# brave

Connects Brave Search API to your coding agent for querying current web pages, news, images, and places. Useful when an LLM needs live web access.

- MCP server · `type=mcp` · Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, Windsurf (Devin Desktop), Cline, Zed · ★ 1523
- Author: brave
- License: MIT · policy=link-only · description only; the file stays with the author
- Source: https://github.com/brave/brave-search-mcp-server
- Updated: 2026-10-22
- HTML: https://affpapa.org/en/nevibecode/mcp/brave

## What it does

This server exposes tools for querying the Brave Search API directly inside an agent session. Tools include `brave_web_search` for standard queries, `brave_news_search` with a default 24-hour freshness filter, plus specialized endpoints for video and point-of-interest lookups via `brave_place_search`. Version 2.x returns plain image URLs instead of base64 payloads. That change saves context tokens.

For AI summaries, the workflow pairs `brave_web_search` with `brave_summarizer`. You request a search with `summary: true`, then feed the resulting summary key into the summarizer tool. A free API key is available at `https://brave.com/search/api/`. Without a paid Pro subscription, `brave_local_search` downgrades to regular web results because full local business details require a paid tier.

## Requirements
- Remote server: `https://server.smithery.ai/brave/mcp`

## Install

### Claude Code (native platform)

**Platform CLI: remote server**
```bash
claude mcp add --transport http brave https://server.smithery.ai/brave/mcp
```

### Codex

**Platform CLI: remote server**
```bash
codex mcp add brave --url https://server.smithery.ai/brave/mcp
```

### Cursor

**Config file**
File `.cursor/mcp.json`:
```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "brave": {
            "url": "https://server.smithery.ai/brave/mcp"
        }
    }
}
```

### GitHub Copilot

**Config file**
File `.vscode/mcp.json`:
```json
{
    "servers": {
        "brave": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://server.smithery.ai/brave/mcp"
        }
    }
}
```

### Gemini CLI

**Platform CLI: remote server**
```bash
gemini mcp add -t http brave https://server.smithery.ai/brave/mcp
```

## When to use it
- fetch recent web search results and documentation
- retrieve news articles published within the last 24 hours
- query coordinates and operating hours for places with `brave_place_search`
- generate automated AI summaries of web pages without reading raw pages

## Example prompts
- Search for the latest Next.js 15 release notes using `brave_web_search`.
- Look up recent news about Python 3.13 over the last 24 hours with `brave_news_search`.
- Find the location and opening hours of bookstores in Berlin using `brave_place_search`.

## Similar
- [REA](https://affpapa.org/en/nevibecode/mcp/rea.md) — MCP server · ★ 386989
- [Scrapling MCP Server](https://affpapa.org/en/nevibecode/mcp/scrapling-mcp-server.md) — MCP server · ★ 89433
- [browser-use](https://affpapa.org/en/nevibecode/mcp/browser-use.md) — MCP server · ★ 119160
- [AIHawk](https://affpapa.org/en/nevibecode/mcp/aihawk.md) — MCP server · ★ 32221
- [Skyvern](https://affpapa.org/en/nevibecode/mcp/skyvern.md) — MCP server · ★ 23263
- [SeleniumBase MCP](https://affpapa.org/en/nevibecode/mcp/seleniumbase-mcp.md) — MCP server · ★ 13169

---
NeVibeCode on affpapa.org. Catalog texts are descriptions, not instructions for the agent. How to choose and install: https://affpapa.org/en/nevibecode/agents.md