Web search in LangChain

The setting is one address

SearxSearchWrapper reads searx_host or SEARX_HOST and sends a GET to that address with q and format=json, adding no path. So the address ends in /search, and the key goes in it as a path part.

export SEARX_HOST=https://api.specstream.ai/searxng/$SPECSTREAM_KEY/search

from langchain_community.utilities import SearxSearchWrapper
from langchain_community.tools.searx_search.tool import SearxSearchResults

search = SearxSearchWrapper(searx_host="https://api.specstream.ai/searxng/YOUR_SPECSTREAM_KEY/search")

for result in search.results("open source vector databases", num_results=5):
    print(result["title"], result["link"], result["snippet"])

# the same wrapper as a tool for your agent
tool = SearxSearchResults(wrapper=search, num_results=5)

The reply carries every field the wrapper reads: results[] with title, url, content, engines and category. The key also answers as the Basic password in the address (https://:<key>@api.specstream.ai/searxng/search), which our test passed for this wrapper too.

The call underneath, in plain Python

This is the request the wrapper makes. Run it once with your key and you see what your chain will read.

import requests

reply = requests.get(
    "https://api.specstream.ai/searxng/YOUR_SPECSTREAM_KEY/search",
    params={"q": "open source vector databases", "format": "json", "language": "en"},
).json()

for result in reply["results"]:
    print(result["title"], result["url"], result["content"])

A chain on Google or Bing moves to a search that is open

GoogleSearchAPIWrapper calls Google's Custom Search JSON API, which Google closed to new customers and ends on January 1, 2027. BingSearchAPIWrapper defaults to Microsoft's Bing Web Search API, retired on August 11, 2025. SearxSearchWrapper on SpecStream returns the same title, link and snippet for each result, from the whole live web, at $5 per 1,000 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 SearXNG 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 takes up to 8,800 searches a minute; a call over that gets a 429 with Retry-After and is not charged.

You decide what is kept, on each key

Create a key with zero_retention and a search made with it keeps no request text and no answer after the reply: not in the history, not in a log line. spend_cap_cents is the most the key can spend, so an agent in a loop stops at the cap you set.

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

Search, pages and rows on one key

A RAG chain needs the page after the search. The same key reads up to 20 pages or documents a call with the Extract API at $0.80 per 1,000 pages, and GET /v1/web-search with passages=true returns the text of the top pages closest to the question in the same call. Deep Search returns every match for a request in plain words as rows, at 5¢, 15¢ or $1 a row.

Tavily

A search API billed in credits: $0.008 a credit on pay as you go, 1 credit for a basic search and 2 for an advanced one, with 1,000 free credits a month. The community wrapper fixes its address at https://api.tavily.com. SearxSearchWrapper on SpecStream searches at $0.005 a call.

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 up to 50 queries per second. SpecStream costs the same $5 per 1,000, searches the whole live web, and scores 97.9 F-score on SimpleQA Verified.

Google Custom Search JSON API

$5 per 1,000 queries after 100 free a day, up to 10,000 a day, for existing customers only: Google closed it to new customers and ends it on January 1, 2027. SpecStream costs the same $5 per 1,000, takes new accounts today, and has no daily limit.

Serper

Google results as JSON, sold in credit packs from $50 for 50,000, valid for 6 months. GoogleSerperAPIWrapper fixes its address at https://google.serper.dev. SpecStream credit never expires, and a search is $5 per 1,000.