> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.crawleo.dev/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Quickstart

> Start using Crawleo in under 5 minutes. Learn how to get your API key, make search and crawl requests, and integrate with your applications.

## Get Your API Key

<Steps>
  <Step title="Create an Account">
    Sign up at [crawleo.dev/login](https://www.crawleo.dev/login) to create your account.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Choose a Plan">
    Select a subscription plan at [crawleo.dev/pricing](https://www.crawleo.dev/pricing).
  </Step>

  <Step title="Get Your API Key">
    Once subscribed, you'll receive your API key from the dashboard.
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Authentication

All Crawleo API endpoints require authentication. You can use either:

* `x-api-key` header: `-H "x-api-key: YOUR_API_KEY"`
* `Authorization` header: `-H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY"`

Both are supported for all endpoints. Choose whichever fits your integration best.

***

## Make Your First Request

### Search the Web (Bing — for LLM/RAG)

Use the Bing Search API for LLM-optimized results with optional auto-crawling and content extraction:

<CodeGroup>
  ```bash cURL theme={null}
  curl -X GET "https://api.crawleo.dev/search?query=artificial%20intelligence&count=5" \
    -H "x-api-key: YOUR_API_KEY"
  ```

  ```bash cURL (alt) theme={null}
  curl -X GET "https://api.crawleo.dev/search?query=artificial%20intelligence&count=5" \
    -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY"
  ```

  ```python Python theme={null}
  import requests

  response = requests.get(
      "https://api.crawleo.dev/search",
      params={
          "query": "artificial intelligence",
          "count": 5
      },
      headers={
          "x-api-key": "YOUR_API_KEY"
      }
  )
  data = response.json()
  print(data)
  ```

  ```python Python (alt) theme={null}
  import requests

  response = requests.get(
      "https://api.crawleo.dev/search",
      params={
          "query": "artificial intelligence",
          "count": 5
      },
      headers={
          "Authorization": "Bearer YOUR_API_KEY"
      }
  )
  data = response.json()
  print(data)
  ```

  ```javascript JavaScript theme={null}
  const response = await fetch(
    "https://api.crawleo.dev/search?query=artificial%20intelligence&count=5",
    {
      headers: {
        "x-api-key": "YOUR_API_KEY"
      }
    }
  );
  const data = await response.json();
  console.log(data);
  ```

  ```javascript JavaScript (alt) theme={null}
  const response = await fetch(
    "https://api.crawleo.dev/search?query=artificial%20intelligence&count=5",
    {
      headers: {
        "Authorization": "Bearer YOUR_API_KEY"
      }
    }
  );
  const data = await response.json();
  console.log(data);
  ```
</CodeGroup>

### Search the Web (Google — for SEO & Lead Gen)

Use the Google Search API for structured SERP data, knowledge graphs, news, images, places, and shopping:

<CodeGroup>
  ```bash cURL theme={null}
  curl -G "https://api.crawleo.dev/google-search" \
    -H "x-api-key: YOUR_API_KEY" \
    --data-urlencode "q=best CRM software" \
    -d "gl=us" \
    -d "num=10"
  ```

  ```python Python theme={null}
  import requests

  response = requests.get(
      "https://api.crawleo.dev/google-search",
      headers={"x-api-key": "YOUR_API_KEY"},
      params={
          "q": "best CRM software",
          "gl": "us",
          "num": 10
      }
  )

  data = response.json()
  results = data["google search results"]
  for r in results:
      print(r["title"], r["link"])
  ```

  ```javascript JavaScript theme={null}
  const response = await fetch(
    "https://api.crawleo.dev/google-search?" + new URLSearchParams({
      q: "best CRM software",
      gl: "us",
      num: "10",
    }),
    {
      headers: { "x-api-key": "YOUR_API_KEY" },
    }
  );

  const data = await response.json();
  console.log(data["google search results"]);
  ```
</CodeGroup>

### Crawl a URL

Use the Crawler API to extract content from specific URLs:

<CodeGroup>
  ```bash cURL theme={null}
  curl -X GET "https://api.crawleo.dev/crawl?urls=https://example.com&markdown=true" \
    -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY"
  ```

  ```python Python theme={null}
  import requests

  response = requests.get(
      "https://api.crawleo.dev/crawl",
      params={
          "urls": "https://example.com",
          "markdown": True
      },
      headers={
          "Authorization": "Bearer YOUR_API_KEY"
      }
  )

  data = response.json()
  print(data)
  ```

  ```javascript JavaScript theme={null}
  const response = await fetch(
    "https://api.crawleo.dev/crawl?urls=https://example.com&markdown=true",
    {
      headers: {
        "Authorization": "Bearer YOUR_API_KEY"
      }
    }
  );

  const data = await response.json();
  console.log(data);
  ```
</CodeGroup>

## Choose Your Output Format

Crawleo supports multiple output formats optimized for different use cases:

| Format        | Parameter            | Best For                           |
| ------------- | -------------------- | ---------------------------------- |
| Raw HTML      | `raw_html=true`      | Full page source with all elements |
| Enhanced HTML | `enhanced_html=true` | Clean HTML without ads and scripts |
| Markdown      | `markdown=true`      | RAG pipelines and LLM consumption  |

<Tip>
  For RAG and LLM applications, use **Markdown** output to minimize token usage and improve processing efficiency.
</Tip>

## Next Steps

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Bing Search API" icon="magnifying-glass" href="/api-reference/endpoint/search">
    LLM-optimized search with auto-crawling and content extraction.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Google Search API" icon="google" href="/api-reference/endpoint/google-search">
    Structured SERP data for SEO, lead gen, and competitor research.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Crawler API" icon="spider-web" href="/api-reference/endpoint/crawler">
    Explore Crawler API capabilities.
  </Card>

  <Card title="MCP Integration" icon="plug" href="/mcp/overview">
    Connect AI assistants to Crawleo.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>