SerpApi for Hermes Agent

Give Hermes Agent fast, fresh search results from the web, Google Maps, Google News, and Google Shopping with SerpApi.

The plugin adds SerpApi to Hermes in two ways:

• Hermes's built-in web_search uses the fast Google Light engine.
• Dedicated Maps, News, and Shopping tools let Hermes choose the right SerpApi engine for local places, current reporting, and product searches.

Ask Hermes to install it

You can let Hermes install and configure the plugin for you. Paste the message below into a Hermes chat, then approve the install or terminal commands if Hermes prompts you:

Install serpapi-hermes-plugin into the same Python environment that runs this
Hermes Agent. If this is a standard Hermes installation, run:

cd ~/.hermes/hermes-agent
uv pip install --python venv/bin/python serpapi-hermes-plugin

Otherwise, use the active Hermes Python environment to run:

uv pip install --python /path/to/hermes/python serpapi-hermes-plugin

Request my approval for install or terminal commands whenever required; do not
bypass approvals. After the package is installed, run:

hermes plugins enable serpapi

If Hermes asks whether to allow this plugin to replace built-in tools, answer
no; serpapi-hermes-plugin does not need tool-override access.

Then ask me for my SerpApi Private API Key, which I can copy from the SerpApi
dashboard. Do not ask for the key until installation and enablement succeed.
After I provide it, save it as SERPAPI_API_KEY in ~/.hermes/.env without
printing, logging, or committing it. Configure SerpApi as the Hermes web search
backend, tell me whether Hermes must be restarted, and verify that web search,
Maps, News, and Shopping tools are available. Use this key for future SerpApi
searches and never expose it in output.

Install

You need a working Hermes Agent installation and a SerpApi account.

Install the plugin from PyPI in the same Python environment as Hermes. If you installed Hermes with its standard installer, use its venv interpreter explicitly:

cd ~/.hermes/hermes-agent
uv pip install --python venv/bin/python serpapi-hermes-plugin

The explicit --python is important: the standard Hermes installer creates a directory named venv, while bare uv pip install automatically looks for a directory named .venv.

For a custom Hermes installation, point uv at the Python interpreter that runs Hermes:

uv pip install --python /path/to/hermes/python serpapi-hermes-plugin

If that environment already has pip and is activated, the equivalent command is python -m pip install serpapi-hermes-plugin.

Restart any running Hermes session after installation.

Get your SerpApi API key

1. Create a SerpApi account, or sign in to your existing account.
2. Open the SerpApi dashboard.
3. Find your Private API Key in the dashboard and copy it.

One API key powers every engine in this plugin. Keep it private and never add it to source control.

Connect the API key to Hermes

Enable the installed plugin:

hermes plugins enable serpapi

If prompted about permission to replace built-in tools, answer no. This plugin adds new tools and a web-search provider; it does not replace built-in tool handlers.

Open Hermes's interactive tool configuration:

hermes tools

In the Web Search & Extract section:

1. Select SerpApi.
2. Paste the Private API Key copied from your SerpApi dashboard.
3. Confirm the selection.

Hermes saves the key as SERPAPI_API_KEY in its environment configuration and selects SerpApi for future web_search calls. Restart Hermes if a session was already running.

Manual API-key setup

Instead of using hermes tools, add the key to ~/.hermes/.env:

SERPAPI_API_KEY=your_private_api_key

Then configure ~/.hermes/config.yaml:

plugins:
  enabled:
    - serpapi

web:
  search_backend: serpapi

You may also export SERPAPI_API_KEY in the environment that starts Hermes. The environment variable takes precedence over the value in ~/.hermes/.env.

Search capabilities

What you ask for	Hermes tool	SerpApi engine
General web research	web_search	google_light
Places and local businesses	serpapi_maps_search	google_maps
Current and recent news	serpapi_news_search	google_news_light
Products, prices, and merchants	serpapi_shopping_search	google_shopping_light

Hermes chooses a tool from your request. Each tool selects and validates its own SerpApi engine, so you do not need to specify an engine name.

Example prompts:

• "Search the web for the latest Python 3.14 release notes."
• "Find highly rated coffee shops near Times Square."
• "Show me recent news about reusable rockets."
• "Find well-reviewed laptops under $1,200 with free shipping."

Contributing

See CONTRIBUTING.md for development setup, tests, pull request guidelines, and the release process.

License

MIT