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Scale SERP vs SerpApi (2026): which should you pick?

As of Oct 23, 2026, SerpApi grades higher than Scale SERP: 2.4 against 2.0 out of 4.0.

Checked Oct 23, 2026 · graded Oct 23, 2026 by ToolGPA

SerpApi grades higher on features and platforms. They get the same grade on value for money, the free plan and ease of use.

Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.

Scale SERP

Google results API from Traject Data with a free monthly allowance

Free plan · from $23/mo
Full detailstrajectdata.com

SerpApi

Real-time search results API for Google and dozens of other engines

Free plan · from $25/mo
Full detailsserpapi.com

Which one is for you

Pick Scale SERP if

  • Fits if your local SEO work needs Google results by postal code
  • Works for projects that need Scholar or Trends results next to ordinary Google search

Look elsewhere if

  • Pricey if you start small, at $23 to $29 for 1,000 searches, many times what rivals charge per search
  • Skip it if you need Bing or other engines, which Traject Data sells as SerpWow
  • Watch out: searches past the plan cost $0.038 each on the 1,000-search plan
  • Watch out: ScraperAPI bought Traject Data and says it is moving Traject's APIs onto its own infrastructure
  • Tight if you're on Free, with 125 searches a month

Pick SerpApi if

  • Fits if you need Google AI Overviews, AI Mode and other engines in one response format
  • Works for low volumes that fit in 250 free searches or 1,000 paid ones a month

Look elsewhere if

  • Pricey if you search in volume, at $25 per 1,000 on Starter where Serper charges $1
  • Tight if you're on Free, with 250 searches a month and at most 50 an hour
  • Skip it if you want the U.S. Legal Shield on a small plan, as it starts on Production at $150 a month
  • Watch out: plans are month to month, and yearly billing is only set up by request
  • Watch out: Ludicrous Speed costs twice the price, and refunds stop after 7 days or 20% of a plan's searches

How we grade them

2.0GPAScale SERPFair2.4GPASerpApiFair
Value for money
CThe 1,000-search plan is $23 a month on yearly billing ($29 monthly), between this category's cheaper quarter ($19) and its middle ($29.99), and that's $23 per 1,000 searches where most rivals charge $1 to $4. The 10,000 plan is $66.
CStarter is $25 a month, on the line of this category's cheaper quarter, but it buys 1,000 searches: $25 per 1,000, where most rivals here charge $1 to $4. Developer is $75 for 5,000, still $15 per 1,000.
Free plan and trial
CA free tier of 125 searches a month with no card, meant for trying the API rather than running anything on it.
CA free plan for good: 250 searches a month, at most 50 an hour. Enough to build against, not to run anything on.
Features
CGoogle Search, Places and Maps, Trends, News, Reviews, Scholar, Images, Video and Shopping, by postal code and device, with scheduled batches. Google only, though: Traject Data sells SerpWow for other engines.
BGoogle Search, AI Mode, AI Overviews, Maps, Shopping, Scholar and Trends, plus Bing, DuckDuckGo, Yahoo, Baidu, YouTube, Amazon and Walmart, each run in a full browser near the location you set. Nothing in the listing shows a gap in the core job.
Ease of use
CJudged on how fast a developer gets a first result: a playground that writes HTTP, cURL, Node.js, Python and PHP code as you change the settings. No rating on record.
CJudged on how fast a developer gets a first result: client libraries in eight languages, and cached or failed searches don't count against you. No rating on record.
Platforms and integrations
CWeb only, with a REST API and code samples but no client libraries or integrations named in the listing. No desktop or phone app.
BWeb, with an API, libraries for Python, JavaScript, Ruby, Go, PHP, Java, Rust and .NET, and an MCP server. No desktop or phone app, so B is the top.
Best forGoogle results by postal codeGoogle plus many other engines from one key

The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Scale SERP and SerpApi. How we grade

Price against what you get

Scale SERP starts at $23 a month and scores 2.0 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. SerpApi starts at $25 a month and scores 2.7.

SerpApi scores higher, and starts $2 a month higher: the question is whether the extra is worth that to you. Of the other SERP and SEO data APIs on the chart, 7 score higher than Scale SERP for less, and none scores higher than SerpApi for less.

Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged

C2.0B3.0A4.0$2$5$10$20$50$100$200$500More for lessCosts more, scores moreCosts less, scores lessCosts more, scores lessScale SERPSerpApi

What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →

  • The best score at each price
  • Has a free plan
  • No free plan
The full chart of SERP and SEO data APIs, and the best at every price

Where they differ

    In commonFree planWebPublic APISERP API

    At a glance

    Scale SERPSerpApi
    PricingFree planFree plan
    Starts at$23 per month for 1,000 searches, billed annually ($29 billed monthly)$25 per month for 1,000 searches, billed monthly
    Free plan125 searches a month, no credit card required.250 searches a month, up to 50 successful searches an hour. No U.S. Legal Shield.
    Free trialNone listedNone listed
    Web
    Made byTraject Data (ScraperAPI)SerpApi, LLC
    Price read fromtrajectdata.comserpapi.com
    CheckedOct 23, 2026Oct 23, 2026

    Worth knowing

    Scale SERP

    • It covers Google only; Traject Data sells SerpWow for other search engines.
    • Searches beyond a plan's limit are charged per search, from $0.038 each on the 1,000-search plan.
    • Enterprise plans with an account manager and team onboarding are quoted by sales.
    • Traject Data was acquired by ScraperAPI, which says it is moving Traject's APIs onto its own infrastructure.

    SerpApi

    • Plans are month to month; the FAQ says yearly billing can only be set up by request while an official yearly plan is in the works.
    • The U.S. Legal Shield is not included on the Free, Starter or Developer plans.
    • Bigger self-serve plans run from Searcher at $725 for 100,000 searches a month to Cloud plans of 1 million searches and up from $3,750.
    • Refunds are offered within 7 days of subscribing, unless more than 20% of the plan's searches have been used.

    Key features

    Scale SERP

    Wide Google coverage
    Google Search, Places and Maps, Trends, News, Reviews, Scholar, Images, Video, Shopping and Products from one API.
    Postal-code targeting
    A Locations API finds supported locations by country, state, city or postal code, and results can be requested for desktop, mobile or tablet.
    Batches
    Queue up to 15,000 searches in a batch and run them on a schedule; plans allow up to 10,000 batches.
    Playground and code samples
    A visual playground covers every parameter and generates HTTP, cURL, Node.js, Python and PHP code as you change them.
    Only successful searches counted
    A search is a successful call to the Search API; calls to the other APIs, such as Locations, are not charged.

    SerpApi

    Google and many other engines
    Endpoints for Google Search, AI Mode, AI Overview, Maps, Shopping, Scholar, Trends, Flights and Hotels, plus Bing, DuckDuckGo, Yahoo, Yandex, Baidu, Naver, YouTube, Amazon, eBay and Walmart.
    Full browser and CAPTCHA solving
    Each request runs immediately in a full browser through a proxy near the chosen location, and results come back as JSON or Markdown.
    Only successful searches counted
    Cached, errored and failed searches do not count against the monthly allowance, and a response with 100 results counts as one search.
    Ludicrous Speed
    An option on every paid plan that sends parallel requests for faster responses, at twice the price; Ludicrous Speed Max is four times the price.
    U.S. Legal Shield
    From the Production plan up, SerpApi says it takes on liability for the lawful collection of public search data, with up to $2 million in coverage.
    Teams and client libraries
    Unlimited team members with admin, developer, billing and viewer roles, and libraries for Python, JavaScript, Ruby, Go, PHP, Java, Rust and .NET, plus an MCP server.

    Plans

    Scale SERP

    • Free$0

      125 searches a month for evaluating the API.

    • 1,000 Searches$23

      per month for 1,000 searches, billed annually ($29 billed monthly)

      For getting started; extra requests cost $0.038 each. Up to 10,000 batches.

    • 10,000 Searches$66

      per month for 10,000 searches, billed annually ($83 billed monthly)

      Extra searches cost $0.0118 each over the plan limit.

    • 50,000 Searches$199

      per month for 50,000 searches, billed monthly

      Extra searches cost $0.00796 each. Annual billing is 20% less.

    • 250,000 Searches$599

      per month for 250,000 searches, billed monthly

      Extra searches cost $0.004792 each. Annual billing is 20% less.

    • 1,000,000 Searches$1,699

      per month for 1 million searches, billed monthly

      Extra searches cost $0.003398 each. A 5 million plan is $4,999 a month.

    SerpApi

    • Free$0

      250 searches a month with a throughput of 50 an hour.

    • Starter$25

      per month for 1,000 searches, billed monthly

      Throughput of 200 successful searches an hour. No U.S. Legal Shield.

    • Developer$75

      per month for 5,000 searches, billed monthly

      Throughput of 1,000 successful searches an hour. No U.S. Legal Shield.

    • Production$150

      per month for 15,000 searches, billed monthly

      Throughput of 3,000 an hour, and the U.S. Legal Shield with up to $2 million in coverage.

    • Big Data$275

      per month for 30,000 searches, billed monthly

      Throughput of 6,000 an hour, with the U.S. Legal Shield.

    • EnterpriseCustom

      Custom volume and throughput, ZeroTrace mode, which stores no search data, and priority support. Sold through sales.

    Ways to pay less

    Scale SERP

    • Annual discount

      20% off with annual billing

      Scale SERP's pricing toggle takes 20% off for annual billing: the 10,000-search plan is $66 a month billed annually against $83 billed monthly.

    SerpApi

    • Education

      Special pricing for students and educators

      SerpApi's FAQ says universities, students and educators can email about their project and budget to arrange special pricing.

    Common questions

    Which is cheaper, Scale SERP or SerpApi?

    As of Oct 23, 2026, Scale SERP is cheaper to start with: $23 a month, against $25 a month for SerpApi. Scale SERP starts at $23 per month for 1,000 searches, billed annually ($29 billed monthly), and SerpApi starts at $25 per month for 1,000 searches, billed monthly.

    Which has a free plan, Scale SERP or SerpApi?

    As of Oct 23, 2026, both Scale SERP and SerpApi have a free plan.

    More comparisons

    How this page was made

    • The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
    • The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
    • Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
    • The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.
    How we review and grade