LiteLLM

The change is one variable

LiteLLM builds the Google PSE URL as api_base plus the query string, and takes api_base from GOOGLE_PSE_API_BASE when it is set. So the variable holds the whole endpoint, with /customsearch/v1 at the end.

# LiteLLM environment
GOOGLE_PSE_API_BASE=https://api.specstream.ai/customsearch/v1
GOOGLE_PSE_API_KEY=<YOUR_SPECSTREAM_KEY>
GOOGLE_PSE_ENGINE_ID=<keep your current value>

LiteLLM refuses to search without GOOGLE_PSE_ENGINE_ID, so keep the value you have. SpecStream accepts cx and does not use it. This is the call LiteLLM then sends, with key, cx, q and num in the query string:

curl "https://api.specstream.ai/customsearch/v1?key=$SPECSTREAM_API_KEY&cx=$GOOGLE_PSE_ENGINE_ID&q=open+source+vector+databases&num=10"

The same JSON, so LiteLLM's parser reads it

LiteLLM reads items[] and maps title, link to the result URL and snippet. SpecStream answers in Google's shape: kind customsearch#search, items[] with title, link, snippet and displayLink, searchInformation.totalResults and queries.nextPage. The same call from Python:

import os, requests

reply = requests.get(
    "https://api.specstream.ai/customsearch/v1",
    params={"key": os.environ["SPECSTREAM_API_KEY"], "cx": "any", "q": "open source vector databases", "num": 10},
).json()

for item in reply["items"]:
    print(item["title"], item["link"], item["snippet"])

What you see when the Google key fails

Without a key, LiteLLM stops with GOOGLE_PSE_API_KEY is not set, and without an engine ID with GOOGLE_PSE_ENGINE_ID is not set. Google closed the API to new customers, so a new project gets no key to set. With GOOGLE_PSE_API_BASE at SpecStream, a SpecStream key fills GOOGLE_PSE_API_KEY and the search runs.

Or the SearXNG provider

LiteLLM's searxng provider reads SEARXNG_API_BASE and adds /search when the address does not end in it. Set it to SpecStream's SearXNG route with your key in the address; our test passed by this base too.

SEARXNG_API_BASE=https://api.specstream.ai/searxng/YOUR_SPECSTREAM_KEY

$5 per 1,000 searches, with no daily limit

A search of up to 10 results costs $0.005, and each started block of 10 more results adds $0.006. There is no monthly plan and no daily limit. Credit you buy never expires, and a new account starts with $10 of credit, which covers 2,000 searches.

The most accurate web search API in the world

On SimpleQA Verified the SpecStream Search API scores 97.9 F-score on all 1,000 official questions, 978 of them correct. On WideSearch it scores 64.0 item F1 and 43.4 row F1 on all 200 official tasks. The Extract API scores 0.908 F1 on WCXB. Every score and its method is on the benchmarks page.

About one second a search, measured under load

The Google route runs on the fast search. On November 9, 2026 production took 1, 5, 10 and 20 fast searches a second and answered 718 of 720. The median was 0.82 s at 1 search a second and 1.07 s at 20 a second, and the 95th percentile stayed between 1.09 and 1.73 s. One account can send up to 8,800 searches a minute; a call over that is answered with Retry-After and is not charged.

You decide what is kept, on each key

Give LiteLLM a key with zero_retention and a search made with it keeps no request text and no answer after the reply. The charge keeps the account, the key, the request ID, the price and the time. spend_cap_cents is the most the key can spend.

curl -X POST https://api.specstream.ai/v1/account/keys \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $SPECSTREAM_API_KEY" -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"name": "production", "scopes": ["account:read", "finds:spend"], "spend_cap_cents": 500000, "zero_retention": true}'

Search, pages and rows on one key

The same key reads up to 20 pages or documents a call with the Extract API at $0.80 per 1,000 pages, and a page with no text is not charged. Deep Search takes a request in plain words and returns every match on the live web as structured rows, at 5¢, 15¢ or $1 a row, with a source URL on every value. The most a run can cost is quoted before it starts.

Google PSE, until January 1, 2027

Existing customers can keep the default base until Google ends the API: $5 per 1,000 queries after 100 free a day, up to 10,000 a day. A new project gets no key. SpecStream costs the same $5 per 1,000, with no daily limit, on the same provider.

Vertex AI Search

Google's named alternative, for searching up to 50 domains, at $1.50 per 1,000 queries on Standard and $4.00 on Enterprise. For full web search Google asks you to contact it. SpecStream searches the whole live web behind the google_pse provider you already configured.

Tavily

Search billed in credits at $0.008 each on pay as you go, with 1,000 free credits a month that reset on the first day of each month. Moving to it means a new provider and a new reply shape. SpecStream keeps your provider and charges $0.005 a search.

Serper

Search sold in credit packs: $1.00 per 1,000 in the pack of 50,000, with credits valid for 6 months and 2,500 free queries to start. SpecStream credit never expires, and the google_pse provider stays as it is.

Brave Search API

A search API on Brave's own index at $5 per 1,000 requests, with $5 in free credits every month and 50 queries per second. SpecStream costs the same $5 per 1,000 and answers in the Google JSON your LiteLLM setup already reads.