Brave Search MCP Server

---

name: brave-search-mcp

description: Official Brave Search MCP Server for web search, image search, news search, video search, and local POI search. Privacy-focused search API with AI-powered summarization. Connect AI agents to comprehensive search capabilities without Google tracking. Supports web navigation, research, fact-checking, and content discovery. Use when agents need to search the internet, find current information, research topics, verify facts, discover images/videos, or locate businesses/places.

---

# Brave Search MCP Server

> **Privacy-First Search for AI Agents**

Official MCP server from Brave integrating the [Brave Search API](https://brave.com/search/api/). Provides comprehensive search capabilities including web, images, videos, news, and local points of interest with AI-powered summarization.

Why Brave Search?

🔒 Privacy-Focused

No user tracking, no profiling, no search history surveillance. Unlike Google, Brave Search doesn't build profiles or track behavior.

🤖 AI-Native Features

🌐 Comprehensive Coverage

Installation

# Official Brave Search MCP Server
npm install -g @brave/brave-search-mcp-server

# Or via GitHub
git clone https://github.com/brave/brave-search-mcp-server
cd brave-search-mcp-server
npm install
npm run build

Configuration

Add to your MCP client config:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "brave-search": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@brave/brave-search-mcp-server"],
      "env": {
        "BRAVE_API_KEY": "YOUR_API_KEY_HERE"
      }
    }
  }
}

Get API Key

1. Visit https://brave.com/search/api/

2. Sign up for Brave Search API

3. Free tier: 2,000 queries/month

4. Paid plans available for higher volume

Available Tools

1. Web Search (`brave_web_search`)

General purpose internet search.

**Agent Usage:**

"Search for recent developments in quantum computing"
"Find tutorials on React hooks"
"What are the best practices for Docker security?"

**Parameters:**

2. Local Search (`brave_local_search`)

Find businesses, restaurants, services near a location.

**Agent Usage:**

"Find coffee shops near San Francisco"
"Pizza restaurants in Brooklyn"
"Gas stations near Times Square"

**Parameters:**

3. Image Search (`brave_image_search`)

Visual content discovery.

**Agent Usage:**

"Find images of the Golden Gate Bridge"
"Product photography for smartphones"
"Infographics about climate change"

4. Video Search (`brave_video_search`)

Video content from YouTube, Vimeo, and other platforms.

**Agent Usage:**

"Tutorial videos on machine learning"
"Keynotes from recent tech conferences"
"Documentary about space exploration"

5. News Search (`brave_news_search`)

Current events and journalism.

**Agent Usage:**

"Latest news about AI regulation"
"Recent developments in renewable energy"
"Tech industry news this week"

6. Summarizer (`brave_web_search` with summarizer)

AI-powered summarization of search results.

**Agent Usage:**

"Summarize current state of quantum computing research"
"Give me a summary of recent climate policy changes"

Use Cases for Agents

Research Assistant

Agent: "What are the latest findings on CRISPR gene editing?"
Brave Search: Returns recent articles, papers, news with summary

Fact Checking

Agent: "Is it true that coffee improves cognitive function?"
Brave Search: Provides sources, studies, verification

Local Discovery

Agent: "Find highly-rated sushi restaurants in Seattle"
Brave Search: Returns businesses with ratings, addresses, hours

Content Discovery

Agent: "Find video tutorials on Kubernetes deployment"
Brave Search: Returns relevant videos from multiple platforms

News Monitoring

Agent: "What's happening with Tesla this week?"
Brave Search: Recent news articles, announcements, coverage

Example Agent Workflow

Human: "I'm planning a trip to Tokyo. Help me prepare."

Agent:
1. brave_web_search("Tokyo travel guide 2026")
2. brave_web_search("Tokyo weather forecast")
3. brave_local_search("best ramen restaurants Tokyo")
4. brave_image_search("Tokyo metro map")
5. brave_news_search("Tokyo events 2026")

Agent: "Here's your Tokyo trip prep:
- Weather: [from search results]
- Top ramen spots: [from local search]
- Metro map: [image links]
- Current events: [from news search]"

vs Google Search

| Feature | Brave Search | Google Search |

|---------|--------------|---------------|

| **Privacy** | ✅ No tracking | ❌ Extensive tracking |

| **AI Summary** | ✅ Built-in | ⚠️ Limited |

| **API Cost** | ✅ 2K free/month | ❌ Expensive |

| **Speed** | ✅ Fast | ✅ Fast |

| **Coverage** | ✅ Independent index | ✅ Comprehensive |

| **Agent-Friendly** | ✅ Structured data | ⚠️ Limited |

Rate Limits

**Free Tier:**

**Pro Tier:**

Privacy Guarantee

From Brave:

> "Brave Search does not collect personal data, build user profiles, or track individual searches. Your queries are anonymous."

Resources

Advanced: Custom Configuration

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "brave-search": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["/path/to/brave-search-mcp-server/build/index.js"],
      "env": {
        "BRAVE_API_KEY": "YOUR_API_KEY",
        "DEFAULT_COUNT": "15",
        "ENABLE_SUMMARIZER": "true"
      }
    }
  }
}

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**The search tool every agent needs**: Privacy-first, AI-native, comprehensive coverage. Install once, search forever.