Google has updated documentation for a service that lets approved partners add full-web Google search results to their websites and apps. The details arrive as customers of its older Custom Search JSON API face a January 1, 2027 shutdown.
The Web Search Service API requires a Google Cloud project, an API key and a client ID tied to a partner agreement. Its public documentation does not explain which businesses qualify, what access costs or how long approval takes.
For developers using the outgoing API, the immediate question is whether they can move to this service before their existing access ends.
Google’s Custom Search JSON API notice says the product is closed to new customers and will be discontinued on January 1. Existing customers currently receive 100 free queries a day, with additional requests priced at $5 per 1,000, up to 10,000 queries daily.
Google has not published an equivalent price or daily allowance in the Web Search Service pages reviewed.
In its January migration announcement, Google directed customers needing full-web results to an interest form. That announcement does not name the Web Search Service API, and the API documentation does not explicitly confirm it as the replacement for existing customers.
The interest form asks businesses about their expected search volumes and required features. It also warns that replies are on a “best effort” basis. Submitting it provides no published guarantee of acceptance or a response before the shutdown.
The technical documentation is more specific. The API reference describes results containing page titles, URLs and snippets, with up to 20 results per request and an option to retrieve further pages. Developers can filter results by language, country and date.
For SEO tools, one limitation matters: the documented response contains no dedicated fields for AI Overviews, search ads or local map results. The pages also do not promise that results will appear in the same order as they do on Google.com.
Every search request must include the end user’s IP address, which Google says supports regional routing and abuse prevention.
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