PySearXNG

A comprehensive Python library for interacting with SearXNG search instances.

Features

• 🔍 Easy search functionality - Simple API for performing searches
• 🌐 Instance management - Automatic discovery and management of public SearXNG instances
• ⚡ Intelligent failover - Automatically switches to working instances
• 📊 Statistics tracking - Monitor instance performance and success rates
• 🛡️ Rate limiting handling - Built-in protection against rate limits
• 🔧 Highly configurable - Extensive configuration options
• 📦 Multiple export formats - JSON, CSV, and TXT export support
• 🧪 Comprehensive testing - Full test suite included

Installation

# Install the library
pip install -e .

# Install with development dependencies
pip install -e ".[dev]"

# install package from PyPi
pip install pysearxng

Quick Start

Using Public Instances

from pyserxng import SearXNGClient, SearchConfig
from pyserxng.models import SearchCategory

# Initialize the client (uses public instances)
client = SearXNGClient()

# Perform a basic search
results = client.search("Python programming")

print(f"Found {len(results.results)} results")
for result in results.results[:5]:
    print(f"- {result.title}: {result.url}")

# Search for images
image_results = client.search_images("cute cats")

# Search for news
news_results = client.search_news("artificial intelligence")

# Custom search configuration
config = SearchConfig(
    categories=[SearchCategory.GENERAL],
    language="en",
    safe_search=SafeSearchLevel.MODERATE,
    page=1
)
custom_results = client.search("machine learning", config)

Using Local SearXNG Instance

from pyserxng import LocalSearXNGClient

# Method 1: Simple usage with context manager
with LocalSearXNGClient("http://localhost:8888") as client:
    if client.test_connection():
        results = client.search("python tutorial")
        print(f"Found {len(results.results)} results")

# Method 2: Manual management
client = LocalSearXNGClient("http://localhost:8888")
try:
    results = client.search("machine learning")
    image_results = client.search_images("nature")
finally:
    client.close()

# Method 3: Using regular client with specific instance
from pyserxng import SearXNGClient
from pyserxng.models import InstanceInfo

client = SearXNGClient()
local_instance = InstanceInfo(url="http://localhost:8888")
results = client.search("AI research", instance=local_instance)

Configuration

Environment Variables

You can configure the client using environment variables:

export SEARXNG_DEFAULT_TIMEOUT=15
export SEARXNG_REQUEST_DELAY=1.0
export SEARXNG_EXCLUDE_TOR=true
export SEARXNG_LOG_LEVEL=INFO

Configuration File

Create a configuration file at ~/.pyserxng/config.json:

{
  "default_timeout": 15,
  "request_delay": 1.0,
  "exclude_tor": true,
  "log_level": "INFO",
  "preferred_countries": ["US", "DE", "FR"],
  "min_uptime": 95.0
}

Programmatic Configuration

from pyserxng.config import ClientConfig

config = ClientConfig(
    default_timeout=20,
    request_delay=2.0,
    exclude_tor=True,
    min_uptime=95.0
)

client = SearXNGClient(config)

Advanced Usage

Instance Management

# Update instances list
client.update_instances(force=True)

# Get best instances
best_instances = client.get_best_instances(
    limit=10,
    sort_by="uptime",
    min_uptime=95.0,
    exclude_countries=["CN", "RU"]
)

# Set specific instance
client.set_instance(best_instances[0])

# Test an instance
is_working = client.test_instance(instance, "test query")

Search Configuration

from pyserxng.models import SearchCategory, SafeSearchLevel, TimeRange

config = SearchConfig(
    categories=[SearchCategory.GENERAL, SearchCategory.SCIENCE],
    engines=["google", "bing", "duckduckgo"],
    language="en",
    page=1,
    time_range=TimeRange.MONTH,
    safe_search=SafeSearchLevel.STRICT,
    timeout=30
)

results = client.search("quantum computing", config)

Export Results

from pyserxng.utils import export_search_results

# Export to different formats
export_search_results(results.results, "results.json", "json")
export_search_results(results.results, "results.csv", "csv")
export_search_results(results.results, "results.txt", "txt")

Statistics and Monitoring

# Get client statistics
stats = client.get_stats()
print(f"Total instances: {stats['total_instances']}")
print(f"Working instances: {stats['working_instances']}")

# Instance-specific statistics
for url, instance_stats in stats['instance_stats'].items():
    print(f"{url}: {instance_stats.success_rate:.1f}% success rate")

API Reference

SearXNGClient

Main client class for interacting with SearXNG instances.

Methods

• search(query, config=None, instance=None) - Perform a search
• search_images(query, config=None) - Search for images
• search_videos(query, config=None) - Search for videos
• search_news(query, config=None) - Search for news
• get_suggestions(query) - Get search suggestions
• update_instances(force=False) - Update instances list
• get_instances(**filter_kwargs) - Get filtered instances
• get_best_instances(limit=10, **kwargs) - Get best instances
• set_instance(instance) - Set specific instance
• test_instance(instance, test_query="test") - Test instance
• get_stats() - Get client statistics
• close() - Close client and cleanup

Models

SearchResult

• title: str - Result title
• url: HttpUrl - Result URL
• content: str - Result description
• engine: Optional[str] - Search engine used
• thumbnail: Optional[HttpUrl] - Thumbnail image URL

InstanceInfo

• url: HttpUrl - Instance URL
• status: InstanceStatus - Instance status
• uptime: Optional[float] - Uptime percentage
• country: Optional[str] - Country code
• tls_grade: Optional[str] - TLS security grade

SearchConfig

• categories: List[SearchCategory] - Search categories
• language: str - Search language
• page: int - Page number
• timeout: int - Request timeout
• safe_search: SafeSearchLevel - Safe search level

Examples

See the examples/ directory for complete usage examples:

• basic_usage.py - Basic search functionality
• advanced_config.py - Advanced configuration options
• batch_search.py - Batch searching multiple queries
• custom_instance.py - Using custom instances

Development

Setup Development Environment

# Clone the repository
git clone <repository-url>
cd searxng-client

# Install in development mode
pip install -e ".[dev]"

# Install pre-commit hooks
pre-commit install

Running Tests

# Run all tests
pytest

# Run with coverage
pytest --cov=src --cov-report=html

# Run specific test file
pytest tests/test_client.py

Code Quality

# Format code
black src/ tests/

# Sort imports
isort src/ tests/

# Lint code
flake8 src/ tests/

# Type checking
mypy src/

Acknowledgments

• SearXNG - The awesome metasearch engine
• searx.space - Public instance directory
• All contributors and maintainers of public SearXNG instances

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

No instances available:

• Run client.update_instances(force=True) to refresh the instance list
• Check your internet connection
• Verify the instances API is accessible

Rate limiting errors:

• Increase request_delay in configuration
• Use fewer concurrent requests
• Try different instances

Timeout errors:

• Increase default_timeout in configuration
• Check instance availability
• Use instances geographically closer to you

Search returns no results:

• Try different search terms
• Check if the instance supports your search category
• Verify the instance is working with test_instance()

Debug Mode

Enable debug logging to troubleshoot issues:

import logging
logging.basicConfig(level=logging.DEBUG)

# Or set in configuration
config = ClientConfig(log_level="DEBUG")