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mcp-searxng, a community MCP server for SearXNG

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4
4 read · 0 change
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Downloads
19.4K
a week
Works in
8
supported apps
Risk
Low
read only

Gives your AI assistant free, private web search and page reading through a SearXNG instance you run or trust.

mcp-searxng is a community server that lets Claude, Cursor and other assistants search the web and read pages through SearXNG, a free metasearch engine. It costs nothing and needs no search API key. You do need a SearXNG instance with JSON output turned on, either your own or a public one. How private it is depends on that instance, because whoever runs it sees your searches.

Good for

  • People who self-host SearXNG and want Claude or Cursor to search through it
  • Local model users in LM Studio or llama.cpp who need web search with no API key
  • Developers who want their coding assistant to look up docs and read pages, including PDFs
  • Privacy-minded users who do not want searches going to a paid search vendor

Works in

8 supported · 4 should work

Tap an app to see how to set it up and any known problems.

Install mcp-searxng

Claude Code

  1. 1

    Copy this prompt.

    Add the mcp-searxng server to Claude Code. Run this command:

claude mcp add --scope user --env SEARXNG_URL=https://search.example.com --transport stdio searxng -- npx -y mcp-searxng

Ask me for SEARXNG_URL and only put the values in that config, nowhere else.

Then check that it loaded and tell me if I need to sign in or restart.
  2. 2

    Paste it into Claude Code. It shows the change and asks before running it.

Requires Node.js 22+, A SearXNG instance with JSON output.

Read-only mode: Nothing to switch on: every tool only searches or reads.

Replace https://search.example.com with the base address of your SearXNG instance. SearXNG must have json in its search formats, or searches fail with 403.

Leave MCP_HTTP_PORT unset for this setup; setting it switches the server to HTTP mode. To use a SearXNG login, put it in the address as https://user:pass@host.

From the project README. Source.

Tools

  • Searches the web through your SearXNG instance

    Runs a web search through SearXNG and returns results, with options for page, time range, language, safe search, categories and engines.

    Try: “Search for reviews of the Framework 13 laptop from the past month.”

    Network · searxng_web_search

  • Reads a web page or PDF and returns its text

    Fetches a page and turns it into readable text, or extracts text from a PDF. It can return just the headings, one section or a slice of a long page.

    Try: “Read https://docs.searxng.org/admin/settings/settings.html and show me the headings.”

    Network · web_url_read

  • Used by the assistant behind the scenes

    Suggests better ways to phrase a search

    Gets autocomplete suggestions from SearXNG to complete or refine a query.

    Try: “What are common searches that start with 'self-host searx'?”

    Network · searxng_search_suggestions

  • Shows which search categories and engines your instance offers

    Checks your SearXNG instance for its categories, engines, defaults and plugins, so searches can target the right ones.

    Try: “Which search engines are enabled on my SearXNG instance?”

    Network · searxng_instance_info

Read from the source code

Pros and cons

Good

  • Free, with no search API key.
  • Can only search and read, so it cannot change anything.
  • Reads web pages and PDF text as well as searching.
  • Works with your own SearXNG for searches nobody else sees.
  • Runs with npx or Docker, or as an HTTP service with a token or sign-in.
  • By far the most starred SearXNG server, with frequent releases and quick fixes.

Watch out

  • You need a SearXNG instance with JSON output turned on.
  • Public instances can log your searches and may block or limit you.
  • Frequent releases have occasionally broken setups.
  • Several past security advisories in page reading; keep it updated.
  • The npx setup needs Node.js 22 or later.

Permissions

low risk · 4 things to watch · 9 advisories

Low risk

It cannot change anything, but your searches go to whoever runs the SearXNG instance, and old versions had page-reading security bugs.

What it can do

Watch out for

  • A public instance can see your searches

    Whoever runs the SearXNG instance receives every query and may log it. Use your own instance for anything sensitive. github.com

  • Page reading had several security fixes

    Older versions could be tricked into reading internal network addresses. Stay on a current release. github.com

  • HTTP mode has no login by default

    If you run it as a network service, turn on hardened mode with a token before others can reach it. github.com

  • The SearXNG address can hold a password

    If your instance uses a login, it sits inside the address in your config. Treat that config file as a secret. github.com

Security advisories

9 known advisories, all fixed in a newer version.

Show all 9
Technical details
Turning on read-onlyAll four tools only search and read; nothing is written anywhere. Private and internal addresses are blocked for page reads unless MCP_HTTP_ALLOW_PRIVATE_URLS=true.
Talks toYour SearXNG instance. Any website the assistant asks it to read
Sign-in and keysSEARXNG_URL (which may embed Basic Auth credentials) in your client config.

Alternatives

Use mcp-searxng if you already have a SearXNG instance; it is the most used and most maintained option. Pick searxNcrawl if you also want deeper page crawling, or SearXNG HTTP MCP if you want SearXNG and the server in one Docker image.

ServerOfficialRunsIncludes SearXNGGitHub stars
mcp-searxngThis pageCommunityLocalNo1.3K
searxNcrawlCommunityLocal–183
searxng-mul-mcpCommunity––104
SearXNG HTTP MCPCommunityLocalYes13

What people say

People like that it works well and gets fixed fast, and mostly trip over SearXNG's own JSON setting.

What people like

  • Long-time users say it works well.
  • The maintainer replies fast and often ships fixes the same day.
  • Requested features, such as getting past Cloudflare checks, get built.

Common complaints

  • New users hit 403 errors until they turn on JSON output in SearXNG.
  • Frequent releases have occasionally broken things, such as a version that would not start.
  • One release made page reading return garbled output until it was fixed.

In their words

GitHub issueJul 2026
“Hi, thank you for this project! I've been using it for a while and it works great.”
billy4479GitHub issueOct 2025
“I want to point out that I had the exact same error and had to add the `json` to the formats in the search engine and worked.”
0x00clGitHub issueMay 2026
“Recently I noticed that something broke in `web_url_read` tool, when my model is calling it all I get is nonsense binary output.”
igor725

Questions

Is there an official SearXNG MCP server?

No. The SearXNG project does not publish one. mcp-searxng is a community server and the most starred option by a wide margin.

Is it free?

Yes. It is open source and needs no search API key. You only need a SearXNG instance, which is also free to run.

Do I need to run my own SearXNG?

No, but it is the better choice. A trusted public instance works, but its operator sees your searches and can limit or block you.

Why do I get 403 Forbidden?

Your SearXNG instance probably has JSON output turned off. Add json to the search formats in SearXNG's settings and restart it. A working search page in the browser does not mean JSON works.

Is it private?

Only as private as the SearXNG instance. With your own instance, no search company sees who is asking. With a public one, the operator can log every query.

Can it read PDFs and full web pages?

Yes. It turns web pages into text and extracts text from PDFs up to 500 pages. Scanned PDFs without a text layer cannot be read.

Can it get past Cloudflare checks?

Yes, if you also run FlareSolverr or Byparr and point the server at them. Without one, sites that show a browser check return an error.

Does it work with local models?

Yes. People use it with LM Studio and llama.cpp's server, since it needs no paid API.

How do I add it to Claude Desktop or Cursor?

Use the steps in the install box above, and replace the example address with your SearXNG URL.

Examples

  • Search the web and read the best source

    Search for SearXNG documentation and read the most relevant result.

  • Read an academic PDF that sits behind a Cloudflare check

    Source

  • Give a local model in LM Studio private web search

    Source

  • Look up recent news on a topic

    Find this week's news about the Node.js 24 release and summarise it with links.

Information

updated Nov 2, 2026

Publisher
Community
Package
mcp-searxng
Registry
npm
Transport
stdio, Streamable HTTP
Auth
None
Version
2.9.0
License
MIT
Last commit
Oct 27, 2026
Open issues
1
Listed in
Official MCP registry

DocsGitHubnpmOfficial MCP RegistryChangelogIssues

Other SearXNG MCP servers

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Sources

Docs, issue trackers and discussions this page is built from. Issues, quotes and findings above link to their own source.

Show all 12
  1. github.com · github.com
  2. github.com · github.com
  3. github.com · github.com
  4. github.com · github.com
  5. github.com · github.com
  6. github.com · github.com
  7. github.com · github.com
  8. github.com · github.com
  9. github.com · github.com
  10. github.com · github.com
  11. github.com · github.com
  12. github.com · github.com

Facts from the official MCP registry, GitHub, npm, PyPI and the Docker catalog. Updated Nov 2, 2026.