% of ads. Documentation is excellent, with code samples in multiple languages.
On the downside, Bright Data‘s pricing is quite steep, starting at $500/month for 250K requests. It‘s a powerful SERP API but best suited for enterprises with big budgets.
- Oxylabs‘ SERP Scraper API
Oxylabs is another titan of the proxy world and its SERP Scraper API is one of the most comprehensive on the market. In addition to standard Google web results, it can scrape Images, News, Shopping, and over a dozen other verticals. The API offers granular location targeting options, right down to GPS coordinates.
Performance-wise, Oxylabs really shines. It delivered a 100% success rate and detected the highest percentage of ads (85%) thanks to its premium proxy network. Response times were a hair slower than Bright Data at 6.04 seconds. The documentation is top-notch.
Oxylabs‘ flexible plans start at just $49/month, making it more accessible than Bright Data. But it still gets pricey at scale. For sheer parsing depth and quality, though, Oxylabs is hard to beat.
- Zyte API
Zyte, formerly Scrapinghub, has a slick SERP API built on its smart proxy-routing tech. Rather than making you pick a location, Zyte automatically selects the optimal proxy based on the URL. It supports JavaScript rendering, custom headers, and even automated CAPTCHA solving.
In terms of speed, Zyte was one of the fastest, returning results in just 4.72 seconds. Successful requests clocked in at 99.47%. The API falls short on parsing, though—it only delivers the raw HTML, with no in-built SERP feature detection.
Pricing is opaque (you have to ask sales for a custom quote) but Zyte offers a neat cost estimator based on site complexity. A good option if you can live without parsed data.
- Smartproxy‘s SERP Scraping API
Smartproxy has quietly built a reputation for affordable, reliable proxies. Its SERP Scraping API brings that same balance of value and performance. You can target any country or city, select desktop or mobile user agents, and receive JSON data for all key SERP features.
Smartproxy‘s API completed 100% of our requests with an average response time of 6.09 seconds. Nothing groundbreaking, but solidly competent. The user panel is nicely laid out, with clear docs and a good onboarding flow.
Pricing starts at $50/month for 13,000 requests, which works out to around $3.85 per 1,000. Not the cheapest, but you‘re getting quality service for your dollar. A strong mid-range option for most use cases.
- SERPMaster
SERPMaster is an API-only product from the team behind ProxyCrawl. Its sole purpose is delivering structured Google SERP data at scale. The API covers a decent set of verticals—web, images, news, shopping—and spits out JSON with all the key elements labeled.
Performance is reasonable, with 98.5% of requests succeeding and an average response time just shy of 8 seconds. Nothing flashy but it gets the job done. Docs are clear and integration is painless.
At $30/month for 30,000 requests, SERPMaster is one of the most affordable APIs out there. But that only gives you US results—other countries cost 3-6x more. Ideal if you‘re laser-focused on the US market.
- SERPApi
SERPApi has one of the slickest SERP API offerings around, supporting 45+ Google verticals, from web to patents to flights. It has strong international coverage and can render even the most complex SERPs. Output is clean, well-structured JSON.
Speed-wise, SERPApi springs no surprises. 95% of requests in our test batch completed within 10 seconds. Not as zippy as some but still totally serviceable. Documentation is fantastic, with tons of real-world code samples.
Pricing is very accessible, starting at just $50/month for 5,000 searches. But costs can rack up quickly if you enable certain features like JavaScript rendering. Watch out for surcharges.
- ScrapingBee
ScrapingBee‘s Google Search API is a bit more barebones than the others on this list. It only supports web, news, and image results—no maps, shopping, or other advanced SERP features. Targeting is also IP-based rather than using precise GPS.
That said, what it does, it does well. All of our requests completed within 4 seconds, making ScrapingBee the fastest API we tested. CAPTCHA handling is seamless. Documentation, while limited, gets the key points across.
Pricing is one of ScrapingBee‘s strengths. Plans start at $49 for 100,000 credits (1 credit = 1 SERP), with enterprise prices as low as $0.75 per 1,000. Hard to beat if you have modest SERP scraping needs.
Choosing the Right SERP API
With so many strong contenders, picking the best SERP API comes down to your specific requirements and constraints. Here are some key factors to consider:
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Depth of parsing – How granular does the output need to be? Is raw HTML sufficient or do you need every ad, image pack, and site link extracted and labeled?
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Location targeting – If you‘re doing local SEO, precision targeting is a must. Look for city/ZIP level granularity.
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Latency – How fresh does your SERP data need to be? For real-time applications, every second counts. For most use cases, 5-10 seconds is plenty fast.
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Scale – If you‘re scraping thousands of keywords daily, per-request pricing quickly adds up. Look for plans with bundled credits or reasonable overage fees.
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Ease of integration – REST APIs are table stakes but some providers go the extra mile with ready-made Excel connectors, Google Sheets plug-ins, etc. The less plumbing you have to do, the better.
Whichever API you choose, don‘t forget about proxy management. The best SERP APIs route requests through a network of residential IPs to avoid detection. Ensure your provider has a large, fresh pool and smart proxy rotation logic.
Finally, keep CAPTCHA solving in mind. Most SERP APIs handle this transparently but some may charge extra or require third-party solver plugins. Factor that into your decision.
The Bottom Line
SERP APIs have revolutionized access to search engine data, making it easy for individuals and businesses of all sizes to extract the insights they need. Whether you‘re tracking your SEO performance, monitoring competitor ads, or training ML models, SERP APIs can deliver reliable structured data at any scale.
As we‘ve seen, the market is crowded with options to suit every use case and budget. Our overall top picks for 2024 are:
- Oxylabs for unmatched location targeting and parsing quality
- Bright Data for speed and flexibility
- SERPApi for range of supported verticals
- Smartproxy for affordability and ease of use
Ultimately, the "best" SERP API is the one that aligns closest with your specific needs. Don‘t be afraid to run your own tests and benchmarks to find the optimal fit. With the right API partner, you‘ll have one less obstacle between you and the valuable insights lurking in Google‘s SERPs.
