SearchAPI is the cheaper SERP scraper at volume. SerpApi is the broader SERP scraper with a dedicated Google Trends Trending Now engine. Trends MCP is the better buy when the job is live multi-source trend boards and keyword growth inside an agent, not HTML search results. On 29 August 2026, SearchAPI Developer is $40 for 10,000 searches ($4 per 1,000) and Enhanced Speed doubles that row to $80. SerpApi Starter is $25 for 1,000 searches with 200 successful searches per hour. Trends MCP Starter is $19 for 1,000 requests, with Cursor JSON that sets url plus transport: http. SearchAPI's MCP gallery that day lists Flights, Hotels, and Maps tools and does not list Google Trends. SerpApi's hosted MCP uses one search tool with engine params, default google_light.
Does SearchAPI or SerpApi cover Google Trends better?
SerpApi covers more of the Google Trends product. SearchAPI documents engine=google_trends with data_type values TIMESERIES, GEO_MAP, RELATED_QUERIES, and RELATED_TOPICS, and a 5-query cap on TIMESERIES when cat=0. SerpApi documents the same Explore shapes plus GEO_MAP_0 for interest by region on a single query, a 1-hour cache that is free when reused, and a separate engine=google_trends_trending_now with hours values 4, 24, 48, and 168. SearchAPI's /docs/google-trends-trending-now URL returned 404 on 29 August 2026. SearchAPI does ship engine=google_trends_autocomplete (minimum 3 characters). That page's Engine field still says the value must be google_play_product while the examples use google_trends_autocomplete. Treat the examples as the contract.
Trends MCP is not a Google Trends HTML scrape. get_top_trends takes type Google Trends or Google Trends by Category (pass category, for example Games). Default limit is 25, max 200, billed per feed and per page. get_growth and get_time_series take keyword sources such as google search, not Explore data_type strings. That is a different product. It wins the live-board job and loses the Explore-plus-region scrape job.
Which MCP config actually reaches Trends data?
Cursor install JSON is the split that matters. SearchAPI's OAuth path is a url only, no transport key. Token auth uses header X-MCP-Token, not Authorization (that header is reserved for OAuth). SerpApi's hosted server wants "type": "http" and the key in the path, or Authorization: Bearer on https://mcp.serpapi.com/mcp. Trends MCP Cursor JSON sets url, transport: http, and a Bearer header against https://api.trendsmcp.ai/mcp. The www OAuth host is for Claude.ai Connectors only. Those two hosts are not interchangeable. Full Cursor setup for Trends MCP lives on Google Trends MCP for Cursor and the MCP server for Cursor page.
{
"mcpServers": {
"searchapi": {
"url": "https://www.searchapi.io/mcp",
"headers": { "X-MCP-Token": "YOUR_TOKEN" }
},
"serpapi": {
"type": "http",
"url": "https://mcp.serpapi.com/YOUR_SERPAPI_API_KEY/mcp"
},
"trends-mcp": {
"url": "https://api.trendsmcp.ai/mcp",
"transport": "http",
"headers": { "Authorization": "Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" }
}
}
}
SearchAPI's MCP docs (accessed 29 August 2026) cap accounts at 10 MCP integrations and count each tool call as one API request. The tools gallery names Airbnb through Zillow, including Google Flights, Google Hotels, Google Maps, Google Search Light, and Google Shopping. It does not name a Google Trends tool. REST engine=google_trends still exists. Do not assume the MCP bundle exposes it. SerpApi MCP has one main search tool. Pass params.engine for Trends (google_trends or google_trends_trending_now). Default engine is google_light. Opt-in search_table and search_dashboard tools exist for hosts that implement MCP Apps. Trends MCP exposes three tools: get_time_series, get_growth, get_top_trends. No generic SERP HTML.
What does each vendor charge in August 2026?
Prices below were read from the public pricing pages on 29 August 2026. SearchAPI bills only HTTP 200. SerpApi does not count cached, errored, or failed searches. Trends MCP HTML says failed calls are free. Check current pricing on the vendor page before buying; grids move.
| Plan signal | SearchAPI | SerpApi | Trends MCP |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free tier | 100 requests, no card | 250 searches, 50 per hour | 100 requests; HTML: top 10 trends, 12 months of history, 24-hour delay |
| Entry paid | Developer $40 / 10,000 ($4 per 1,000) | Starter $25 / 1,000 (200 per hour) | Starter $19 / 1,000 |
| Mid paid | Production $100 / 35,000 ($3 per 1,000); Legal Protection from this row | Developer $75 / 5,000 (1,000 per hour); Production $150 / 15,000 (3,000 per hour) plus Legal Shield | Pro $49 / 5,000; 50 keyword alerts |
| High paid | Octo 5M $5,000 / 5,000,000 ($1 per 1,000) | Cloud 1M $3,750 / 1,000,000; Cloud 54M $106,050 / 54,000,000 | Business $199 / 25,000; 250 keyword alerts |
| Speed upsell | Enhanced Speed doubles the monthly row (Developer $80, Production $200). Tooltip: nearly 2x via parallel threads | Ludicrous 2x base; Ludicrous Speed Max 4x base | No speed SKU. Paid HTML: real-time |
| Annual | No annual toggle on the grid | Month-to-month. Cancel anytime | 20% off. Yearly as billed: Starter $16/mo ($192), Pro $39/mo ($468), Business $159/mo ($1,910). Copy: 2 months free |
| Refund | 10 days if 25% or less of allotted searches used (terms, accessed 29 August 2026) | 7 days unless more than 20% of searches used (pricing FAQ) | 7-day paid trial; card at checkout, charged day 8 |
| Hourly cap | Up to 20% of plan credits each hour | Throughput column on every row | Monthly quota; 429 at the plan limit |
| Legal wrap | Production and above. Cap USD 2,000,000 aggregate per 12-month period | Legal Shield from Production. Coverage up to $2 million | Not a SERP legal-shield product |
SearchAPI's hourly 20% rule is the trap at low volume. Developer 10,000 searches means 2,000 in one hour at the cap. SerpApi Starter guarantees 200 successful searches per hour. Trends MCP HTML on this fetch printed 9,476,104 API calls served, 35+ data sources, and a 7-day trial on paid rows. docs.md lists 15 keyword sources and 24 named live feeds. The MCP get_top_trends schema on this run also lists 24 feeds, including TikTok Trending Hashtags by Category. data-sources.md lists 20 live feeds and omits all four by Category boards. llms.txt says plus 21 live feeds. The MCP get_growth schema still lists python; the docs keyword table does not. Cite the split. Do not flatten those counts.
At 1,000 Google Trends Explore calls, SearchAPI Developer is $4 of a $40 bucket if those calls return 200. SerpApi Starter is the whole $25 bucket. Trends MCP Starter is $19 for 1,000 get_top_trends or get_growth calls, which is not the same unit as an Explore scrape. A Trends MCP page is cheaper only if the agent needs boards and growth, not organic SERP JSON. Side-by-side SERP vs Trends MCP pricing also lives on Trends MCP vs SerpApi Trends.
When is Trends MCP the better buy than either SERP API?
Trends MCP wins when the agent must read live boards across Google, TikTok, Amazon, Reddit, YouTube, Wikipedia, X, App Store, Steam, and the rest of the feed list, then score a keyword with get_growth on one or more sources in one request. get_growth counts as one request per source plus keyword even when percent_growth holds several windows (12M, 3M, YTD). get_top_trends with sort rank_change and window 7d returns climbers with prev_rank and rank_change. That mover shape is not in SearchAPI or SerpApi Trends docs.
SerpApi wins when the pipeline needs organic Google HTML parsed to JSON, output=md for agents, Trending Now with related news, or engines the MCP page names (Google, Bing, Yahoo, DuckDuckGo, YouTube, eBay, and others). SearchAPI wins when the pipeline needs successful-200 billing, a 10-day refund window, and cheaper dollars per 1,000 at 10,000-plus volume, or MCP tools for flights and hotels. Neither SERP API replaces Amazon Best Sellers by Category with official names such as Toys Games. Trends MCP does, on MCP and REST, when type and category are set. The Google Trends API page is the REST-shaped version of that board job.
Skip Trends MCP for rank tracking, local pack scraping, or shopping SERPs. SearchAPI and SerpApi both document those engines. Trends MCP does not.
FAQ
Is SearchAPI just a cheaper SerpApi?
On the August 2026 grids, SearchAPI Developer is $4 per 1,000 successful searches versus SerpApi Starter at $25 per 1,000. That is cheaper per call at 10,000 volume. It is not a clone. SerpApi documents google_trends_trending_now, a 1-hour free cache, GEO_MAP_0, Ludicrous speed multipliers, and throughput per hour. SearchAPI documents a 20% hourly credit cap, Enhanced Speed as a doubled monthly SKU, and Legal Protection from Production with a USD 2,000,000 annual aggregate cap.
Can an agent call Google Trends through SearchAPI MCP?
REST yes: engine=google_trends on /api/v1/search. The MCP tools gallery fetched 29 August 2026 does not list a Google Trends tool. SearchAPI MCP counts each tool call as one API request and allows 10 integrations per account. If the agent must stay on MCP for Trends, SerpApi search with engine set, or Trends MCP get_top_trends / get_growth, are the documented paths.
Does SerpApi MCP default to Google Trends?
No. The hosted server default engine is google_light. Trends calls must set params.engine to google_trends or google_trends_trending_now. geo is required on Trending Now. Path auth puts the key in the URL; Bearer on the hosted /mcp host keeps the key out of the path.
Which one should a Cursor user buy first?
If the Cursor job is "what is climbing on Google, TikTok, and Amazon this week," buy Trends MCP and paste the url plus transport: http JSON. If the job is "scrape this Google SERP and this Trends Explore chart," buy SerpApi or SearchAPI and keep Trends MCP only if boards still matter. SearchAPI is the first SERP buy when the refund window and $4-per-1,000 Developer math beat SerpApi's $25 Starter. SerpApi is the first SERP buy when Trending Now, cache, and engine breadth matter more than that math.
Do failed Trends calls burn the quota?
SearchAPI bills HTTP 200 only. SerpApi does not count cached, errored, or failed searches; cache expires after 1 hour. Trends MCP HTML on 29 August 2026 says failed calls are free and one successful API or MCP call equals one request. get_top_trends still bills per type and per limit/offset page. A 200-row page is one request, not 200.
Prices and engine limits above were checked on 29 August 2026 from SearchAPI pricing, Google Trends, Autocomplete, MCP, and terms; SerpApi pricing, Google Trends, Trending Now, Autocomplete, and MCP; plus Trends MCP HTML pricing, docs.md, data-sources.md, and llms.txt fetched the same day.