SERP API glossary

Search engine results page: the page an engine shows for a query. It mixes organic results, ads and SERP features, and it changes with location, language, device and time.

An API that returns a SERP as structured data. You send the query and settings; the provider runs the search and parses the page. See what is a SERP API.

A regular, unpaid result: a title, a link, a displayed URL and a snippet. In SerpCrypto JSON they are in organic_results, each with its position.

Any block on a results page other than a plain organic result: ads, People Also Ask, local pack, knowledge panel, top stories, videos, shopping results, AI Overview.

A generated summary that Google shows above the results for some queries, with links to the pages it draws on. SerpCrypto returns its text and sources in ai_overview when the page shows one. See the Google Search API.

A separate Google Search mode that answers with a generated response and lets the user ask follow-up questions. It is distinct from the AI Overview shown on the regular results page.

A box of related questions with short answers that expand on click. Content teams use it to find the questions an audience asks. Returned in people_also_ask.

The block of nearby businesses with a small map that appears for local queries. It depends strongly on the searcher's city. Returned in local_results; see local SEO.

The fact box about an entity (a company, a person, a place) shown beside or above the results. Returned in knowledge_graph with its title, type, description and source.

A highlighted answer quoted from one page, shown above the other organic results. It earns attention because it answers the query directly on the results page.

A carousel of recent news articles shown for newsworthy queries. Returned in top_stories; the Google News API gives a fuller news list.

The country of the search, as a two-letter code such as us, gb or de. It changes which results and ads appear. See locations and languages.

The interface language of the results page, such as en, fr or pt-BR. It affects labels, some features and which pages rank.

An encoded location value that Google search URLs can carry to set a precise place. With SerpCrypto you send a readable location string instead, such as Denver, Colorado, United States.

The Google site the search runs on, such as google.com, google.co.uk or google.de. SerpCrypto picks it from gl unless you set it.

A Google URL parameter that used to return 100 results on one page. Google stopped honouring it in September 2025, so 100 results now take 10 page requests.

Fetching results beyond the first page with the page parameter. About 10 organic results per page, as Google has served since it stopped honouring num=100 in September 2025; each extra page is one more credit.

Recording the position of a page for a set of keywords over time, by country, city and device. See rank tracking with a SERP API.

The part of the visible results, clicks or impressions that a brand holds across a set of keywords, compared with its competitors.

A score that estimates how hard it is to rank for a keyword. Each SEO tool computes it differently, often from the authority of the pages already ranking.

A file at the root of a site that tells automated clients which paths they may fetch, standardised as RFC 9309. Its role for search results is discussed in is a SERP API legal?.

Giving a language model current, citable sources at answer time so it relies less on its training data. A search tool is the usual way. See AI agents and LLM grounding.

Retrieval-augmented generation: the app retrieves documents or search results first, then passes them to the model with the question. Web search is one retrieval source among others.

A model feature that lets the model ask the application to run a named function, such as web_search, with arguments it chooses. See OpenAI function calling.

Model Context Protocol: an open protocol that lets AI apps such as Claude Desktop or Cursor use external tools through small servers. See the SerpCrypto MCP guide.

A secret string that identifies your account on each request. SerpCrypto reads it from the Authorization: Bearer header or the api_key parameter. API keys you can create and revoke at any time from your dashboard.

The unit SerpCrypto bills in. 1 credit = 1 successful search request, which returns one page of results on any supported engine. A request that fails is not charged.

The number of requests running at the same time. Each account can run a set number of searches at the same time; the limit is shown in your dashboard and raised on request.

A cap on how many requests a client may send in a period or at once. Exceeding it returns an error instead of a result.

The status code for too many requests. At SerpCrypto it means the account's concurrency limit was reached; the request is not charged. See errors and retries.

A retry strategy that waits longer after each failure, for example 1, 2, then 4 seconds, often with a little randomness, so retries do not pile up.

JavaScript Object Notation, the text format of SerpCrypto responses: objects, arrays, strings and numbers that every programming language can parse. See the response format.

Know your customer: identity checks such as an ID scan or a selfie before you can buy. SerpCrypto asks for none. See the no-KYC SERP API page.

A payment that adds money to your account balance, from which you then buy credit packs. The minimum top-up is $25.

A cryptocurrency designed to keep a steady value against a currency, usually the US dollar. USDT and USDC are the two largest by market value.

Tether's dollar stablecoin on the Tron network. Fees are usually low, which makes it a common choice for top-ups. Send it only to a Tron address, never on another network. See crypto payments.