Google is a goldmine of valuable data—especially for marketers, SEOs, and analysts who need real-time insights. With evolving features like AI Overviews and AI Mode, Google’s search engine results pages (SERPs) are changing faster than ever. That makes it harder (and more important) to stay ahead of the curve. If you want to succeed in SEO, you need accurate, real-time search data. The most efficient way to get it? Scrape Google with an API.
Using a SERP API (Search Engine Results Page API), also known as a Google Search API or web scraping API, is the easiest and most reliable way to access live search results programmatically—no scraping scripts or proxy juggling required. In this guide, we’ll show you how to scrape Google with an API using Traject Data’s Scale SERP API, one of the most powerful tools on the market.
What Do SERP APIs Do?
SERP APIs allow you to extract real-time data directly from search engines like Google, Bing, Yahoo, Baidu, and Naver. They let you monitor search term rankings, featured snippets, ad placements, local results, and more—all in a structured, scalable format.
Unlike manual scraping or general scraping tools, a SERP API:
- Returns clean, structured data
- Adapts automatically as search engine pages evolve
- Handles IP rotation, CAPTCHAs, and rendering behind the scenes
What Can You Scrape from Google?
Scraping Google is not limited to simple search results. A robust Google SERP API like Scale SERP gives you access to multiple datasets, including:
- Search Engine Result Pages (SERPs)
- AI Overviews and AI-generated answers
- Google Shopping results
- Google Ads (PPC placements)
- Google News and Top Stories
- Google Maps / Google Places
- Google Reviews
Whether you’re optimizing for ecommerce, local discovery, or organic rankings, you can extract the exact data you need.
Google’s Anti-Scraping Measures
Google has sophisticated systems in place to block bots and scrapers—CAPTCHAs, rate limiting, IP detection, and dynamic rendering, to name a few. Google continues to enhance its anti-scraping measures every year. That makes manual scraping both unreliable and unsustainable at scale.
The Solution? Scrape Google with an API.
Using a SERP API built specifically for Google, like Traject Data’s Scale SERP, gets you clean, accurate data without getting blocked. These APIs manage proxies, handle anti-bot defenses, and adapt to changes in Google’s SERP structure automatically.
How to Scrape Google with Traject Data’s Scale SERP API
Getting started is simple. Here’s a step-by-step walkthrough:
1. Sign Up for an API Key
Head to Traject Data and sign up for access to Scale SERP. You’ll receive a unique API key that authenticates your requests.
2. Review the API Documentation
Browse the full Scale SERP API documentation to see available endpoints and parameters. You’ll find examples for search queries, product data, reviews, maps, and more.
3. Make Your First Request
To scrape Google search results, use the /search endpoint and provide key parameters like:
q– your search termlocation– the region your query should originate from
Example request:
https://api.scaleserp.com/search?api_key=YOUR_API_KEY&q=pizza&location=United+States
Replace YOUR_API_KEY with the key you received from Traject Data.
You can retrieve results in
JSON, HTML, or CSV format—whatever works best for your workflow.
4. Use Asynchronous Retrieval for Scale
For large-scale projects, enable batch processing and asynchronous delivery. Traject Data supports:
- Sending results to an S3-compatible storage bucket
- Delivering results via webhook callback
- Downloading result sets manually from the UI
This allows for scalable, hands-off data collection and integration.
5. Send the Data to Your BI Tools
Easily connect Scale SERP data to platforms like Looker, Tableau, Power BI, or your own custom dashboards. With structured results, you can slice and dice SERP data by keyword, location, ranking position, and more.
Interested in Scraping Google AI Overviews?
Want to stay ahead of Google’s evolving SERP landscape? Traject Data’s SERPWow API allows you to scrape Google AI Overviews, giving you access to this emerging area of search data.
To include AI Overviews in your results, simply set the following parameters in your request:
- engine=google
- include_ai_overview=true
- Use a .com domain or specify a U.S. location
- To target mobile results, add: device=mobile
Data Returned
The response will include two main objects:
- ai_overview_banner – Contains the AI overview banner displayed at the top of search results.
- ai_overview_contents – Provides detailed AI-generated content:
- type – Indicates whether the content is a header or list
- text – The textual content of the header or list item
You’ll also receive AI Overview sources, including:
- source_title
- source_description
- source_url
- source_image
- source_name
With access to Google AI Overviews, you can monitor how generative search impacts rankings, visibility, and user experience—critical insights for advanced SEO strategies.
Ready to Scrape Google with an API?
Want to access real-time search results data without the scraping headache?
Traject Data makes it easy. Start using one of the best Google SERP APIs available today.
When it comes to scraping Google with an API, Traject Data’s Scale SERP API gives you the power, flexibility, and reliability you need to make smarter decisions—faster.
Ready to See What Traject Data Can Help You Do?
We’re your premier partner in web scraping for SERP data. Get started with one of our APIs for free and see the data possibilities that you can start to collect.
