Brave API Search
Real-time web search, autosuggest, and AI-powered answers using the official Brave Search API. Three tools:
brave_search— web results with titles, URLs, descriptions, optional AI summarybrave_suggest— query autosuggestions as users type with optional rich metadatabrave_answers— AI-grounded answers with inline citations powered by live web search
Setup
Set your Brave API keys in a local .env file (recommended):
# .env (do not commit)
BRAVE_SEARCH_API_KEY=your_key_here
BRAVE_ANSWERS_API_KEY=your_key_here
Or export them in your shell session if needed.
Get your keys at: https://api-dashboard.search.brave.com
Both keys can be the same if your plan supports both Search and AI Answers endpoints.
Note:
brave_searchandbrave_suggestuseBRAVE_SEARCH_API_KEY.brave_answersrequiresBRAVE_ANSWERS_API_KEY.Note: This skill explicitly requires
BRAVE_SEARCH_API_KEYandBRAVE_ANSWERS_API_KEY. It does not use a genericBRAVE_API_KEYfallback.
When to Use This Skill
Use brave_search when:
Searching for current information, news, or recent events
Looking up documentation or technical references
Need ranked results with URLs to follow up on
Want an AI summary of search results
Use brave_suggest when:
Power autocomplete in search interfaces
Help users formulate better queries faster
Need query completions as users type
Want rich metadata (titles, descriptions, images) for suggestions
Use brave_answers when:
Need a synthesized answer with cited sources
Researching topics that benefit from multiple sources
Want AI-grounded responses with inline citations
Deep research mode needed (multi-search)
Don't use this skill for:
Questions already answered from context or memory
Tasks that don't require external information
Tools
brave_search
Web search returning ranked results with titles, URLs, and descriptions.
brave_search(query="latest Node.js release", count=5)
brave_search(query="TypeScript generics", extra_snippets=true)
brave_search(query="current weather Copenhagen", freshness="pd")
brave_search(query="React Server Components", summary=true)
Parameters:
query(required) — Search query, supports operators:site:,"exact phrase",-excludecount— Results to return (1-20, default: 10)country— 2-letter country code (default:us)freshness— Date filter:pd(24h),pw(7 days),pm(31 days),py(1 year)extra_snippets— Include up to 5 extra text excerpts per result (default: false)summary— Fetch Brave AI summarizer result (default: false)
Returns: Formatted list of results with title, URL, description, and optional AI summary.
brave_suggest
Query autosuggest API providing intelligent query autocompletion as users type.
brave_suggest(query="hello")
brave_suggest(query="pyt", count=5, country="US")
brave_suggest(query="einstein", rich=true)
Parameters:
query(required) — Partial query to get suggestions forcount— Number of suggestions (1-10, default: 5)country— 2-letter country code (default:US)rich— Include enhanced metadata: titles, descriptions, images, entity detection (default: false, requires paid plan)
Returns: List of query suggestions, optionally with rich metadata.
Best Practices:
Implement debouncing (150-300ms) to avoid excessive API calls as users type
Load suggestions asynchronously without blocking the UI
brave_answers
AI-powered answers grounded in live web search with inline citations.
brave_answers(query="How does React Server Components work?")
brave_answers(query="Compare Postgres vs MySQL for OLAP", enable_research=true)
brave_answers(query="Latest Python release notes", enable_citations=true)
Parameters:
query(required) — Question or topic to researchenable_citations— Include inline source citations (default: true)enable_research— Multi-search deep research mode (default: false)country— Target country for search context (default:us)
Returns: AI answer with cited sources extracted from the response, plus token usage.
Pricing & Limits
Brave pricing is credit-based and can change. Do not assume a fixed free request count.
Current public guidance (verify in Brave dashboard/docs before production use):
Monthly trial credits may be offered (e.g.
$5 in monthly credits)Search and Answers consume credits differently
Rich suggestions require a paid Autosuggest plan
Answers may also include token-based costs
QPS limits depend on your plan tier
Always check your live limits and usage in:
Security & Packaging Notes
This skill only calls Brave official endpoints under
https://api.search.brave.com/res/v1.It requires exactly two env vars:
BRAVE_SEARCH_API_KEYandBRAVE_ANSWERS_API_KEY(keep them in.env, not inline in commands/chats).It does not request persistent/system privileges and does not modify system config.
It is source-file based (three local Node scripts), with no external install/download step.
API vs Web Scraping
This skill uses the official Brave Search API — not web scraping. Benefits:
Reliable, structured JSON responses
Rate limit headers and proper error messages
Access to AI summarizer, AI answers, and autosuggest endpoints
Terms of service compliant