1.04p90 2.48 s, measured on production traffic in September 2026. Details
How it works
A query goes in. Structured data comes out.
Three steps, and the third one is the whole product.
01
02
03
Step 01 / 03
Take a key
Sign up and copy the key from the dashboard. 3,000 free credits come with the account, and nothing asks for a card.
headers3,000 credits · no card
# One header. That is the whole of authentication.
x-api-key: sk_live_••••••••••••••••••••
# A new account starts with 3,000 credits and
# the same limits as every pack.
Step 02 / 03
Send a query
One GET request with the query, the country and the language. Web search answers in about 1 second at the median, 2.5 seconds at p90.
request.shGET /api/v1/search/web
curl "https://api.searlo.tech/api/v1/search/web?q=postgres+connection+pooling&num=3" \
-H "x-api-key: $SEARLO_KEY"
# Add &format=toon for a response a language model reads
# in 63% fewer tokens (per the format reference).
Step 03 / 03
Read structured results
Organic results with position, title, link, domain and snippet — as JSON, or as TOON when the reader is a language model.
Connection pooling in PostgreSQL refers to the creation and management of a pool of pre-established database connections.
03
stackoverflow.blog
Improve database performance with connection pooling
Connection poolers such as pgbouncer and pgpool-II can be used to pool connections from clients to a PostgreSQL database.
response.json200 · 1 credit
{"searchTime": 0.17,"totalResults": 85000,"page": 1,"organic": [{"position": 1,"title": "31.10. Connection Pools and Data Sources","link": "www.postgresql.org/docs/…","domain": "postgresql.org","snippet": "For an environment without an application se…"},{ "position": 2, "domain": "medium.com", … },{ "position": 3, "domain": "stackoverflow.blog", … }],"credits": 1}
Ask for format=toon and the same response arrives with abbreviated keys and no repeated field names — about 63% fewer tokens for a language model to read, the figure in the format reference.
JSON100%
TOON37% · 63% fewer tokens
Replayed
Three calls, as they ran.
Captured against production on 2026-09-04 and replayed here. The request, the status row and the response are the capture — trimmed only of favicon, thumbnail and link fields the frame has no room for.
Flow 01 / 03
GET /search/web · format=toon
The same call, as TOON.
Add format=toon and the response comes back as text a language model reads in fewer tokens — a header line, then one block per result. This is that text, exactly as it returned.
&format=toon
63% fewer tokens
1 credit
The web search for “postgres connection pooling” with format=toon returns a header line with the result count, then a numbered block per result with its title, link, snippet, site and domain.
Q: postgres connection pooling | 85000 results | page 1---1. 31.10. Connection Pools and Data Sources - PostgreSQL https://www.postgresql.org/docs/7.4/jdbc-datasource.html For an environment without an application server, PostgreSQL provides two implementations of DataSource which an application can use directly. One ...Site: www.postgresql.orgDomain: postgresql.org2. 01- Connection Pooling: PostgreSQL Database Administration https://medium.com/@jramcloud1/01-connection-pooling-postgresql-database-administration-connection-pooling-in-postgresql-17-1264aff21dae Oct 10, 2025 ... Connection pooling in PostgreSQL refers to the creation and management of a pool of pre-established database connections. These connections can ...Desc: Connection pooling is a vital technique in database administration that improves the performance, scalability, and resource efficiency of…Site: medium.comDomain: medium.com3. Improve database performance with connection pooling https://stackoverflow.blog/2020/10/14/improve-database-performance-with-connection-pooling/ Oct 14, 2020 ... Connection poolers such as pgbouncer and pgpool-II can be used to pool connections from clients to a PostgreSQL database. The connection pooler ...Site: stackoverflow.blogDomain: stackoverflow.blog
Flow 02 / 03
GET /search/maps
Places, with what an agent needs to act.
One GET to /search/maps. Name, category, rating, review count, price band, address and whether it is open right now — the first three places, as returned.
rating · reviews · price
address · open state
1 credit
The maps search for “coffee shops in Austin” returns 3 places, each with position, title, category, rating, review count, price, address and open state, for 1 credit.
Point any MCP client at the server with your key in the header, and these are the tools it is handed — searches, balance, usage and keys — with no SDK between them.
x-api-key header
8 tools
Claude, Cursor, any client
An MCP client configured with the server URL and the API key header is handed 8 tools: web_search, maps_search, check_balance, get_usage_stats, get_search_history, get_search_stats, get_transaction_history, list_api_keys.
Built to be called by something that is not a person
Agents need fresh facts, a cheap token bill and a tool they can call without a wrapper. That is three decisions, and they are all here.
An MCP server, not an SDK to write
Point Claude, Cursor or any Model Context Protocol client at the server and the assistant can search the live web itself. Setup is one config block. MCP setup.
The same organic results in a shape a model reads more cheaply — abbreviated keys, no repeated field names. The figure is the one in the format reference in the docs.
# format=toon — the same call, as TOON
Q: postgres connection pooling | 85000 results | page 1
---
1. 31.10. Connection Pools and Data Sources - PostgreSQL
https://www.postgresql.org/docs/7.4/jdbc-datasource.html
For an environment without an application server, PostgreSQL provides two implementations of DataSource which an application can use directly. One ...
Site: www.postgresql.org
Domain: postgresql.org
2. 01- Connection Pooling: PostgreSQL Database Administration
https://medium.com/@jramcloud1/01-connection-pooling-postgresql-database-administration-connection-pooling-in-postgresql-17-1264aff21dae
Oct 10, 2025 ... Connection pooling in PostgreSQL refers to the creation and management of a pool of pre-established database connections. These connections can ...
Desc: Connection pooling is a vital technique in database administration that improves the performance, scalability, and resource efficiency of…
Site: medium.com
Domain: medium.com
3. Improve database performance with connection pooling
https://stackoverflow.blog/2020/10/14/improve-database-performance-with-connection-pooling/
Oct 14, 2020 ... Connection poolers such as pgbouncer and pgpool-II can be used to pool connections from clients to a PostgreSQL database. The connection pooler ...
Site: stackoverflow.blog
Domain: stackoverflow.blog
A tool your agent already knows how to call
It is an HTTP GET with a query string, so LangChain, LlamaIndex, CrewAI and n8n all wrap it in a few lines. Search API for AI agents.
tools.py
from langchain_core.tools import tool
import requests
@tool
def web_search(query: str) -> str:
"""Search the live web and return organic results."""
r = requests.get(
"https://api.searlo.tech/api/v1/search/web",
params={"q": query, "num": 5, "format": "toon"},
headers={"x-api-key": SEARLO_KEY},
)
return r.text
The dashboard
Everything the key can do, in one place
Keys, credits, rate limits, search history and a playground that runs against production — on the same account the API bills.
Playground
Every endpoint, run against production, with the response rendered and the code to reproduce it.
API keys
Create, name, rotate and revoke keys. Each one shows what it can call.
Credits
Balance, packs bought, and auto-reload so a batch never stops mid-run.
Rate limits
The tier the account is on and every limit and rejection, live.
Search history
What was asked, when, how long it took and what it cost.
The dashboard on . Account name and avatar masked; every figure is as it was.
Pricing
Credits, bought once
One-time purchase — no subscriptions, no recurring fees
$0.80
$0.50
$0.40
$0.30
$0.22
$0.20
MicroStarterBuilderScaleProEnterprise
Price per 1,000 credits by pack. The Scale pack sets the headline rate.
Credit packs. A web search is one credit; other endpoints cost a set number of credits each. 3,000 free credits come with a new account — new users: 1-year validity. legacy users: unlimited credits.
Published list rates per 1,000 queries, and the free allowance each vendor advertises. Not a like-for-like feature comparison — see the 2026 comparison for what each one returns.
Provider
Per 1,000
Free
Entry price
Searlo
$0.30
3,000
$3.99
SerpAPI
$15.00
250/month
$25/mo
Tavily
$8.00
1,000/month
Pay-as-you-go
Google Custom Search
$5.00
100/day
$5/1K queries
SearchAPI
$4.00
100
$40/mo
ScrapingDog
$2.00
1,000
$30/mo
DataForSEO
$0.60 (queue) / $2.00 (live)
None
$50 minimum payment
Serpernot vendor-verified
$1.00
2,500
$50 prepaid (50,000 credits)
Third-party prices last verified against each vendor’s own pricing page. Serper publishes no public pricing page, so its rate is what third-party trackers report. DataForSEO is priced per queue — the slower queue is cheaper. Prices change; if one of these is stale, tell us and we will correct it.
Glossary
The words on this page, defined
Definitions first, context second.
SERP
Search Engine Results Page — the page Google returns for a query, including organic listings, ads, and features like knowledge panels and People Also Ask.
An API that returns a search engine results page as structured data. You send a query over HTTP and get organic results, images, news and shopping back as JSON.
Organic result
A search result Google ranked on relevance rather than payment. Each one carries a position, title, URL, domain and snippet — the fields rank tracking and retrieval pipelines actually use.
Searlo's unit of billing. One successful search costs one credit; credits are bought once in packs and are not a subscription. 3,000 free credits come with a new account.
Rate-limit tier
The requests-per-second ceiling attached to an account. Every account, free credits included, is on the same tier, so there is no plan to change and nothing to upgrade.
TOON
Token-Optimized Object Notation — Searlo's compact output format for language models. Abbreviated keys and no redundant fields make a response about 63% cheaper in tokens than the JSON equivalent.
Model Context Protocol — the open standard an AI assistant uses to call external tools. Searlo runs an MCP server, so Claude, Cursor and similar clients can search the web directly.
A SERP API (Search Engine Results Page API) returns a search engine's results page as structured data. You send an HTTP request with a search query, and receive structured JSON data containing organic results, images, news, and shopping data. Searlo's API returns web search results in about 1 second at the median (p90 about 2.5 seconds, measured September 2026), structured for AI and SEO workflows.
Does Google have an official Search API?
Google's Custom Search JSON API is closed to new customers, and existing customers' "Search the entire web" option ends on 1 January 2027. Searlo returns live Google results pages as JSON — organic listings, images, news and shopping — starting at $0.30 per 1,000 queries, with 3,000 free credits.
What is the best SERP API in 2026?
It depends on your priorities. Searlo stands out on price and AI-readiness: $0.30/1K pricing on one-time credit packs, 3,000 free credits to start, and AI features like TOON format and native MCP Protocol. SerpAPI has the broadest engine support (80+), while DataForSEO offers the most comprehensive SEO toolkit. Choose based on your needs: Searlo for price and AI, SerpAPI for multi-engine, DataForSEO for a full SEO suite.
How does Searlo compare to SerpAPI and Serper?
Searlo focuses on Google results and AI workflows. The biggest difference is price: Searlo charges $0.30/1K queries against SerpAPI's $15.00/1K and Serper's $1.00/1K. Searlo also offers features those two lack: AI-optimised TOON output and native MCP Protocol for AI agents. SerpAPI supports 80+ search engines; Searlo focuses on Google with the lowest price and AI-native output.
Is there a free tier for the search API?
Yes. Searlo gives 3,000 free credits once, on sign-up — no credit card required. They are a one-time grant, not a monthly allowance; for comparison, SerpAPI offers 250/month free searches and Serper 2,500 one-time credits. The free credits work on every search type, including web, images, news and shopping, with the same rate limits as a paid pack. New users: 1-year validity. Legacy users: unlimited credits.
What is TOON format and why is it important for AI?
TOON (Token-Optimized Object Notation) is Searlo's output format for LLMs. It uses abbreviated keys, removes redundant data, and structures information hierarchically to minimise token count — about 63% fewer tokens than the raw JSON response, per the format reference in our docs. That means lower model costs and more room for context in your prompts.
Can I use the SERP API with LangChain and AI agents?
Yes. Searlo has LangChain and LlamaIndex integrations, plus MCP (Model Context Protocol) support for connecting to Claude, Cursor, and other AI assistants. Web search answers in about 1 second at the median (p90 about 2.5 seconds), and the TOON format is optimised for token efficiency. Use Searlo to ground your LLMs with real-time web data and reduce hallucinations. See our tutorials for integration examples.
Does Searlo support Google AI Overviews (SGE)?
Yes. The full-SERP endpoint, GET /serp, returns Google's AI Overview, its text and cited sources, at 3 credits per page, alongside ads, People Also Ask and related searches. From November 1, 2026, a page whose AI Overview has to be completed by rendering the page costs 8 credits, and the response says aioverview.rendered: true. The AI Overview is included by default on /serp; set aioverview=false to skip it and stay at 3. For the answers ChatGPT, Microsoft Copilot and Gemini give, and the sources they cite, see the AI visibility API.
What programming languages are supported?
Searlo works with any language that can make HTTP requests. Our REST API is simple enough to use with cURL, Postman, or any HTTP client, and the docs carry copy-paste examples for cURL, Python and Node.js.
How can I build a rank tracker with SERP API?
Building a rank tracker is straightforward: 1) Store your target keywords and domains in a database, 2) Schedule periodic API calls for each keyword using our batch endpoint, 3) Parse results to find your domain's position, 4) Store historical data for trend analysis, 5) Build alerts for significant ranking changes. Searlo's affordable pricing and batch endpoint make it suitable for tracking thousands of keywords. See our rank tracker tutorial for a complete implementation.
What is the rate limit and can I scale to high volume?
Every plan, including the free credits, gets the same limits: there is no tier to climb, and buying more credits adds credits, not rate. Every response carries X-RateLimit-* headers with your current limits. The limits guard the service; they are not a capacity promise. For sustained high volume, such as a large nightly batch, tell us your volume first and we will reserve capacity for it.
How do I get started with Searlo's SERP API?
Getting started takes under five minutes: 1) Sign up for a free account at dashboard.searlo.tech (no credit card required), 2) Copy your API key from the dashboard, 3) Make your first API request using cURL, Python, or JavaScript. The documentation includes quickstart guides, code examples for all major languages, and an interactive API playground.
Start with 3,000 credits.
$0.30 per 1,000 queries after that. One-time purchase — no subscriptions, no recurring fees.