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Overview

The Linkup /search endpoint allows you to discover and access relevant web content based on a natural language query. Once the content is retrieved, it can serve as factual grounding for Large Language Models (LLMs), helping them produce more accurate and informed responses.

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Parameters

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Query

Your query should be as specific as possible to improve the quality of the results. Consider providing additional context or constraints. For example:
Initial QueryImproved QueryExplanation
What is the website of the company named Total?What is the website of the French company named Total?Adding the country (“French”) helps narrow down results, making it easier to identify the correct company.

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Depth

You can choose between two search depths, depending on your performance and accuracy needs:
  • standard: Returns results more quickly, suitable for low-latency scenarios. Costs €0.005 per call.
  • deep: Continues to search iteratively if it doesn’t find sufficient information on the first attempt. This may take longer, but often yields more comprehensive results. Costs €0.05 per call.
When using deep, the system repeatedly evaluates whether it has found enough information. If not, it continues searching—potentially for tens of seconds—until it locates what it needs.

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OutputType

The API supports several output formats to match different use cases:
  • sourcedAnswer: Returns a natural language answer with source attributions.
  • searchResults: Provides chunks of contextual data suitable for grounding in LLM prompts.
  • structured: Produces a response following a specified JSON schema, ideal for structured data extraction.
JSON formats are tricky. Learn more about structured output in our guide.

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Additional Parameters

  • includeImages: Boolean parameter to include relevant images in search results
  • fromDate: Filter results from a specific date (format: YYYY-MM-DD)
  • toDate: Filter results until a specific date (format: YYYY-MM-DD)
  • includeDomains: Filter results to only include specific domains
  • excludeDomains: Filter results to exclude specific domains

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Rate Limits

The API has a rate limit of 10 queries per second per account. If you need higher rate limits, please contact us to discuss custom plans.
Facing issues? Reach out to our engineering team at support@linkup.so or via our Discord or book a 15 minutes call with a member of our technical team.

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Best Practices

  1. Query Specificity
    • Be as specific as possible in your queries
    • Include relevant context (time periods, locations, industries)
    • Use natural language but be precise
    • Read our prompting guide to know more.
  2. Depth Selection
    • Use standard for quick, general queries
    • Use deep for complex research or when accuracy is critical
    • Consider cost implications (€0.005 vs €0.05 per call)
  3. Output Format
    • Choose sourcedAnswer for direct answers with citations
    • Use searchResults for LLM grounding
    • Select structured when you need specific data points returned in a json format. Read our structured output guide to know more.
  4. Error Handling
    • The API returns standard HTTP status codes
    • No credit is deducted for failed requests
    • Common errors include:
      • 400: Bad Request (missing/invalid parameters)
      • 401: Unauthorized (invalid API key)
      • 429: Too Many Requests (rate limit or insufficient credit)
Your account starts with 5 euros of credit and is topped up monthly. You can add more credit in the Billing section of the Linkup app.