Agent skill

serpapi-local-dev-loop

Configure SerpApi local development with cached responses and test fixtures. Use when building search integrations, avoiding API calls during development, or setting up reproducible test data from SerpApi. Trigger: "serpapi dev setup", "serpapi local", "test serpapi locally".

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npx add-skill https://github.com/jeremylongshore/claude-code-plugins-plus-skills/tree/main/plugins/saas-packs/serpapi-pack/skills/serpapi-local-dev-loop

SKILL.md

SerpApi Local Dev Loop

Overview

Set up local development for SerpApi with response caching, fixture recording, and offline testing. SerpApi charges per search, so caching results locally is critical for cost-effective development.

Instructions

Step 1: Record Real Responses as Fixtures

python
import serpapi, json, os, hashlib

def record_fixture(params: dict, fixtures_dir="tests/fixtures"):
    """Run a real search and save the response as a fixture file."""
    os.makedirs(fixtures_dir, exist_ok=True)
    client = serpapi.Client(api_key=os.environ["SERPAPI_API_KEY"])
    result = client.search(**params)

    # Deterministic filename from params
    key = hashlib.md5(json.dumps(params, sort_keys=True).encode()).hexdigest()[:12]
    path = os.path.join(fixtures_dir, f"{params['engine']}_{key}.json")

    with open(path, "w") as f:
        json.dump(dict(result), f, indent=2)
    print(f"Recorded: {path}")

# Record fixtures for common queries
record_fixture({"engine": "google", "q": "python tutorial", "num": 5})
record_fixture({"engine": "youtube", "search_query": "react hooks"})
record_fixture({"engine": "bing", "q": "machine learning"})

Step 2: Mock Client for Testing

python
import json, os

class MockSerpApiClient:
    def __init__(self, fixtures_dir="tests/fixtures"):
        self.fixtures_dir = fixtures_dir

    def search(self, **params):
        key = hashlib.md5(json.dumps(params, sort_keys=True).encode()).hexdigest()[:12]
        path = os.path.join(self.fixtures_dir, f"{params['engine']}_{key}.json")
        if os.path.exists(path):
            with open(path) as f:
                return json.load(f)
        raise FileNotFoundError(f"No fixture for {params}. Run record_fixture() first.")

Step 3: Vitest Mocking (Node.js)

typescript
// tests/serpapi.test.ts
import { describe, it, expect, vi } from 'vitest';
import { readFileSync } from 'fs';

vi.mock('serpapi', () => ({
  getJson: vi.fn(async (params) => {
    const fixture = JSON.parse(
      readFileSync(`tests/fixtures/google_sample.json`, 'utf-8')
    );
    return fixture;
  }),
}));

describe('Search Service', () => {
  it('parses organic results', async () => {
    const { getJson } = await import('serpapi');
    const result = await getJson({ engine: 'google', q: 'test' });
    expect(result.organic_results).toBeDefined();
    expect(result.organic_results[0]).toHaveProperty('title');
    expect(result.organic_results[0]).toHaveProperty('link');
  });
});

Step 4: Environment Separation

bash
# .env.development (uses real API, low num for cost)
SERPAPI_API_KEY=real-key-here
SERPAPI_DEFAULT_NUM=3

# .env.test (uses fixtures, no API calls)
SERPAPI_API_KEY=not-needed
SERPAPI_USE_FIXTURES=true

Error Handling

Error Cause Solution
FileNotFoundError fixture Missing fixture Run record_fixture() with real API key
Stale fixtures Search results changed Re-record periodically
Invalid API key in dev Env not loaded Check .env.development loading

Resources

Next Steps

Proceed to serpapi-sdk-patterns for production patterns.

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