In short. A Brave Search API request can send Cache-Control: no-cache, but Brave documents the handling as best effort.
Definition: Yes. Brave's Web Search API reference, accessed 17 October 2026, documents
Cache-Control: no-cacheas the request header for preventing cached content. Brave describes the handling as best effort, so the header is a request for validation rather than a promise of a new result set.
Key facts
- Brave's Web Search API reference says that Brave Search returns cached content by default.
- The same reference says to set the
Cache-Controlheader tono-cacheto prevent caching. - Brave labels this handling “best effort”, which leaves the outcome dependent on the service's implementation.
- RFC 9111 defines request cache directives as advisory, so caches can implement them without being required to do so.
- In that standard,
no-cacheasks that a stored response not satisfy the request without successful validation at the origin server.
What header does Brave document?
Brave places the control in the request headers for the Web Search API. Its reference says that cached content is the default and names Cache-Control: no-cache as the way to prevent caching. A request can therefore include the header alongside the API authentication header shown in Brave's example:
curl "https://api.search.brave.com/res/v1/web/search?q=brave+search" \
-H "Cache-Control: no-cache" \
-H "X-Subscription-Token: <YOUR_API_KEY>"
The documented wording is qualified by “best effort”. Brave does not describe a response field that confirms a cache bypass, and the reference does not name a freshness interval for this request option.
What does no-cache mean in HTTP?
RFC 9111 describes Cache-Control as a header field carrying directives for caches along the request and response chain. Its section on request directives says that these directives are advisory. The standard's definition of the no-cache request directive is that a stored response should not be used to satisfy the request without successful validation on the origin server.
That meaning concerns reuse of a stored response. It does not require the response to be absent from every cache after the request finishes. RFC 9111 gives no-store a separate meaning: a cache must not store any part of the request or any response to it. Brave's Web Search reference names no-cache, so that is the documented control for this API request.
What can a result check establish?
Sending the header records that the client asked Brave to avoid satisfying the request from an unvalidated stored response. The vendor's best-effort qualification means a client can treat the header as a freshness request, while the returned payload remains the evidence available to the client.
The HTTP standard also distinguishes a fresh response from a stale one by comparing its age with its freshness lifetime. A fresh response can satisfy later requests without contacting the origin server. The Brave reference does not document a response header, status value or JSON field that identifies whether this particular API request reached a new search operation, so that verification point remains open.
Related terms
- Brave Search API
- Cache-Control
- How do I filter Brave Search API results by date?
- Brave Search localisation
FAQ
Should I send Cache-Control: no-cache as a query parameter?
No. Send it as an HTTP request header. Brave's Web Search API reference places Cache-Control in the request headers and names no-cache as its value.
Does the header ensure a newly generated result set?
No. Brave calls the behavior best effort, and RFC 9111 describes request directives as advisory. The header asks for validation before reuse of a stored response under the HTTP definition of no-cache.
Is no-cache the same as no-store?
No. RFC 9111 uses no-cache for validation before reuse and no-store for a cache prohibition covering the request and its response. Brave's API reference documents no-cache for this request.
Sources
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