Apify Public Data & Leads

Alabama Business Entity Registry Search

alabama_business_search

Read-only

Search Alabama Secretary of State records by business name to verify LLC or corporation status, entity type, and location. Build targeted lead lists or confirm registration details.

Instructions

Search official Alabama Secretary of State business-entity records by company name, returning entity ID, legal name, entity type, registry status, and location.

Behavioral Transparency:

Execution: Network call executed synchronously in the cloud via Apify Actor 'captainhandsome/al-business-entity-search'.
Side Effects: Reads public sources and creates a billed Actor run and dataset on your Apify account.
Authentication: Requires APIFY_TOKEN environment variable.
Latency & Limits: Typical run duration is 10-30 seconds without detail pages, longer with include_details enabled; timeout capped at 120 seconds.

Usage Guidelines:

When to use: Use when verifying an Alabama-registered LLC or corporation, checking entity status, or building a lead list of Alabama businesses by name.
When NOT to use: Do not use for Florida, California, or nationwide multi-state lookups, for contractor licensing, or for company officers/registered-agent name searches.
Named alternatives: Use 'us_business_entity_search' for a combined Florida/Alabama/Wisconsin lookup, 'florida_new_filings_search' for Florida entities, or 'california_contractor_license_search'/'us_contractor_license_search' for contractor licences.

Input Schema

TableJSON Schema

Name	Required	Description
`max_results`	No	Maximum number of entity records to return and bill. Defaults to 10.
`search_query`	Yes	Full or partial Alabama business name to search (e.g. 'SMITH' or 'Smith Services LLC').
`include_details`	No	When true, opens each result's detail page to add formation date, registered agent, and registered/principal addresses. Slower; leave off for a fast name-and-status lookup.

Output Schema

TableJSON Schema

Name	Required	Description	Default
`run`	No
`error`	No
`status`	Yes
`results`	Yes

Schema Changelog

Changes observed during successful MCP inspections.

Changed18 schema fields changedv1.1.0Sep 15, 2026
- addedInput schema / additionalProperties
```
Added value: +false
```
- addedOutput schema / properties / error
```
Added value: +{
+  "type": "object"
+}
```
- removedOutput schema / properties / results / description
```
Removed value: -"Collection of Alabama business-entity records matching the search query."
```
- addedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / entity_id / title
```
Added value: +"Entity ID"
```
- addedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / entity_name / title
```
Added value: +"Legal entity name"
```
- addedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / entity_type / title
```
Added value: +"Entity type"
```
- changedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / formation_date / description
```
Previous value: -"Date the entity was formed, from the detail record (requires include_details)."New value: +"Date the entity was formed, from the state's detail record."
```
- addedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / formation_date / title
```
Added value: +"Formation date"
```
- addedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / location / title
```
Added value: +"Location"
```
- changedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / principal_address / description
```
Previous value: -"Principal place of business, where the state records one (requires include_details)."New value: +"Principal place of business, where the state records one."
```
- addedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / principal_address / title
```
Added value: +"Principal address"
```
- changedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / registered_agent / description
```
Previous value: -"Name of the entity's registered agent (requires include_details)."New value: +"Name of the entity's registered agent."
```
- addedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / registered_agent / title
```
Added value: +"Registered agent"
```
- changedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / status / description
```
Previous value: -"Current registry status when present (e.g. Exists, Dissolved, Revoked)."New value: +"Current registry status when present."
```
- addedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / status / title
```
Added value: +"Entity status"
```
- addedOutput schema / properties / run
```
Added value: +{
+  "type": "object"
+}
```
- addedOutput schema / properties / status
```
Added value: +{
+  "enum": [
+    "success",
+    "empty_unverified",
+    "partial",
+    "error"
+  ],
+  "type": "string"
+}
```
- changedOutput schema / required
```
Previous value: -[
-  "results"
-]New value: +[
+  "results",
+  "status"
+]
```
Addedv1.0.11Sep 13, 2026

TDQS

A4.9/5.0

Behavior5/5

Does the description disclose side effects, auth requirements, rate limits, or destructive behavior?

The description discloses execution model (synchronous cloud Actor), side effects (billed run and dataset), authentication requirement (APIFY_TOKEN), latency expectations, and timeout cap. These go well beyond the annotations and add practical context without contradicting them; the readOnlyHint refers to the public registry source, not the platform-side billed run.

Agents need to know what a tool does to the world before calling it. Descriptions should go beyond structured annotations to explain consequences.

Conciseness5/5

Is the description appropriately sized, front-loaded, and free of redundancy?

The main capability is front-loaded in the first sentence, followed by clearly labeled Behavioral Transparency and Usage Guidelines sections. Every section earns its place and the formatting makes it easy to scan.

Shorter descriptions cost fewer tokens and are easier for agents to parse. Every sentence should earn its place.

Completeness5/5

Given the tool's complexity, does the description cover enough for an agent to succeed on first attempt?

The description covers purpose, scope, alternatives, side effects, authentication, latency, and parameter trade-offs. An output schema exists, so return-value details are not required here; nothing important is missing for correct tool selection and invocation.

Complex tools with many parameters or behaviors need more documentation. Simple tools need less. This dimension scales expectations accordingly.

Parameters4/5

Does the description clarify parameter syntax, constraints, interactions, or defaults beyond what the schema provides?

With 100% schema coverage, the schema already explains parameters well. The description adds meaningful behavioral nuance, such as include_details making runs slower and max_results affecting billing, which helps agents choose parameter values wisely.

Input schemas describe structure but not intent. Descriptions should explain non-obvious parameter relationships and valid value ranges.

Purpose5/5

Does the description clearly state what the tool does and how it differs from similar tools?

The description uses a specific verb and resource: 'Search official Alabama Secretary of State business-entity records by company name' and lists the exact returned fields. This clearly distinguishes it from multi-state, Florida, and contractor-license siblings.

Agents choose between tools based on descriptions. A clear purpose with a specific verb and resource helps agents select the right tool.

Usage Guidelines5/5

Does the description explain when to use this tool, when not to, or what alternatives exist?

The description explicitly gives 'When to use', 'When NOT to use', and 'Named alternatives'. It tells agents to prefer 'us_business_entity_search' for combined state lookups and 'california_contractor_license_search'/'us_contractor_license_search' for contractor licenses, leaving no ambiguity about routing.

Agents often have multiple tools that could apply. Explicit usage guidance like "use X instead of Y when Z" prevents misuse.

Deploy Server