Perplexity API MCP Server

The Perplexity MCP Server enables AI assistants to access Perplexity's powerful search and reasoning capabilities directly within their workflows. Using the Model Context Protocol (MCP), you can integrate real-time web search, conversational AI, and advanced reasoning into any MCP-compatible client.

There are two ways to connect:

• Remote MCP server (recommended): hosted by Perplexity at https://api.perplexity.ai/mcp. No installation, nothing to update, works with any client that supports remote MCP servers. Sign in with your Perplexity account or use an API key.
• Local MCP server: run the open-source server on your machine over stdio. Use this if your client only supports stdio servers or you need to pin a version.

The hosted and local options are intended to expose the same Perplexity tools, but transport, authentication, release timing, and client behavior can differ.

Connect to https://api.perplexity.ai/mcp over Streamable HTTP. There are two ways to authenticate:

• Sign in with Perplexity (OAuth): add the server without any credentials. On first use your client opens a browser where you sign in to your Perplexity account, choose the API organization to bill, and approve the connection. Works with any client that supports OAuth for remote MCP servers, including Claude Code, Cursor, VS Code, and claude.ai (add it as a custom connector using the URL above).
• API key: send your key as a bearer token. Use this for clients that do not support OAuth, or for server-side setups such as the Anthropic API MCP connector.

Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY

claude mcp add --transport http perplexity https://api.perplexity.ai/mcp

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "perplexity": {
      "url": "https://api.perplexity.ai/mcp"
    }
  }
}

{
  "servers": {
    "perplexity": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://api.perplexity.ai/mcp"
    }
  }
}

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "perplexity": {
      "serverUrl": "https://api.perplexity.ai/mcp",
      "headers": {
        "Authorization": "Bearer YOUR_PERPLEXITY_API_KEY"
      }
    }
  }
}

curl https://api.anthropic.com/v1/messages \
  -H "content-type: application/json" \
  -H "x-api-key: $ANTHROPIC_API_KEY" \
  -H "anthropic-version: 2023-06-01" \
  -H "anthropic-beta: mcp-client-2025-11-20" \
  -d '{
    "model": "claude-opus-5",
    "max_tokens": 1024,
    "messages": [{"role": "user", "content": "What happened in AI this week?"}],
    "mcp_servers": [{
      "type": "url",
      "url": "https://api.perplexity.ai/mcp",
      "name": "perplexity",
      "authorization_token": "YOUR_PERPLEXITY_API_KEY"
    }],
    "tools": [{
      "type": "mcp_toolset",
      "mcp_server_name": "perplexity"
    }]
  }'

"tools": [{
  "type": "mcp_toolset",
  "mcp_server_name": "perplexity",
  "default_config": {"enabled": false},
  "configs": {
    "perplexity_search": {"enabled": true}
  }
}]

Signing in uses your regular Perplexity account. During sign-in you choose which API organization the connection bills to.

• API usage only. The connection can call the Perplexity API on behalf of that organization. It cannot create API keys, view balances, or manage the organization.
• Needs an API organization. You must be an admin of an API organization that can pay for usage. If you do not have one, the sign-in page links you to create one in the console. Then restart the connection from your client.

Run the same server locally over stdio.

The open-source repository includes an Agent Plugins 1.0 declaration for the local stdio server. If your client supports Agent Plugins, install it from perplexityai/modelcontextprotocol, then set PERPLEXITY_API_KEY in the environment that starts the plugin. The plugin does not include credentials, and installation steps vary by client.