Google Books API
Our Google Books API allows you to scrape results from the Google Books search page (the Books tab of Google Search). For each result, the API returns its title, link, Google Books ID, thumbnail, authors, publication date, snippet, availability (e.g., Preview or Full view), and a link to its other editions.
Search books, magazines, and the scanned newspapers of the Google News Archive with document_type, only show books you can read with view, and limit the results to a publication period with start_date and end_date. Google Books search operators such as inauthor:, intitle:, and isbn: are supported in q.
The API endpoint is https://serpapi.com/search?engine=google_books
Head to the playground for a live and interactive demo.
API Parameters
Search Query
q
Required
Parameter defines the query you want to search. You can use anything that you would use in a regular Google Books search: a title, an author, a subject, or a quote. Search operators such as intitle:, inauthor:, inpublisher:, subject:, and isbn: are supported (e.g., inauthor:"Stephen King").
Localization
google_domain
Optional
Parameter defines the Google domain to use. It defaults to google.com. Head to the Google domains page for a full list of supported Google domains.
gl
Optional
Parameter defines the country to use for the Google Books search. It's a two-letter country code. (e.g., us for the United States, uk for United Kingdom, or fr for France). It defaults to us. Head to the Google countries page for a full list of supported Google countries.
hl
Optional
Parameter defines the language to use for the Google Books search. It's a two-letter language code. (e.g., en for English, es for Spanish, or fr for French). It defaults to en. Head to the Google languages page for a full list of supported Google languages.
Advanced Filters
view
Optional
Parameter defines how much of the books must be viewable on Google Books. It defaults to any view.
Available options:preview - Preview and full viewfull - Full view
document_type
Optional
Parameter defines the type of documents to search. It defaults to any document.
Available options:books - Booksmagazines - Magazinesnewspapers - Newspapers
Newspapers are the scanned newspapers of the Google News Archive.
start_date
Optional
Parameter defines the earliest publication date of the results. The format is YYYYMMDD (e.g., 19690701).
This parameter overrides cdr and cd_min components of tbs parameter.
end_date
Optional
Parameter defines the latest publication date of the results. The format is YYYYMMDD (e.g., 19690731).
This parameter overrides cdr and cd_max components of tbs parameter.
nfpr
Optional
Parameter defines the exclusion of results from an auto-corrected query when the original query is spelled wrong. It can be set to 1 to exclude these results, or 0 to include them (default). Note that this parameter may not prevent Google from returning results for an auto-corrected query if no other results are available.
Serpapi Parameters
device
Optional
Parameter defines the device to use to get the results. It can be set to desktop (default) to use a regular browser, tablet to use a tablet browser (currently using iPads), or mobile to use a mobile browser.
no_cache
Optional
Parameter will force SerpApi to fetch the Google Books results even if a cached version is already present. A cache is served only if the query and all parameters are exactly the same. Cache expires after 1h. Cached searches are free, and are not counted towards your searches per month. It can be set to false (default) to allow results from the cache, or true to disallow results from the cache. no_cache and async parameters should not be used together.
async
Optional
Parameter defines the way you want to submit your search to SerpApi. It can be set to false (default) to open an HTTP connection and keep it open until you got your search results, or true to just submit your search to SerpApi and retrieve them later. In this case, you'll need to use our Searches Archive API to retrieve your results. async and no_cache parameters should not be used together. async should not be used on accounts with Ludicrous Speed enabled.
zero_trace
Optional
Enterprise only. Parameter enables ZeroTrace mode. It can be set to false (default) or true. Enable this mode to skip storing search parameters, search files, and search metadata on our servers. This may make debugging more difficult.
output
Optional
Parameter defines the format of the result. It can be set to json (default) to get a structured JSON of the results, html to get the raw HTML retrieved, or md to get a markdown-formatted version optimized for LLMs and AI agents.
json_restrictor
Optional
Parameter defines the fields you want to include in the output, reducing payload size for faster response. See the JSON Restrictor documentation for more details.
API Results
JSON Results
JSON output includes structured data for Organic Results.
A search status is accessible through search_metadata.status.
It flows this way: Processing -> Success || Error.
If a search has failed, error will contain an error message.
search_metadata.id is the search ID inside SerpApi.
HTML Results
HTML output is useful to debug JSON results or support features not yet supported by SerpApi. It gives you the raw HTML results from Google Books.
Markdown Results
Markdown output is optimized for LLMs and AI agents. It provides a curated view of the JSON results
in a token-efficient format using tables, markdown links, and YAML frontmatter.
To access, use the output=md parameter, the /search.md endpoint, or request header Accept: text/markdown.
API Examples
Results for q: artificial intelligence
Authors linked by Google have a serpapi_link to search their books with the same filters. extensions has the other details shown with each result, like its availability (e.g., Preview, Snippet view, or No preview). Results whose snippet is from the text of the book have found_inside (e.g., Found inside – Page 11).
{
...
"organic_results": [
{
"position": 1,
"title": "The Ultimate Modern Guide to Artificial Intelligence: ...",
"link": "https://books.google.com/books?id=xbSoEAAAQBAJ&printsec=frontcover&dq=artificial+intelligence&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=1&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiSpt-C-ruXAxWLrYkEHTz1ENwQ6AF6BAgLEAM",
"displayed_link": "books.google.com › books",
"book_id": "xbSoEAAAQBAJ",
"thumbnail": "https://serpapi.com/searches/6ad0bd8c507c1799e9a77374/images/UAAYubXOOivb6G3g6Ak1XB3ct4XYQ2qyXSGp_hEmje4.jpg",
"authors": [
{
"name": "Enamul Haque",
"link": "https://www.google.com/search?sca_esv=96ab3771b41f553d&gl=us&hl=en&udm=36&sxsrf=APpeQntHQzs5VkclI0WEsZsIyivDLmt0xQ:1792064909471&udm=36&q=inauthor:%22Enamul+Haque%22&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiSpt-C-ruXAxWLrYkEHTz1ENwQ9Ah6BAgLEAY",
"serpapi_link": "https://serpapi.com/search.json?device=desktop&engine=google_books&gl=us&google_domain=google.com&hl=en&q=inauthor%3A%22Enamul+Haque%22"
}
],
"date": "2020",
"extensions": [
"Preview"
],
"snippet": "AI comes before English and coding. This is because artificial intelligence is the language and tool of the future. This book opens your door to the most critical understanding needed of AI and other relevant disruptive technologies.",
"more_editions_link": "https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Ultimate_Modern_Guide_to_Artificial_/xbSoEAAAQBAJ?hl=en&gl=us&kptab=editions&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiSpt-C-ruXAxWLrYkEHTz1ENwQmBZ6BAgLEAk"
},
{
"position": 2,
"title": "Rebooting AI: Building Artificial Intelligence We Can Trust",
"link": "https://books.google.com/books?id=O8muDwAAQBAJ&printsec=frontcover&dq=artificial+intelligence&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=1&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiSpt-C-ruXAxWLrYkEHTz1ENwQ6AF6BAgNEAM",
"displayed_link": "books.google.com › books",
"book_id": "O8muDwAAQBAJ",
"thumbnail": "https://serpapi.com/searches/6ad0bd8c507c1799e9a77374/images/UAAYubXOOivb6G3g6Ak1XGja529jLWsU8XizpNcYWKQ.jpg",
"authors": [
{
"name": "Gary Marcus",
"link": "https://www.google.com/search?sca_esv=96ab3771b41f553d&gl=us&hl=en&udm=36&sxsrf=APpeQntHQzs5VkclI0WEsZsIyivDLmt0xQ:1792064909471&udm=36&q=inauthor:%22Gary+Marcus%22&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiSpt-C-ruXAxWLrYkEHTz1ENwQ9Ah6BAgNEAY",
"serpapi_link": "https://serpapi.com/search.json?device=desktop&engine=google_books&gl=us&google_domain=google.com&hl=en&q=inauthor%3A%22Gary+Marcus%22"
},
{
"name": "Ernest Davis",
"link": "https://www.google.com/search?sca_esv=96ab3771b41f553d&gl=us&hl=en&udm=36&sxsrf=APpeQntHQzs5VkclI0WEsZsIyivDLmt0xQ:1792064909471&udm=36&q=inauthor:%22Ernest+Davis%22&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiSpt-C-ruXAxWLrYkEHTz1ENwQ9Ah6BAgNEAc",
"serpapi_link": "https://serpapi.com/search.json?device=desktop&engine=google_books&gl=us&google_domain=google.com&hl=en&q=inauthor%3A%22Ernest+Davis%22"
}
],
"date": "2019",
"extensions": [
"Preview"
],
"snippet": "Rebooting AI provides a lucid, clear-eyed assessment of the current science and offers an inspiring vision of how a new generation of AI can make our lives better.",
"more_editions_link": "https://www.google.com/books/edition/Rebooting_AI/O8muDwAAQBAJ?hl=en&gl=us&kptab=editions&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiSpt-C-ruXAxWLrYkEHTz1ENwQmBZ6BAgNEAo"
},
...
],
"serpapi_pagination": {
"current": 1,
"next": "https://serpapi.com/search.json?device=desktop&engine=google_books&gl=us&google_domain=google.com&hl=en&q=artificial+intelligence&start=10"
}
}
Results for document_type: newspapers
document_type set to newspapers searches the scanned newspapers of the Google News Archive. Newspaper results have the name of the newspaper in source instead of authors, and their publication date. Use start_date and end_date to limit the results to a period.
{
...
"organic_results": [
{
"position": 1,
"title": "Ten Expeditions Planned For Initial Moon Exploration - Page 7",
"link": "https://books.google.com/books?id=MHoyAAAAIBAJ&pg=PA7&dq=moon+landing&article_id=3820,4563355&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwi77rqg-LuXAxWAkOEIHe4pB6EQ6AF6BAgQEAM",
"displayed_link": "books.google.com › books",
"book_id": "MHoyAAAAIBAJ",
"thumbnail": "https://encrypted.google.com/books?id=MHoyAAAAIBAJ&printsec=frontcover&img=1&zoom=5&edge=curl&h=147&w=100",
"source": "The Montreal Gazette",
"date": "Mar 20, 1969",
"extensions": [
"Newspaper",
"Full view"
],
"found_inside": "Found inside – Page 7",
"snippet": "... landing on the moon, the federal space agency is looking ahead to as many as nine additional expeditions to see if the moon is worth more exploration. Tentative schedules now being devised call for lunar landings at the rate of two or ...",
"snippet_highlighted_words": [
"lunar landings"
]
},
{
"position": 2,
"title": "The Dispatch - Page 4",
"link": "https://books.google.com/books?id=_tsbAAAAIBAJ&pg=PA4&dq=moon+landing&article_id=4144,1258870&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwi77rqg-LuXAxWAkOEIHe4pB6EQ6AF6BAgKEAM",
"displayed_link": "books.google.com › books",
"book_id": "_tsbAAAAIBAJ",
"thumbnail": "https://serpapi.com/searches/6ad0bdc2507c17a28515524f/images/XTiivQe21_xN1cHubtaULKCG1sGy4Lv4GqSCzaI9-Dw.jpg",
"source": "The Dispatch",
"date": "Mar 19, 1969",
"extensions": [
"Newspaper",
"Full view"
],
"found_inside": "Found inside – Page 4",
"snippet": "Tests Coming On Value Of Moon. CAPE KENNEDY (UPD- With the United States well on the wayr toward man's first landing on'* the« moon,* the federal space agency is looking ahead to as many as nine additional expeditions to see if the moon ...",
"snippet_highlighted_words": [
"Moon",
"landing",
"moon"
]
},
...
],
...
}
Results for view: full
view set to full only shows books that can be read entirely on Google Books, and preview also shows the books with a preview.
{
...
"organic_results": [
{
"position": 1,
"title": "Jane Austen - Page 95",
"link": "https://books.google.com/books?id=arUEAQAAIAAJ&pg=PA95&dq=pride+and+prejudice&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=1&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiX4cOa-LuXAxU3s1YBHYnDIxEQ6AF6BAgSEAM",
"displayed_link": "books.google.com › books",
"book_id": "arUEAQAAIAAJ",
"thumbnail": "https://serpapi.com/searches/6ad0bdc2507c17a285155250/images/TwNJVdqhffzhIPjunUheID3Rk0MkZO6OdR3bIdi2jaE.jpg",
"authors": [
{
"name": "Francis Warre Cornish",
"link": "https://www.google.com/search?sca_esv=96ab3771b41f553d&hl=en&gl=us&udm=36&sxsrf=APpeQnt95DLvBmM4bqLZYC2VAqNmoc1Pkg:1792064422480&udm=36&q=inauthor:%22Francis+Warre+Cornish%22&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiX4cOa-LuXAxU3s1YBHYnDIxEQ9Ah6BAgSEAY",
"serpapi_link": "https://serpapi.com/search.json?device=desktop&engine=google_books&gl=us&google_domain=google.com&hl=en&q=inauthor%3A%22Francis+Warre+Cornish%22&view=full"
}
],
"date": "1914",
"extensions": [
"Read"
],
"found_inside": "Found inside – Page 95",
"snippet": "Francis Warre Cornish. CHAPTER IV ' PRIDE AND PREJUDICE ' PRIDE AND PREJUDICE , published in January 1813 was the first written of Jane Austen's works , though not the first to appear . It was begun in October 1796 and was finished in ...",
"snippet_highlighted_words": [
"PRIDE AND PREJUDICE"
],
"more_editions_link": "https://www.google.com/books/edition/Jane_Austen/arUEAQAAIAAJ?hl=en&gl=us&kptab=editions&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiX4cOa-LuXAxU3s1YBHYnDIxEQmBZ6BAgSEAk"
},
{
"position": 2,
"title": "The Library of Literary Criticism of English and American ... - Page 614",
"link": "https://books.google.com/books?id=TrVYAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA614&dq=pride+and+prejudice&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=1&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiX4cOa-LuXAxU3s1YBHYnDIxEQ6AF6BAgTEAM",
"displayed_link": "books.google.com › books",
"book_id": "TrVYAAAAMAAJ",
"thumbnail": "https://serpapi.com/searches/6ad0bdc2507c17a285155250/images/TwNJVdqhffzhIPjunUheIL1XdamkYgjU2cO-qZWVMhI.jpg",
"authors": [
{
"name": "Charles Wells Moulton"
}
],
"date": "1902",
"extensions": [
"Read"
],
"found_inside": "Found inside – Page 614",
"snippet": "... PRIDE AND PREJUDICE 1796-1813 Read again , and for the third time at least , Miss Austen's very finely written novel of \" Pride and Prejudice . \" That young lady had a talent for describing the involvements , and feelings , and ...",
"snippet_highlighted_words": [
"PRIDE AND PREJUDICE",
"Pride and Prejudice"
],
"more_editions_link": "https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Library_of_Literary_Criticism_of_Eng/TrVYAAAAMAAJ?hl=en&gl=us&kptab=editions&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiX4cOa-LuXAxU3s1YBHYnDIxEQmBZ6BAgTEAg"
},
...
],
...
}
Results for start: 10
start skips the given number of results. Google Books returns up to 10 results per page, so 10 is the 2nd page of results. serpapi_pagination has the SerpApi links to get the previous and the next pages.
{
...
"serpapi_pagination": {
"current": 2,
"previous": "https://serpapi.com/search.json?device=desktop&engine=google_books&gl=us&google_domain=google.com&hl=en&q=artificial+intelligence&start=0",
"next": "https://serpapi.com/search.json?device=desktop&engine=google_books&gl=us&google_domain=google.com&hl=en&q=artificial+intelligence&start=20"
}
}
JSON Structure Overview
{
...
"search_information": {
...
"total_results": "Integer - Number of results shown by Google. Only on desktop.",
"time_taken_displayed": "Float - Time Google shows it took to search, in seconds. Only on desktop.",
"page_number": "Integer - Page number shown by Google, from the 2nd page. Only on desktop."
},
"organic_results": [
{
"position": "Integer - Position of the result in the results of the page.",
"title": "String - Title of the result, with the page of the snippet when it's from a specific page. (Ex. Jane Austen - Page 95)",
"link": "String - Link to the result on Google Books.",
"displayed_link": "String - Link of the result, as displayed. (Ex. books.google.com › books)",
"book_id": "String - Google Books ID of the book, magazine, or newspaper.",
"thumbnail": "String - Link to the cover of the result.",
"authors": [
{
"name": "String - Name of the author.",
"link": "String - Link to the Google Books search for the books of the author.",
"serpapi_link": "String - SerpApi link to search the books of the author, with the same filters."
}
],
"source": "String - Name of the newspaper of the article. (Ex. The Montreal Gazette)",
"date": "String - Publication date, as displayed. (Ex. 2019, Jul 10, 1969)",
"extensions": [
"String - Other detail of the result, as displayed. (Ex. Preview, Snippet view, No preview, Vol. 25, No. 7, Magazine, Newspaper)"
],
"found_inside": "String - Where Google found the snippet in the book, as displayed. Only on desktop. (Ex. Found inside – Page 11)",
"snippet": "String - Description of the result, or the text of the result matching the query.",
"snippet_highlighted_words": [
"String - Word of the snippet matching the query."
],
"more_editions_link": "String - Link to the other editions of the book: their page on desktop, a Google search for them on mobile."
}
],
"serpapi_pagination": {
"current": "Integer - Current page.",
"previous": "String - SerpApi link to the previous page.",
"next": "String - SerpApi link to the next page."
}
}