How do I scrape Google without being banned?

Feb 20, 2024 ยท 2 min read

When collecting data from Google Search, it's important to follow their guidelines to avoid getting your IP address banned. Here are some tips:

Use the Google Search API

Google provides the Custom Search API and Programmable Search API to retrieve search results programatically. These are the preferred methods as they come with usage quotas and terms of service to prevent abuse.

Here is an example request to the API:

https://customsearch.googleapis.com/customsearch/v1?key=YOUR_API_KEY&cx=YOUR_SEARCH_ENGINE_ID&q=query

Add Time Delays

If scraping Google Search webpages directly, add 2-5 second delays between requests to mimic human behavior:

import time
time.sleep(2) 

Spread requests over multiple IP addresses to further prevent detection.

Use a Proxy Service

Proxy services like Luminati and Oxylabs provide thousands of residential IP proxies to distribute requests. Proxies make your scraper appear as many different users.

Rotate User Agents

Changing the User-Agent header in requests prevents Google from easily identifying your scraper:

user_agents = ['Mozilla/5.0', 'Chrome/98.0'] 
random_agent = random.choice(user_agents)
headers = {'User-Agent': random_agent}

Follow Google's Guidelines

Carefully read and follow the Google Search guidelines on data collection and usage. Scraping within reasonable limits is permitted but discourage practices like spamming search queries.

In summary, using the official APIs, proxies, delays between requests, and randomizing identifiers can allow you to gather Google Search data without getting blocked.

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