> SpecStream is the live web data engine for teams and agents. This is the Markdown copy of https://specstream.ai/vs/serpapi. Every page, with what SpecStream does and costs: https://specstream.ai/llms.txt

# SpecStream vs SerpApi (2026): the live web data engine

Checked Nov 4, 2026

# SpecStream vs SerpApi

One plain-words request to SpecStream returns finished records: the live web searched, the pages behind the results read and extracted, the rows enriched and delivered to your sheet, CRM or agent. You pay only for the rows delivered.

[Describe your dataset](https://specstream.ai/workspace/signup?returnTo=%2Fworkspace%2Fask%3Fq%3DEvery%2520US%2520company%2520that%2520filed%2520a%2520Form%2520D%2520in%2520the%2520last%252030%2520days%2520reporting%2520%2524100%2520million%2520or%2520more%2520sold%252C%2520with%2520its%2520city%252C%2520state%252C%2520the%2520amount%2520sold%252C%2520the%2520offering%2520size%252C%2520the%2520number%2520of%2520investors%252C%2520the%2520date%2520of%2520first%2520sale%2520and%2520the%2520filing&utm_source=compare&utm_campaign=serpapi-alternatives)[Pricing](https://specstream.ai/pricing?utm_source=compare&utm_campaign=serpapi-alternatives)

|  | SpecStream | SerpApi |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Web search | Searches the live web for every match | Google, Bing, Baidu, Yandex, YouTube, Amazon, Maps and more engines[P1](https://serpapi.com/pricing) |
| Scrape and crawl | Reads each page, PDF or scan needed | Extract API scrapes, maps or crawls up to 100 pages a call[P4](https://serpapi.com/extract-api) |
| Extract structured fields | Typed rows with the fields you name | Results pages parsed to JSON; other pages as Markdown[P2](https://serpapi.com/search-api)[P4](https://serpapi.com/extract-api) |
| Datasets we already hold | Form D, grants, contracts, rules, nonprofits, places[S2](https://specstream.ai/data?utm_source=compare&utm_campaign=serpapi-alternatives) | Search Archive keeps your own searches for 31 days[P5](https://serpapi.com/search-archive-api) |
| Enrich a list you have | Fills the missing facts in your list | One search per row, sent from your code[P6](https://serpapi.com/integrations) |
| Monitor and rerun on a schedule | Hourly to yearly, each row change labeled | No schedule on its pricing or API pages[P1](https://serpapi.com/pricing)[P2](https://serpapi.com/search-api) |
| Map and area filters | Results on a map, filtered by area | Google Maps and Local results near a location[P1](https://serpapi.com/pricing) |
| Deliver to your tools | Sheets, CRMs, Slack, Teams, n8n, Zapier, webhooks | JSON, HTML or Markdown to your code[P2](https://serpapi.com/search-api)[P6](https://serpapi.com/integrations) |
| Agents and MCP | MCP, A2A, REST API, SDKs, pay per request | Hosted MCP server; searches come out of the plan[P3](https://serpapi.com/mcp) |
| Price per result | 5¢, 15¢ or $1 per matching row[S1](https://specstream.ai/pricing?utm_source=compare&utm_campaign=serpapi-alternatives) | Per search, $9.17 to $25.00 per 1,000[P1](https://serpapi.com/pricing) |
| Quote before the run | Maximum shown and approved before anything runs | A monthly plan of searches, bought ahead[P1](https://serpapi.com/pricing) |
| Source URL on each value | Source URL and read time on every value | A link per result and the time of the search[P2](https://serpapi.com/search-api) |

## Where SpecStream does more

### Records from the pages behind the results

A SerpApi call returns one results page as JSON, with organic results, local results and the knowledge graph[P2](https://serpapi.com/search-api). The facts a record needs sit on the company sites, registers, filings and stores those results point to. One SpecStream request reads those pages and returns records that meet every condition you wrote, with the facts from every site joined into one record.

### Billed per row delivered

SerpApi counts every successful search, and a search that returns no results counts as 1[P1](https://serpapi.com/pricing). SpecStream bills only delivered rows, 5¢, 15¢ or $1 each, under a maximum you approve, and the searches and pages behind a row are not billed. A company left out, a retry and a run that finds nothing cost nothing[S1](https://specstream.ai/pricing?utm_source=compare&utm_campaign=serpapi-alternatives).

### The whole job with no code

SerpApi is called through its API, its client libraries, a CLI or MCP[P6](https://serpapi.com/integrations). On SpecStream one request finds every match, reads each page, PDF or scan, enriches the rows and delivers them to Sheets, your CRM, Slack, n8n or Zapier.

### Every row rechecked on your schedule

SerpApi's pricing and API pages offer no scheduled reruns[P1](https://serpapi.com/pricing)[P2](https://serpapi.com/search-api). A saved SpecStream request reruns hourly to yearly, labels each row changed, unchanged or no longer matching, and charges half the rate for a changed row and 1¢ for an unchanged one[S1](https://specstream.ai/pricing?utm_source=compare&utm_campaign=serpapi-alternatives).

### Data already built

SerpApi's Search Archive returns your own past searches for 31 days[P5](https://serpapi.com/search-archive-api). SpecStream already holds every company that filed a Form D since 2023 with its filing history, places, bank failures, federal rules, nonprofits, and open federal contracts and grants, with signals for US funding rounds, layoffs and new executives[S2](https://specstream.ai/data?utm_source=compare&utm_campaign=serpapi-alternatives)[S3](https://specstream.ai/signals?utm_source=compare&utm_campaign=serpapi-alternatives).

One row from our Form D data, each value with the filing it was read from and when.[Open the page](https://specstream.ai/data/form-d/company/angle-health-inc-2157581?utm_source=compare&utm_campaign=serpapi-alternatives)

Company

Angle Health, Inc.[sec.gov](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/2157581/000215758126000001/0002157581-26-000001-index.htm)Read Oct 30, 2026, 07:30 UTC

Location

San Francisco, CA[sec.gov](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/2157581/000215758126000001/0002157581-26-000001-index.htm)Read Oct 30, 2026, 07:30 UTC

Filing

Form D new notice filed Oct 29, 2026[sec.gov](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/2157581/000215758126000001/0002157581-26-000001-index.htm)Read Oct 30, 2026, 07:30 UTC

Amount sold

$591,524,799[sec.gov](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/2157581/000215758126000001/0002157581-26-000001-index.htm)Read Oct 30, 2026, 07:30 UTC

Offering size

$600,000,001[sec.gov](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/2157581/000215758126000001/0002157581-26-000001-index.htm)Read Oct 30, 2026, 07:30 UTC

Investors

10[sec.gov](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/2157581/000215758126000001/0002157581-26-000001-index.htm)Read Oct 30, 2026, 07:30 UTC

First sale

Oct 15, 2026[sec.gov](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/2157581/000215758126000001/0002157581-26-000001-index.htm)Read Oct 30, 2026, 07:30 UTC

## Pricing side by side

|  | SpecStream | SerpApi |
| --- | --- | --- |
| How it bills | Each matching row: 5¢, 15¢ or $1, plus 5¢ for an email and 15¢ for a phone[S1](https://specstream.ai/pricing?utm_source=compare&utm_campaign=serpapi-alternatives) | Each successful search; one with no results counts as 1[P1](https://serpapi.com/pricing) |
| Plans | $19, $99 or $499 a month, the whole price turned into work; no seats[S1](https://specstream.ai/pricing?utm_source=compare&utm_campaign=serpapi-alternatives) | $25 to $275 a month for 1,000 to 30,000 searches, month to month[P1](https://serpapi.com/pricing) |
| Free start | $10 of work on sign-up for your first 30 days, no card | 250 searches a month[P1](https://serpapi.com/pricing) |
| A typical job | 100 matching rows at 5¢ each: $5 | 1,000 searches: a $25 Starter month, results pages only[P1](https://serpapi.com/pricing) |
| Not charged | A run that finds nothing, rows left out, rows you already own, and reading or pricing a request | Errored and failed searches, and a cached repeat within 1 hour; a search with no results counts[P1](https://serpapi.com/pricing)[P2](https://serpapi.com/search-api) |

## Switch from SerpApi

1.  Write the data you want in plain words, in place of the queries you send, with the conditions every row must meet.
2.  Read how SpecStream reads the request back, and edit any condition or fact.
3.  Approve the most the run can cost. Nothing runs before you do.
4.  Send the rows to your sheet, CRM, Slack or agent, and save the request to rerun it on your schedule.

```
claude mcp add --transport http specstream https://api.specstream.ai/mcp
```

## How we checked

We read every SerpApi figure on SerpApi's own pages on Nov 4, 2026, and each marker links to its page. Where those pages say nothing, the cell says so. Our own figures come from [specstream.ai/pricing](https://specstream.ai/pricing?utm_source=compare&utm_campaign=serpapi-alternatives).

### Changes

-   Nov 4, 2026: every figure read on SerpApi's own pages that day.

Tarek Etman, Founder & CEO, SpecStream

### Sources, each checked Nov 4, 2026

1.  S1[specstream.ai/pricing](https://specstream.ai/pricing?utm_source=compare&utm_campaign=serpapi-alternatives)
2.  S2[specstream.ai/data](https://specstream.ai/data?utm_source=compare&utm_campaign=serpapi-alternatives)
3.  S3[specstream.ai/signals](https://specstream.ai/signals?utm_source=compare&utm_campaign=serpapi-alternatives)
4.  P1[serpapi.com/pricing](https://serpapi.com/pricing)
5.  P2[serpapi.com/search-api](https://serpapi.com/search-api)
6.  P3[serpapi.com/mcp](https://serpapi.com/mcp)
7.  P4[serpapi.com/extract-api](https://serpapi.com/extract-api)
8.  P5[serpapi.com/search-archive-api](https://serpapi.com/search-archive-api)
9.  P6[serpapi.com/integrations](https://serpapi.com/integrations)

## Frequently asked questions

Something we didn't answer? [Talk to a human](https://specstream.ai/talk-to-a-human.md)

What is the best SerpApi alternative?

SpecStream. It searches the live web as SerpApi does and does the rest of the job in the same request: you describe the data in plain words with every condition, approve the most the run can cost, and get structured records that meet all of them in your sheet, your CRM, Slack or your agent. It enriches your own lists, reruns on your schedule, and bills only delivered rows.

Is there a cheaper alternative to SerpApi?

Compare the price of a finished row. SerpApi bills each successful search, from $25 a month for 1,000 searches, and a search with no results counts too[P1](https://serpapi.com/pricing), so the searches that never become a row are billed along with the ones that do. SpecStream bills only delivered rows, 5¢, 15¢ or $1 each, under a maximum you approve, and a run that finds nothing costs nothing.

Can SpecStream read the pages behind the search results?

Yes. SpecStream reads each page, PDF or scan a row needs, extracts the facts you named and joins them into one record, and that reading is not billed. SerpApi returns the results page, and its Extract API returns a page as Markdown for one search credit a page[P2](https://serpapi.com/search-api)[P4](https://serpapi.com/extract-api).

Does a search that finds nothing cost anything?

On SpecStream, no. Only rows that meet your request are billed, and a company left out, a retry and a run that finds nothing are not charged. On SerpApi a search that returns no results counts as 1 search[P1](https://serpapi.com/pricing).

Which SerpApi alternatives have an MCP server?

SerpApi runs a hosted MCP server, and its searches come out of your plan[P3](https://serpapi.com/mcp). SpecStream's is at `api.specstream.ai/mcp`, with OAuth or an API key, alongside A2A, the REST API, SDKs and a CLI. Through it an agent sends the data it needs in plain words, sees the most the run can cost, and reads rows that meet every condition under the maximum you approved.

Can the data stay up to date?

Yes. A saved SpecStream request reruns hourly to yearly, and each row comes back labeled changed, unchanged or no longer matching; a changed or new row costs half its rate and an unchanged row 1¢. SerpApi's pricing and API pages offer no scheduled reruns[P1](https://serpapi.com/pricing)[P2](https://serpapi.com/search-api).

## Describe the data you need

Write the request today and see how SpecStream reads it and the most it can cost, before anything runs. New accounts get $10 of work on sign-up for your first 30 days, no card: at 5¢ a row, that is up to 200 rows that meet every condition you wrote, in the tool where your team works.

[Sign up](https://specstream.ai/workspace/signup?returnTo=%2Fworkspace%2Fask%3Fq%3DEvery%2520US%2520company%2520that%2520filed%2520a%2520Form%2520D%2520in%2520the%2520last%252030%2520days%2520reporting%2520%2524100%2520million%2520or%2520more%2520sold%252C%2520with%2520its%2520city%252C%2520state%252C%2520the%2520amount%2520sold%252C%2520the%2520offering%2520size%252C%2520the%2520number%2520of%2520investors%252C%2520the%2520date%2520of%2520first%2520sale%2520and%2520the%2520filing&utm_source=compare&utm_campaign=serpapi-alternatives)[Talk to a human](https://specstream.ai/talk-to-a-human.md)