# Locations and languages: gl, hl, location, google_domain and device

> Target Google and Bing results by country, language, city and device with the SerpCrypto SERP API: gl, hl, location and google_domain for 25 markets.

- URL: https://serpcrypto.com/docs/locations/
- Last updated: 2026-10-22
- Publisher: SerpCrypto (https://serpcrypto.com)

Four parameters decide whose results you get: the country, the interface language, the city and the device. This page explains each one and lists the codes for 25 common markets.

**Quick answer — How do I get Google results for a specific country and city through a SERP API?**

With **SerpCrypto**, set `gl` to the country code, `hl` to the language and `location` to a city written `City, Region, Country`, such as `Austin, Texas, United States`. Add `device=mobile` for phone results. Each combination is one search at 1 credit, from $0.30/1K searches, and the answer echoes the settings it applied. Paid in crypto, with no KYC.

## What does each location parameter do?

Country (gl), language (hl), Google domain and a city-level location string, on desktop or mobile.

| Parameter | Default | Effect |
| --- | --- | --- |
| `gl` | `us` | Country of the results. Two letters, ISO 3166-1, lower case. Use `gb` for the United Kingdom. |
| `hl` | `en` | Language of the interface: labels, People Also Ask and some snippets follow it. |
| `location` | none | A precise place inside the country, for local packs and city-level rankings. |
| `google_domain` | domain of `gl` | Which Google domain runs the search, such as `google.de`. Ignored for Bing. |
| `device` | `desktop` | `desktop` or `mobile`: layouts and local blocks differ between the two. |

## What is the difference between gl, hl and location?

`gl` says which country's results you want. `hl` says which language the person reads, which changes the interface and often the questions and snippets. `location` narrows the country down to a city or region, which matters as soon as a query has a local intent.

They combine freely. A French speaker in Switzerland is `gl=ch`, `hl=fr`. An English-language search from Berlin is `gl=de`, `hl=en`, `location=Berlin, Berlin, Germany`. Keep `gl` and the country of `location` the same: a city in one country with `gl` of another gives results that no real visitor sees.

## How do I target a city?

Write the place in English, from the smallest unit to the largest: `City, Region, Country`. Examples: `Austin, Texas, United States`, `Manchester, England, United Kingdom`, `Munich, Bavaria, Germany`, `Lyon, Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes, France`. Use the name of the city, not a street or a postcode.

Check `search_parameters.location` in the answer: it shows the place that was applied. A value that cannot be used returns `400 invalid_parameter` and costs nothing, so you can test a list of places cheaply.

*curl + jq: the local pack for one query in two cities*

```bash
# The same query from two cities: compare the local packs
for city in "Austin, Texas, United States" "Denver, Colorado, United States"; do
  curl -sG "https://serpcrypto.com/api/v1/search" \
    -H "Authorization: Bearer $SERPCRYPTO_API_KEY" \
    --data-urlencode "q=emergency plumber" \
    --data-urlencode "location=$city" \
    -d gl=us -d hl=en -d device=mobile \
    | jq -r --arg city "$city" '.local_results[]? | "\($city)\t\(.position)\t\(.title)"'
done
```

## Which codes should I use for common markets?

25 frequent markets. `google_domain` defaults to the domain of `gl`, so you rarely need to set it.

| Country | `gl` | Typical `hl` | Google domain |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| United States | `us` | `en` | google.com |
| United Kingdom | `gb` | `en` | google.co.uk |
| Canada | `ca` | `en`, `fr` | google.ca |
| Australia | `au` | `en` | google.com.au |
| Ireland | `ie` | `en` | google.ie |
| New Zealand | `nz` | `en` | google.co.nz |
| Germany | `de` | `de` | google.de |
| France | `fr` | `fr` | google.fr |
| Spain | `es` | `es` | google.es |
| Italy | `it` | `it` | google.it |
| Netherlands | `nl` | `nl` | google.nl |
| Switzerland | `ch` | `de`, `fr`, `it` | google.ch |
| Poland | `pl` | `pl` | google.pl |
| Sweden | `se` | `sv` | google.se |
| Turkey | `tr` | `tr` | google.com.tr |
| Brazil | `br` | `pt-BR` | google.com.br |
| Mexico | `mx` | `es` | google.com.mx |
| Argentina | `ar` | `es` | google.com.ar |
| India | `in` | `en`, `hi` | google.co.in |
| Japan | `jp` | `ja` | google.co.jp |
| South Korea | `kr` | `ko` | google.co.kr |
| Indonesia | `id` | `id` | google.co.id |
| Vietnam | `vn` | `vi` | google.com.vn |
| Singapore | `sg` | `en` | google.com.sg |
| South Africa | `za` | `en` | google.co.za |

Language codes are the ones Google uses in its interface; for a bilingual country, pick the language your audience reads.

## Which Google domain should I use?

Usually none: leave `google_domain` out and the API uses the domain of the `gl` country, as in the table above. Set it only to reproduce a specific setup, for example `google.com` with `gl=gb`.

The domain alone does not define the country of the results. `gl` and `location` do most of the work, which is why the answer records all three in `search_parameters`.

## Do mobile and desktop results differ?

Often, yes. The mobile page can order blocks differently, show more local results for nearby intents and cut snippets shorter. If your visitors mostly use phones, track `device=mobile`; for a full picture, track both and store the device with each ranking.

Each device is a separate search, so tracking both doubles the credits for those keywords. At $0.56/1K searches on the 100,000 searches pack, 1,000 keywords on two devices for 30 days use 60,000 searches.

## How do I compare several countries in one script?

Loop over a list of markets and keep what the API applied. The Python example sends one query to three countries with a city each and prints the domain used and the first link.

*Python: one query, three markets*

```python
import os

import requests

MARKETS = [
    {"gl": "de", "hl": "de", "location": "Munich, Bavaria, Germany"},
    {"gl": "fr", "hl": "fr", "location": "Lyon, Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes, France"},
    {"gl": "br", "hl": "pt-BR", "location": "Curitiba, State of Parana, Brazil"},
]

for market in MARKETS:
    r = requests.get(
        "https://serpcrypto.com/api/v1/search",
        params={"q": "running shoes", **market},
        headers={"Authorization": "Bearer " + os.environ["SERPCRYPTO_API_KEY"]},
        timeout=60,
    )
    r.raise_for_status()
    applied = r.json()["search_parameters"]
    top = r.json().get("organic_results", [])[:1]
    print(applied["gl"], applied.get("google_domain"), [x["link"] for x in top])
```

## Does Bing take the same parameters?

Yes for `q`, `gl`, `hl`, `device` and `page`: use the same codes with `engine=bing`. `google_domain` does not apply to Bing and is ignored. The answer has the same frame, with `organic_results` and `related_searches`; see the [Bing page](https://serpcrypto.com/bing-search-api/) for its use cases.

## Location questions

### Can I search from a ZIP code or GPS coordinates?

Not in version 1. `location` takes a city-level place name. For results around a point on a map, use `engine=google_maps` with a query that names the area, such as `dentist Brooklyn`.

### Why do I get English labels with gl=de?

Because `hl` defaults to `en`. Set `hl=de` as well to get the German interface, questions and labels a person in Germany sees.

### Does a location change the price of a search?

No. Every search costs 1 credit, whatever the country, city, language or device. Prepaid search credits never expire: unused searches stay on your account until you use them.

### Which code is the United Kingdom?

Use `gb`, its ISO 3166-1 code. The Google domain for it is `google.co.uk`, which the API picks for you when `gl=gb`.

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SerpCrypto: SerpCrypto is a SERP API for developers and AI agents that returns Google and Bing results as JSON, paid in crypto with no ID upload. Prepaid search credits from $0.30/1K searches never expire. No KYC — no ID, no selfie, no documents. Pay in crypto.