Kagi Search

Overview

The kagi-search tool provides access to Kagi's privacy-focused search engine via command line. It returns both traditional search results and Kagi's Quick Answer feature for instant factual responses.

When to Use Kagi Search

Use kagi-search when:

•User explicitly requests "search Kagi" or "use Kagi"
•User needs privacy-focused search results without ads or tracking
•User wants Quick Answer instant responses for factual queries
•User asks questions that benefit from Kagi's curated, high-quality results
•You need to complement web_search with alternative sources

Continue using web_search for:

•General web searches where Kagi wasn't explicitly requested
•Current events and breaking news (web_search is optimized for this)
•Multiple searches in quick succession (web_search has no rate limits)

Basic Usage

Standard Search

Search and display formatted results:

bash

kagi-search "your query here"

Limit number of results:

bash

kagi-search "blockchain development" -n 5

JSON Output

Get structured JSON for programmatic processing:

bash

kagi-search "ethereum scaling" -j

JSON output includes:

•results[]: Array of search results with title, url, snippet
•quick_answer: Object with markdown, raw_text, references[] (if available)

Reading from stdin

Pipe queries to kagi-search:

bash

echo "NixOS configuration" | kagi-search

Quick Answer Feature

Kagi's Quick Answer provides immediate factual responses similar to featured snippets, but often with better quality and references.

Quick Answers appear automatically when available and include:

•Concise answer text
•Source references with links
•Related information

This is particularly useful for:

•Factual questions ("What is X?", "How does Y work?")
•Definitions and explanations
•Quick fact checking
•Technical questions with authoritative sources

Output Formats

Terminal Display

Default terminal output includes:

•Quick Answer section (if available) with answer text and up to 5 references
•
Numbered search results with:
- •Title (blue, bold, clickable hyperlink)
- •URL (green, clickable hyperlink)
- •Snippet preview (dimmed text)
•Color-coded formatting for better readability

JSON Output Mode

Use -j flag for structured data:

json

{
  "results": [
    {
      "title": "Result title",
      "url": "https://example.com",
      "snippet": "Description text..."
    }
  ],
  "quick_answer": {
    "markdown": "Formatted answer text",
    "raw_text": "Plain text answer",
    "references": [
      {
        "title": "Source title",
        "url": "https://source.com"
      }
    ]
  }
}

Common Patterns

Search and Display Results

bash

kagi-search "rust async programming patterns"

Search with Limited Results

bash

kagi-search "bitcoin whitepaper" -n 3

Get JSON for Processing

bash

results=$(kagi-search "web3 development" -j)
# Process JSON with jq or Python

Combine with Other Tools

bash

# Search and extract URLs
kagi-search "substrate blockchain" -j | jq -r '.results[].url'

# Search and open first result
url=$(kagi-search "solana programs" -j | jq -r '.results[0].url')
# Then use web_fetch to retrieve the page content

Configuration

The tool uses session token authentication configured at ~/.config/kagi/config.json:

json

{
  "password_command": "rbw get kagi-session-link",
  "timeout": 30,
  "max_retries": 5
}

The password command should return a Kagi session link or token. Default uses rbw (Bitwarden CLI), but can be any command that outputs the session token.

Error Handling

If authentication fails:

•Check that the session token is valid
•Verify the password command in config
•Ensure the token hasn't expired

If no results found:

•Try broader search terms
•Check query spelling
•Verify network connectivity

Integration with Other Tools

Complementing web_search

Use both tools for comprehensive research:

bash

# Use web_search for current events
# Use kagi-search for technical deep dives or when user requests Kagi specifically

Processing Results

Extract and fetch full page content:

bash

# 1. Search with kagi-search
# 2. Get URLs from results
# 3. Use web_fetch to retrieve full page content

Comparing Sources

Run parallel searches to compare results:

bash

# Search both web_search and kagi-search
# Compare result quality and sources
# Synthesize information from both

Best Practices

•Use Quick Answers for factual queries that benefit from immediate responses
•Limit results appropriately with -n flag to reduce noise
•Use JSON mode when programmatically processing results
•Combine with web_fetch to get full page content from interesting results
•Respect rate limits - Kagi has usage limits on session-based access
•Fall back to web_search if kagi-search fails or is unavailable

Debug Mode

Enable debug logging to stderr:

bash

kagi-search "query" -d

This shows:

•Request URLs
•Response details
•Authentication status
•Parsing information

Useful for troubleshooting authentication or parsing issues.