Web Search MCP Server
Enables comprehensive web searching and content extraction using multiple search engines (Bing, Brave, DuckDuckGo) without API keys. Provides tools for full web searches with content extraction, quick search summaries, and single webpage content retr
What is Web Search MCP Server?
Web Search MCP Server is a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that allows AI assistants like Claude, Cursor, and VS Code to enables comprehensive web searching and content extraction using multiple search engines (bing, brave, duckduckgo) without api keys. provides tools for full web searches with content extraction, quick...
Enables comprehensive web searching and content extraction using multiple search engines (Bing, Brave, DuckDuckGo) without API keys. Provides tools for full web searches with content extraction, quick search summaries, and single webpage content retr
This server falls under the Search & Data Extraction category on MCPgee, the world's largest MCP server directory with 33,000+ servers.
Features
- Enables comprehensive web searching and content extraction u
Use Cases
Maintainer
Works with
Installation
Manual Installation
npx web-search-mcp-serverConfiguration
Configuration Details
claude_desktop_config.json
Performance
Response Metrics
Resource Usage
How to Set Up and Use Web Search MCP Server
Web Search MCP Server gives AI agents real-time access to web content by querying Bing, Brave, and DuckDuckGo without requiring any API keys. It exposes three tools: a full-web-search that extracts complete page content from results, a quick-summary tool that returns snippets only, and a single-page content extractor that strips ads and navigation from any URL. The server uses Playwright headless browsers as a fallback when standard HTTP requests are blocked, ensuring robust content retrieval across a wide range of websites.
Prerequisites
- Node.js 18 or later and npm installed
- Git to clone the repository (the server is not published to npm as a ready-to-run package)
- Playwright browser binaries (installed via 'npx playwright install' after npm install)
- An MCP-compatible client such as Claude Desktop, LM Studio, or VS Code with Continue
Clone and build the server
The server must be cloned from GitHub and built locally before it can be used as an MCP server.
git clone https://github.com/mrkrsl/web-search-mcp.git
cd web-search-mcp
npm install
npx playwright install
npm run buildNote the path to the compiled entry point
After building, the server entry point is at dist/index.js inside the cloned directory. You will need the absolute path for the MCP config.
# On macOS/Linux
pwd
# Note the output, e.g. /Users/yourname/web-search-mcpAdd the server to your MCP client configuration
Edit claude_desktop_config.json or your client's MCP config to launch the server using node with the absolute path to dist/index.js.
{
"mcpServers": {
"web-search": {
"command": "node",
"args": ["/Users/yourname/web-search-mcp/dist/index.js"]
}
}
}Optionally tune performance with environment variables
Set environment variables in the MCP config to control content limits, timeouts, and browser pool size.
{
"mcpServers": {
"web-search": {
"command": "node",
"args": ["/Users/yourname/web-search-mcp/dist/index.js"],
"env": {
"MAX_CONTENT_LENGTH": "200000",
"DEFAULT_TIMEOUT": "8000",
"MAX_BROWSERS": "2",
"ENABLE_RELEVANCE_CHECKING": "true",
"RELEVANCE_THRESHOLD": "0.4"
}
}
}
}Restart the client and verify the three tools
Restart your MCP client. In the tools panel you should see full-web-search, get-web-search-summaries, and get-single-web-page-content.
Web Search MCP Server Examples
Client configuration
Claude Desktop config pointing to the locally built server with optional environment tuning.
{
"mcpServers": {
"web-search": {
"command": "node",
"args": ["/Users/yourname/web-search-mcp/dist/index.js"],
"env": {
"MAX_CONTENT_LENGTH": "300000",
"DEFAULT_TIMEOUT": "8000",
"MAX_BROWSERS": "3"
}
}
}
}Prompts to try
Use these prompts once the server is connected to your MCP client.
- "Search the web for the latest news about Model Context Protocol and summarize the top 3 results."
- "Fetch the full content of https://modelcontextprotocol.io and explain the core concepts."
- "Do a quick web search for 'TypeScript decorators' and give me a summary of what they are."
- "Search for 'Playwright vs Puppeteer 2025' and compare the main differences based on the results."Troubleshooting Web Search MCP Server
Playwright install fails or browsers are not found at runtime
Run 'npx playwright install chromium' inside the cloned repo directory to install only the Chromium binary. If it still fails, set the PLAYWRIGHT_BROWSERS_PATH env var to a writable directory.
Search returns empty results or times out frequently
Increase DEFAULT_TIMEOUT to 10000 or higher. Set FORCE_MULTI_ENGINE_SEARCH=true to try all engines. If a specific engine is blocked in your region, reduce MAX_BROWSERS to 1 to reduce concurrency.
The MCP client shows the server as disconnected immediately after launch
Check that 'npm run build' completed without errors and that dist/index.js exists. Run 'node /path/to/web-search-mcp/dist/index.js' manually to surface startup errors.
Frequently Asked Questions about Web Search MCP Server
What is Web Search MCP Server?
Web Search MCP Server is a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that enables comprehensive web searching and content extraction using multiple search engines (bing, brave, duckduckgo) without api keys. provides tools for full web searches with content extraction, quick search summaries, and single webpage content retr It connects AI assistants to external tools and data sources through a standardized interface.
How do I install Web Search MCP Server?
Follow the installation instructions on the Web Search MCP Server GitHub repository. Clone the repo, install dependencies, and add the server config to your AI client.
Which AI clients work with Web Search MCP Server?
Web Search MCP Server works with all major MCP-compatible AI clients including Claude Desktop, Claude Code, Cursor, VS Code (GitHub Copilot), Windsurf, and Cline.
Is Web Search MCP Server free to use?
Yes, Web Search MCP Server is open source and available under the MIT License license. You can use it freely in both personal and commercial projects.
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Quick Config Preview
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