Web Explorer MCP

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that provides web search and webpage content extraction using a local SearxNG instance.

Why Web Explorer MCP?

Unlike commercial solutions (GitHub Copilot, Cursor IDE), Web Explorer MCP prioritizes privacy and autonomy:

Feature	Web Explorer MCP	GitHub Copilot	Cursor IDE
Privacy	✅ Local SearxNG, zero tracking	❌ Bing API, Microsoft servers	❌ Cloud search, third-party APIs
Cost	✅ Free, no limits	💰 $10-20/month subscription	💰 $20/month Pro plan
API Keys	✅ None required	⚠️ GitHub account required	⚠️ Account & subscription
Data Control	✅ All data stays local	❌ Queries sent to Microsoft	❌ Queries sent to external services
Setup	✅ 2 commands	⚠️ Account setup, policy config	⚠️ Account, payment setup
Open Source	✅ Fully auditable	⚠️ Partial (client only)	❌ Proprietary

Perfect for: Developers who value privacy, work with sensitive data, or prefer not to depend on external services and subscriptions.

⚠️ Responsible Use

This tool is designed for human-assisted AI interactions, not for automated high-volume scraping:

• 🚫 Not for DDoS - Do not use for overwhelming websites or search engines
• 🚫 Not for High-Speed Automation - Avoid usage speeds significantly higher than a real user
• 🚫 Not for Fully Automated AI Agents - Not recommended for high-performance autonomous agents
• ✅ Respect Infrastructure - Honor website owners' business scenarios and infrastructure capabilities
• ✅ Follow robots.txt - Respect crawling policies and rate limits

Use responsibly: This tool is meant for legitimate research and development, not for abuse.

Features

• 🔍 Web Search - Search using local SearxNG (private, no API keys)
• 📄 Content Extraction - Extract clean text from webpages with Playwright rendering
• 🐳 Zero Pollution - Runs in Docker, leaves no traces
• 🚀 Simple Setup - Install in 2 commands

Quick Start

1. Install Services (SearxNG + Playwright)

git clone https://github.com/l0kifs/web-explorer-mcp.git
cd web-explorer-mcp
./install.sh  # or ./install.fish for Fish shell

2. Configure Claude Desktop

Add to your Claude config (~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json on macOS):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "web-explorer": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": ["web-explorer-mcp"]
    }
  }
}

3. Restart Claude

That's it! Ask Claude to search the web.

Tools

• web_search_tool(query, page, page_size) - Search the web
• webpage_content_tool(url, max_chars, page) - Extract webpage content with pagination support

Configuration & Usage

See docs/CONFIGURATION.md for:

• Other AI clients (Continue.dev, Cline)
• Environment variables
• Troubleshooting
• Management commands

Update

uvx --force web-explorer-mcp  # MCP server
docker compose pull && docker compose up -d  # SearxNG + Playwright

Uninstall

docker compose down -v
cd .. && rm -rf web-explorer-mcp

Development

uv sync              # Install dependencies
docker compose up -d # Start SearxNG + Playwright
uv run web-explorer-mcp  # Run locally

See CONTRIBUTING.md for details.

License

MIT - see LICENSE