n8n-nodes-websearch

Smart web search node for n8n with multiple provider fallback. Automatically tries different search APIs until it gets good results.

Features

• Smart Fallback: Automatically tries providers in sequence until good results are found
• 7 Search Providers: Tavily, Serper.dev, Exa, Google CSE, Brave Search, SerpApi, DuckDuckGo
• Dual Validation: Checks both result count AND quality before accepting results
• Three Modes: Auto (smart fallback), Specific provider, or Custom priority order
• Tool Ready: Can be used as a tool in AI agent workflows (usableAsTool: true)
• Pure Node.js: No Python or external dependencies required
• Modular: Easy to add/remove providers

Installation

From npm

npm install n8n-nodes-websearch

In n8n

1. Go to Settings > Community Nodes
2. Enter n8n-nodes-websearch
3. Click Install

Provider Priority (Default Order)

| Priority | Provider | Free Tier | Best For | |----------|----------|-----------|----------| | 1 | Tavily | 1,000/month | AI-native, LLM-ready results | | 2 | Serper.dev | 2,500/month | Google SERPs, very fast | | 3 | Exa | Free tier | Neural/semantic search | | 4 | Google CSE | 100/day | Reliable, traditional | | 5 | Brave Search | Free tier | Privacy-first | | 6 | SerpApi | 100/month | Multi-engine fallback | | 7 | DuckDuckGo | Unlimited | No API key needed |

Credentials Setup

Add your API keys in n8n credentials. You only need to configure the providers you want to use:

| Provider | Required Fields | Get API Key | |----------|-----------------|-------------| | Tavily | API Key | tavily.com | | Serper.dev | API Key | serper.dev | | Exa | API Key | exa.ai | | Google CSE | API Key + Search Engine ID | Google Cloud Console | | Brave Search | API Key | brave.com/search/api | | SerpApi | API Key | serpapi.com | | DuckDuckGo | Enable toggle | No API key needed! |

Usage

Auto Mode (Recommended)

The node automatically tries providers in sequence until it finds good results:

1. Checks if each provider is configured (has API key)
2. Tries the search
3. Validates results (minimum count + quality)
4. If not satisfied, tries next provider
5. Returns best results found

Specific Provider Mode

Force use of a specific provider (useful for testing or when you want specific results).

Custom Priority

Override the default sequence with your own order:

serper,tavily,brave,duckduckgo

Node Options

| Option | Default | Description | |--------|---------|-------------| | Max Results | 10 | Maximum results to return | | Min Results | 3 | Minimum results before trying next provider | | Region | us | Region code (us, uk, de, fr, in, etc.) | | Language | en | Language code | | Safe Search | true | Enable safe search filtering | | Time Range | all | Filter by time (day, week, month, year, all) |

Output Format

{
  "query": "example search",
  "success": true,
  "results": [
    {
      "title": "Result Title",
      "url": "https://example.com",
      "snippet": "Description of the result...",
      "source": "example.com"
    }
  ],
  "provider": "tavily",
  "meta": {
    "totalResults": 10,
    "searchTime": 234,
    "attemptedProviders": [
      { "provider": "tavily", "success": true, "resultCount": 10 }
    ],
    "mode": "auto"
  }
}

Adding New Providers

The node is designed to be modular. To add a new provider:

1. Add entry in nodes/WebSearch/config/providers.ts
2. Create provider file in nodes/WebSearch/providers/
3. Register in nodes/WebSearch/providers/index.ts
4. Add credential fields in credentials/WebSearchApi.credentials.ts

License

MIT

Author

sudipta26889

Links

• GitHub Repository
• npm Package
• Report Issues