Google search in Open WebUI without Google PSE (External web search engine)

Open WebUI's "Google PSE" web search engine runs on Google's Custom Search JSON API, which is closed to new customers and shuts down for everyone on 1 January 2027. To keep Google results, use Open WebUI's External web search engine with Google Custom Search API Alternative on Apify. Set the External Web Search URL to https://automationnation--google-custom-search-api.apify.actor/search and the API key to your Apify token. Each search returns Google's web results as link, title and snippet, for $5 per 1,000 searches of up to 10 results. The endpoint was tested with the exact request Open WebUI's External engine sends, on 6 October 2026.

Open Google Custom Search API Alternative on Apify $5 per 1,000 searches of up to 10 results ($4 on Gold and above)

Step by step

  1. Create a free Apify account. Sign up at apify.com and copy your API token from Settings → API & Integrations. The free plan's $5 monthly credit covers about 1,000 searches.
  2. Open the web search settings. In Open WebUI, go to Admin Panel → Settings → Web Search, turn Web Search on and choose External as the Web Search Engine.
  3. Set the URL. External Web Search URL: https://automationnation--google-custom-search-api.apify.actor/search. For another country or language add them to the URL, for example /search?gl=gb&hl=en.
  4. Set the key. External Web Search API Key: your Apify API token. Open WebUI sends it as a Bearer header.
  5. Or use environment variables. With Docker: ENABLE_WEB_SEARCH=true, WEB_SEARCH_ENGINE=external, EXTERNAL_WEB_SEARCH_URL=https://automationnation--google-custom-search-api.apify.actor/search and EXTERNAL_WEB_SEARCH_API_KEY=your token.
  6. Ask with web search on. Turn on web search in a chat and ask something current. Open WebUI requests 3 results per search by default (WEB_SEARCH_RESULT_COUNT), which is one search ($0.005).

Do it from code

Test the endpoint (the same request Open WebUI sends)

curl -X POST "https://automationnation--google-custom-search-api.apify.actor/search" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $APIFY_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"query": "what is retrieval augmented generation", "count": 3}'

# [{"link": "https://aws.amazon.com/what-is/retrieval-augmented-generation/", "title": "What is RAG? ...", "snippet": "..."}, ...]

From an AI assistant (MCP)

Add this MCP server URL to Claude, ChatGPT or Cursor and ask in plain English:

https://mcp.apify.com?tools=automationnation/google-custom-search-api

Alternatives

Open WebUI also supports SearXNG (self-hosted, free, aggregates several engines), Brave Search, Tavily, Serper, SerpApi and others, each with its own key and pricing. Google PSE keeps working until 1 January 2027 if you already have a key.

FAQ

Why not keep Google PSE?

Google's Custom Search JSON API is closed to new customers, so new setups can't get a key. Existing keys work until 1 January 2027.

What does it cost?

$5 per 1,000 searches of up to 10 results ($4 on Gold and above). Open WebUI's default of 3 results per search is one search; searches that return nothing are free.

How fast is it?

Usually 4–10 seconds per search, because each one fetches live Google results. Open WebUI waits for the answer.

Can I restrict results to some sites?

Yes: add siteSearch to the URL, e.g. /search?siteSearch=docs.python.org, or use Open WebUI's domain filter list.

Written by AutomationNation, the developer of Google Custom Search API Alternative. Prices checked October 2026.