✈️ Google Flights API: Flight and Price Search in Clean JSON

The most efficient, reliable, and developer-friendly way to use the Google Flights API.

Actor page: apify.com/johnvc/Google-Flights-Data-Scraper-Flight-and-Price-Search Input schema: apify.com/johnvc/Google-Flights-Data-Scraper-Flight-and-Price-Search/input-schema

The Google Flights API searches flights and returns clean, structured JSON. Each page of results comes back with the top recommended flights and alternatives, full flight legs and timings, prices, price insights (level and historical range), airport details, and search metadata. It supports one-way, round-trip, and multi-city itineraries, single or multiple airports, filters for price, stops, airlines, and passenger counts, and can optionally resolve direct airline and OTA booking links. Localized across 29+ languages and 39+ countries.

Video Walkthrough

Quick Start

Prerequisites

• Python 3.11 or higher
• An Apify account and API key (get a free key here)

1. Clone the repository

   bash

   git clone https://github.com/johnisanerd/Apify-Google-Flights-API.git
   cd Apify-Google-Flights-API
   

2. Install dependencies with UV

   bash

   # Install UV if you do not have it:
   curl -LsSf https://astral.sh/uv/install.sh | sh
   
   # Install project dependencies:
   uv sync
   

3. Configure your API key

   bash

   cp .env.example .env
   # Edit .env and add your Apify API key
   # Get your free API key at: https://apify.com?fpr=9n7kx3
   

4. Run the example

   bash

   uv run python google-flights-api.py
   

This repo also includes google-flights-get-booking-options.py, a low-cost one-way example (BOS to PQI) that enables fetch_booking_options to resolve direct airline and OTA booking links:

uv run python google-flights-get-booking-options.py

Alternative: set the API key directly

export APIFY_API_TOKEN="your_api_key_here"
uv run python google-flights-api.py

Why Use This Google Flights API?

Complete itineraries. Search one-way, round-trip, and multi-city trips, with single or multiple departure and arrival airports, and get the top recommended flights plus alternatives with full leg-by-leg detail.

Direct booking links. Enable fetch_booking_options and each flight resolves to a live booking URL on the airline or OTA site, with fare families and baggage fees, ready to embed in your app.

Powerful filters. Constrain by max price, max stops, preferred airlines, passenger counts, and exclude basic economy.

Price intelligence. Every search returns price insights: the current level (low, typical, high) and a historical price range for the route.

Predictable, pay-per-use pricing. Billing is per page processed, plus per resolved booking link only when you ask for them. No subscription. You control cost with the page limit.

Easy to automate. Call it from Python in a few lines, or load it as an MCP tool so assistants like Claude and Cursor can search flights for you on demand.

Features

Core Capabilities

• One-way, round-trip, and multi-city itineraries
• Single or multiple airports per leg (e.g. CDG,ORY)
• Filters for price, stops, airlines, passengers, and basic economy
• Optional direct booking links (airline/OTA URLs, fare families, baggage fees)
• Localization across 29+ languages and 39+ countries

Data Quality

• Best and alternative flights with full leg timings, airline, and duration
• Price insights with level and historical range
• Airport details for departure and arrival
• Per-page metadata and search parameters echoed back
• Consistent JSON shape across every query

Usage Examples

Basic one-way search

{
  "departure_id": "LAX",
  "arrival_id": "JFK",
  "outbound_date": "2026-10-12",
  "adults": 1,
  "currency": "USD",
  "max_pages": 1
}

Round trip with filters

{
  "departure_id": "JFK",
  "arrival_id": "LHR",
  "outbound_date": "2026-11-25",
  "return_date": "2026-12-02",
  "adults": 2,
  "max_price": 1500,
  "max_stops": 1,
  "max_pages": 2
}

Multi-city trip

{
  "multi_city_json": "[{\"departure_id\":\"CDG\",\"arrival_id\":\"NRT\",\"date\":\"2026-11-17\"},{\"departure_id\":\"NRT\",\"arrival_id\":\"LAX\",\"date\":\"2026-11-24\"}]",
  "adults": 1,
  "currency": "USD",
  "max_pages": 1
}

Direct booking links

{
  "departure_id": "LAX",
  "arrival_id": "JFK",
  "outbound_date": "2026-10-12",
  "adults": 1,
  "fetch_booking_options": true,
  "max_pages": 1
}

Note: fetch_booking_options works for one-way searches, is billed per resolved link, and needs Actor memory of 512 MB or more (it uses a headless browser).

Input Parameters

Either departure_id + arrival_id + outbound_date, or multi_city_json, is required.

Output Format

A real result for LAX to JFK (one item per page; best_flights legs and the price_insights history are trimmed here for readability).

{
  "search_parameters": {
    "trip_type_description": "One-way",
    "departure_id": "LAX",
    "arrival_id": "JFK",
    "outbound_date": "2026-10-12",
    "adults": 1,
    "currency": "USD",
    "language": "en",
    "country": "us"
  },
  "search_metadata": {
    "total_flights_found": 29,
    "best_flights_count": 3,
    "other_flights_count": 26,
    "pages_processed": 1,
    "pagination_limit_reached": true,
    "booking_options_count": 0
  },
  "page_number": 1,
  "best_flights": [
    {
      "price": 207,
      "type": "One way",
      "total_duration": 590,
      "flights": [
        {
          "departure_airport": { "name": "Los Angeles International Airport", "id": "LAX", "time": "2026-10-12 09:24" },
          "arrival_airport": { "name": "Charlotte Douglas International Airport", "id": "CLT", "time": "2026-10-12 17:28" },
          "airline": "American",
          "flight_number": "AA 2570",
          "travel_class": "Economy",
          "duration": 304
        },
        {
          "departure_airport": { "name": "Charlotte Douglas International Airport", "id": "CLT", "time": "2026-10-12 20:11" },
          "arrival_airport": { "name": "John F. Kennedy International Airport", "id": "JFK", "time": "2026-10-12 22:14" },
          "airline": "American",
          "flight_number": "AA 1727",
          "travel_class": "Economy",
          "duration": 123
        }
      ]
    }
  ],
  "other_flights": [],
  "price_insights": {
    "lowest_price": 207,
    "price_level": "typical",
    "typical_price_range": [145, 255]
  },
  "airports": [
    {
      "departure": [
        { "airport": { "id": "LAX", "name": "Los Angeles International Airport" }, "city": "Los Angeles", "country": "United States" }
      ],
      "arrival": [
        { "airport": { "id": "JFK", "name": "John F. Kennedy International Airport" }, "city": "New York", "country": "United States" }
      ]
    }
  ],
  "booking_options": []
}

When fetch_booking_options is true, each booking_options entry includes a resolved booking_url to the airline or OTA, plus fare family and baggage details.

Use as an MCP tool

You can load the Google Flights API as an MCP tool so assistants call it for you. The MCP server URL preloads just this one Actor:

https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=actors,docs,johnvc/Google-Flights-Data-Scraper-Flight-and-Price-Search

Authenticate with OAuth in the browser when offered, or with your Apify API token (the same APIFY_API_TOKEN used by the Python example). Get a token at https://console.apify.com/settings/integrations and a free Apify account at https://apify.com?fpr=9n7kx3 .

Install in Claude Cowork Desktop

Cowork is the desktop app's automation mode. To give it the Google Flights API as a tool, add the Apify MCP server as a connector.

1. Open the Claude desktop app and go to Settings → Connectors (or Settings → Developer → Edit Config to edit claude_desktop_config.json directly).
   • macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
   • Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json
2. Add the Apify MCP server, preloaded with only this Actor:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "apify": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "mcp-remote",
        "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=actors,docs,johnvc/Google-Flights-Data-Scraper-Flight-and-Price-Search"
      ]
    }
  }
}

3. Restart the app. When Cowork first calls the tool, complete the OAuth prompt in your browser, or add your Apify API token in the connector settings to skip OAuth.
4. In a Cowork chat, confirm the tool is available and ask it to run the Google Flights API.

Download the desktop app and start a free trial: https://claude.ai/referral/uIlpa7nPLg More help: https://docs.apify.com/platform/integrations/claude-desktop

Install in Claude Code

Claude Code is the command-line tool. Add the Actor's MCP server with one command:

claude mcp add --transport http apify \
  "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=actors,docs,johnvc/Google-Flights-Data-Scraper-Flight-and-Price-Search"

To use a token instead of browser OAuth:

claude mcp add --transport http apify \
  "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=actors,docs,johnvc/Google-Flights-Data-Scraper-Flight-and-Price-Search" \
  --header "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN"

Then verify with claude mcp list, or run /mcp inside a session. Ask Claude Code to call the Google Flights API.

Try Claude Code free: https://claude.ai/referral/uIlpa7nPLg Claude Code MCP docs: https://code.claude.com/docs/en/mcp

Install in Claude (website)

On claude.ai you add Apify as a connector, then enable just this Actor's tool.

1. Go to Settings → Connectors → Browse connectors and search for Apify MCP server. Install it (enable or update if prompted).
2. When connecting, authenticate with your Apify API token, and enable the tool johnvc/Google-Flights-Data-Scraper-Flight-and-Price-Search.
3. In any chat, open + → Connectors and turn on Apify.
4. Alternatively, choose Add custom connector and paste the full MCP URL https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=actors,docs,johnvc/Google-Flights-Data-Scraper-Flight-and-Price-Search, using OAuth when prompted.
5. Ask Claude to run the Google Flights API.

Open Claude on the web: https://claude.ai/referral/uIlpa7nPLg

Install in Cursor

Cursor reads MCP servers from a project file at .cursor/mcp.json.

1. In your project, create .cursor/mcp.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "apify": {
      "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=actors,docs,johnvc/Google-Flights-Data-Scraper-Flight-and-Price-Search"
    }
  }
}

2. If you prefer token auth over browser OAuth, add a header:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "apify": {
      "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=actors,docs,johnvc/Google-Flights-Data-Scraper-Flight-and-Price-Search",
      "headers": { "Authorization": "Bearer YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN" }
    }
  }
}

3. Open Cursor → Settings → MCP and confirm the apify server is connected (green dot).
4. In Composer or Chat, ask Cursor to call the Google Flights API.

New to Cursor? Get it here: https://cursor.com/referral?code=XQP4VBLI3NNX

Install in ChatGPT

ChatGPT connects to the Apify MCP server through Developer mode (available on ChatGPT Pro, Plus, Business, Enterprise, and Education plans).

1. Click your profile icon, then go to Settings > Apps. If you do not see a Create app button, open Advanced settings and enable Developer mode.
2. Click Create app and fill out the form:
   • Name: Apify
   • MCP Server URL: https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=actors,docs,johnvc/Google-Flights-Data-Scraper-Flight-and-Price-Search
   • Authentication: OAuth
3. Click Create and authorize the connection with Apify.
4. To use the app in a conversation, click + in the chat, choose Developer mode, and select Apify.

More help: https://docs.apify.com/platform/integrations/mcp

Made with care

Use the Google Flights API to power travel apps, fare tracking, and analytics with reliable, structured results.

🤖 Ask an AI assistant about this Actor

Open a ready-to-send prompt about the Google Flights API in the AI of your choice:

• 💬 ChatGPT
• 🧠 Claude
• 🔍 Perplexity
• 🅒 Copilot

Last Updated: 2026.09.22