How to Connect SerpAPI to n8n

SerpAPI turns Google results into structured JSON. The library’s sourcing workflows use it for two feeds: facility and business data from Google Maps results, and open roles from Google Jobs. One key in one n8n credential covers both.

What you need

• A SerpAPI account. The free plan includes 100 searches per month as of 2026, which is plenty for setup and a first test run. Check the pricing page for current figures.
• A running n8n instance with the library workflows imported.
• About 10 minutes.

Get the API key

1. Sign in at the SerpAPI dashboard.
2. The key is on the dashboard home under “Your Private API Key”. There is no separate token creation step, so every account has exactly one active key.
3. Copy it with the copy button rather than selecting the text. A truncated key is the most common cause of a failed first request.

Because SerpAPI gives you a single key instead of named tokens, rotating it after a leak changes it everywhere at once. Treat it accordingly and keep it out of any workflow JSON you export or share.

Create the credential in n8n

1. Open Credentials in your n8n sidebar and click Add credential.
2. Search for “SerpApi” and select it.
3. Paste the key into the API key field.
4. Name it “SerpAPI LGL” so the library workflows pick it up on import without rewiring.
5. Save.

If the search shows no SerpApi entry, your n8n version predates the credential. Update the instance and it appears.

Test it

1. Add an HTTP Request node to a scratch workflow.
2. Method GET, URL https://serpapi.com/account.json.
3. Set Authentication to Predefined Credential Type, choose SerpApi, and select “SerpAPI LGL”.
4. Execute the step.

A 200 response returns your plan name and the searches remaining this month. An error mentioning an invalid key almost always means a character got lost in the paste. Re-copy from the dashboard and update the credential.

Cost and one gotcha

The system cost tables budget about $25 per month for this feed at default volume. The gotcha that inflates that number: every page of results counts as one search. A Maps query that paginates through 5 pages burns 5 searches. The library workflows cap pagination for exactly this reason, so if you raise the prospect volume on a system, raise your SerpAPI budget in the same proportion and watch the dashboard’s usage graph for the first month.

Where the library uses SerpAPI

Sourcing workflows call it on a schedule: Maps result pulls for facility inventory in the field-service systems, and Google Jobs pulls for hiring signals in systems like freight brokerage and staffing. Enrichment occasionally uses it for company domain lookups when a prospect record arrives without a website.