MCP SearXNG
MCP Server for SearXNG
What is MCP SearXNG?
MCP SearXNG is a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that allows AI assistants like Claude, Cursor, and VS Code to mcp server for searxng
MCP Server for SearXNG
This server falls under the Search & Data Extraction category on MCPgee, the world's largest MCP server directory with 33,000+ servers.
Features
- MCP Server for SearXNG
Use Cases
Maintainer
Works with
Installation
NPM
npx -y mcp-searxngManual Installation
npx -y mcp-searxngConfiguration
Configuration Details
claude_desktop_config.json
Performance
Response Metrics
Resource Usage
How to Set Up and Use MCP SearXNG
MCP SearXNG is a TypeScript MCP server that connects AI assistants to any SearXNG metasearch engine instance, enabling privacy-first web search, autocomplete suggestions, instance capability discovery, and URL content extraction through a clean set of MCP tools. It runs as a local Node.js process and communicates with your SearXNG instance over HTTP JSON, so no search queries are sent to commercial APIs. Developers and privacy-conscious users deploy it to give Claude and other MCP clients a self-hosted, uncensored search backend.
Prerequisites
- A running SearXNG instance (self-hosted or a trusted public URL)
- Node.js 18 or later installed
- An MCP client such as Claude Desktop
- The SEARXNG_URL environment variable pointing to your instance
Verify your SearXNG instance supports JSON output
The MCP server queries SearXNG via its JSON API. Confirm JSON format is enabled in your instance configuration.
curl "https://your-searxng-instance.com/search?q=hello&format=json"Install the mcp-searxng package
Install globally via npm or use npx to avoid a permanent installation.
npm install -g mcp-searxngSet your SearXNG instance URL
The SEARXNG_URL environment variable is mandatory. Optionally set SEARXNG_MAX_RESULTS to cap the number of results returned.
export SEARXNG_URL=https://your-searxng-instance.com
export SEARXNG_MAX_RESULTS=10 # optionalAdd to Claude Desktop configuration
Update claude_desktop_config.json to register mcp-searxng as an MCP server with the required environment variables.
{
"mcpServers": {
"mcp-searxng": {
"command": "npx",
"args": ["-y", "mcp-searxng"],
"env": {
"SEARXNG_URL": "https://your-searxng-instance.com"
}
}
}
}Test the integration
Restart Claude Desktop and issue a search request. The server exposes searxng_web_search, searxng_search_suggestions, searxng_instance_info, and web_url_read tools.
MCP SearXNG Examples
Client configuration
Full Claude Desktop JSON config for the mcp-searxng server.
{
"mcpServers": {
"mcp-searxng": {
"command": "npx",
"args": ["-y", "mcp-searxng"],
"env": {
"SEARXNG_URL": "https://your-searxng-instance.com",
"SEARXNG_MAX_RESULTS": "10"
}
}
}
}Prompts to try
Searches and URL reads to test once the server is running.
- "Search for the latest research on transformer architectures published in 2025"
- "What search categories and engines does my SearXNG instance support?"
- "Give me autocomplete suggestions for 'machine learning'"
- "Fetch and summarize the content at https://arxiv.org/abs/2307.09288"Troubleshooting MCP SearXNG
MCP client shows no tools after adding the server
Check that SEARXNG_URL is set inside the env block of the config JSON, not just in your shell. Restart Claude Desktop completely after saving the config file.
Search results are empty even for common queries
Some SearXNG instances disable certain engines or require a specific User-Agent. Test the JSON endpoint directly with curl and check the SearXNG instance settings to ensure at least one search engine is enabled.
web_url_read returns an error for paywalled or JavaScript-heavy pages
The tool fetches and converts HTML to markdown server-side but cannot execute JavaScript. Use searxng_web_search with a cache: operator to find cached versions, or choose a different content source.
Frequently Asked Questions about MCP SearXNG
What is MCP SearXNG?
MCP SearXNG is a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that mcp server for searxng It connects AI assistants to external tools and data sources through a standardized interface.
How do I install MCP SearXNG?
Install via npm with the command: npx -y mcp-searxng. Then add the server configuration to your AI client's JSON config file (e.g., claude_desktop_config.json or .cursor/mcp.json).
Which AI clients work with MCP SearXNG?
MCP SearXNG works with all major MCP-compatible AI clients including Claude Desktop, Claude Code, Cursor, VS Code (GitHub Copilot), Windsurf, and Cline.
Is MCP SearXNG free to use?
Yes, MCP SearXNG is open source and available under the MIT license. You can use it freely in both personal and commercial projects.
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Browse More Search & Data Extraction MCP Servers
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