the fix

DuckDuckGo returns 202 to your scraper — what to use instead

html.duckduckgo.com returns a 202 bot-challenge page to scripted GET requests — not an error you can retry past, just a page with no results in it. Google and Bing block curl outright. Every free HTML search endpoint is a cat-and-mouse game with a team whose job is to stop you.

What people try first

approachwhat happens
html.duckduckgo.com202 challenge page. No results.
Google or Bing HTMLBlocked, and scraping them breaks their terms.
SearxNG instanceWorkable if you host it, but public instances rate-limit hard.
A search APIClean JSON, no challenge pages, no proxy budget.

The one-call fix

One request, unified JSON, no proxies or parsers to keep alive. 2 credits a call once you are on credits, and free for your first 5.

curl -H "x-api-key: $SS_KEY" \
  "https://api.socialsearchapi.com/v1/web/search?query=llm+agents"

Signup is an email and a 6-digit code — no card — and gives you 5 free calls on any platform, so the command above runs as-is.

Real response from that endpoint, captured 2026-07-25:

{
  "success": true,
  "platform": "web",
  "data": {
    "total": 3,
    "items": [
      {
        "platform": "web",
        "type": "result",
        "title": "Reddit API Alternatives 2026 — Pricing & Limits Compared",
        "text": "Estimate your monthly Reddit API spend in seconds. Start fetching Reddit data — $0.10 in free credits. Six ways to fe...",
        "url": "https://www.redditapis.com/reddit-api-alternatives",
        "created_at": null,
        "extra": {
          "score": 0.9053309
        }
      }
    ]
  },
  "credits_used": 2
}
Get a free key (5 calls)

Related

Search Web / News — full guideAPI referencePricingReddit returns 403 to curl — why, and how to fix itHow to search Reddit without logging inInstagram API alternative for reading public postsCheap X/Twitter search API alternativesTikTok scraper API for videos and hashtag search

Last verified 2026-07-25. Platform terms and pricing change often — if something here has gone stale, tell us at [email protected].