perplexityai/modelcontextprotocol

 
 
 
The official MCP server implementation for the Perplexity API Platform, providing AI assistants with real-time web search, reasoning, and research capabilities through the Agent API and the Search API.
Remote MCP Server
The remote MCP server is hosted by Perplexity and is the easiest way to get started: same tools, nothing to install or update. The Cursor and VS Code buttons at the top of this page connect to it with one click. If your MCP client does not support remote servers yet, skip to the local server setup below. Connect over Streamable HTTP with your Perplexity API key:
For Claude Code:
See the MCP integration docs for manual Cursor/VS Code configuration, usage from the Anthropic API, and setup for other clients.
Local MCP Server
Get Your API Key
1. Get your Perplexity API Key from the API Portal
2. Replace your_key_here in the configurations below with your API key
3. (Optional) Set timeout: PERPLEXITY_TIMEOUT_MS=600000 (default: 5 minutes)
4. (Optional) Set custom base URL: PERPLEXITY_BASE_URL=https://your-custom-url.com (default: https://api.perplexity.ai)
5. (Optional) Set log level: PERPLEXITY_LOG_LEVEL=DEBUG|INFO|WARN|ERROR (default: ERROR)
Claude Code
Or install via plugin:
Codex
Agent Plugins
This repository is packaged as an Agent Plugin, so clients that support the standard can install it directly from this repository. The Agent Plugins format does not carry secrets, so set the PERPLEXITY_API_KEY environment variable through your client's plugin or MCP settings.
Other MCP Clients
Most clients can be configured manually using the same mcpServers wrapper in their client config (as shown for Cursor). If a client has a different schema, check its docs for the exact wrapper format.
For manual setup, these clients all use the same mcpServers structure:
| Client | Config File |
|--------|-------------|
| Cursor | ~/.cursor/mcp.json |
| Claude Desktop | claude_desktop_config.json |
| Kiro | .kiro/settings/mcp.json |
| Windsurf | ~/.codeium/windsurf/mcp_config.json |
| VS Code | .vscode/mcp.json |
Proxy Setup (For Corporate Networks)
If you are running this server at work—especially behind a company firewall or proxy—you may need to tell the program how to send its internet traffic through your network's proxy. Follow these steps:
**1. Get your proxy details**
- Ask your IT department for your HTTPS proxy address and port.
- You may also need a username and password.
**2. Set the proxy environment variable**
The easiest and most reliable way for Perplexity MCP is to use PERPLEXITY_PROXY. For example:
If your proxy needs a username and password, use:
**3. Alternate: Standard environment variables**
If you'd rather use the standard variables, we support HTTPS_PROXY and HTTP_PROXY.
> [!NOTE]
> The server checks proxy settings in this order: PERPLEXITY_PROXY → HTTPS_PROXY → HTTP_PROXY. If none are set, it connects directly to the internet.
> URLs must include https://. Typical ports are 8080, 3128, and 80.
Self-Hosted HTTP Mode
For cloud or shared deployments, run the server in HTTP mode.
Environment Variables
| Variable | Description | Default |
|----------|-------------|---------|
| PERPLEXITY_API_KEY | Your Perplexity API key | *Required* |
| PERPLEXITY_BASE_URL | Custom base URL for API requests | https://api.perplexity.ai |
| PORT | HTTP server port | 8080 |
| BIND_ADDRESS | Network interface to bind to. Defaults to loopback. Set to 0.0.0.0 to expose on all interfaces. | 127.0.0.1 |