Perplexity MCP server

The Perplexity MCP Server connects AI assistants like Claude and Cursor to the Perplexity API, enabling them to search the web for up-to-date information and perform complex reasoning tasks. This integration allows assistants to access real-time data and specialized reasoning capabilities without leaving their interface.

Installation Options

Using Homebrew (macOS and Linux)

brew tap alcova-ai/tap
brew install perplexity-mcp

From Source

git clone https://github.com/Alcova-AI/perplexity-mcp.git
cd perplexity-mcp
go build -o perplexity-mcp-server .

From Binary Releases

Download pre-built binaries from the releases page.

Setting Up with AI Assistants

Claude Code Integration

claude mcp add-json --scope user perplexity-mcp '{"type":"stdio","command":"perplexity-mcp","env":{"PERPLEXITY_API_KEY":"pplx-YOUR-API-KEY-HERE"}}'

Claude Desktop Integration

1. Open the Claude Desktop configuration file:

code ~/Library/Application\ Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

2. Add the Perplexity MCP server configuration:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "perplexity-mcp": {
      "command": "perplexity-mcp",
      "args": [
        "--model",
        "sonar-pro",
        "--reasoning-model",
        "sonar-reasoning-pro"
      ],
      "env": {
        "PERPLEXITY_API_KEY": "pplx-YOUR-API-KEY-HERE"
      }
    }
  }
}

Configuration Options

Command Line Arguments

• --model, -m: Specify the Perplexity model for search (default: "sonar-pro")
• --reasoning-model, -r: Specify the Perplexity model for reasoning (default: "sonar-reasoning-pro")

Environment Variables

• PERPLEXITY_API_KEY: Your Perplexity API key (required)
• PERPLEXITY_MODEL: Alternative way to set the search model
• PERPLEXITY_REASONING_MODEL: Alternative way to set the reasoning model

Example Configuration

perplexity-mcp --model sonar-pro --reasoning-model sonar-reasoning-pro

Running the Server Directly

1. Set your API key:

export PERPLEXITY_API_KEY=your-api-key-here

2. Launch the server:

perplexity-mcp

Once configured, your AI assistant will have access to:

• Web search capabilities via the perplexity_ask tool
• Enhanced reasoning abilities via the perplexity_reason tool

How to install this MCP server

For Claude Code

To add this MCP server to Claude Code, run this command in your terminal:

claude mcp add-json "perplexity-mcp" '{"command":"perplexity-mcp","args":["--model","sonar-pro","--reasoning-model","sonar-reasoning-pro"],"env":{"PERPLEXITY_API_KEY":"pplx-YOUR-API-KEY-HERE"}}'

See the official Claude Code MCP documentation for more details.

For Cursor

There are two ways to add an MCP server to Cursor. The most common way is to add the server globally in the ~/.cursor/mcp.json file so that it is available in all of your projects.

If you only need the server in a single project, you can add it to the project instead by creating or adding it to the .cursor/mcp.json file.

Adding an MCP server to Cursor globally

To add a global MCP server go to Cursor Settings > Tools & Integrations and click "New MCP Server".

When you click that button the ~/.cursor/mcp.json file will be opened and you can add your server like this:

{
    "mcpServers": {
        "perplexity-mcp": {
            "command": "perplexity-mcp",
            "args": [
                "--model",
                "sonar-pro",
                "--reasoning-model",
                "sonar-reasoning-pro"
            ],
            "env": {
                "PERPLEXITY_API_KEY": "pplx-YOUR-API-KEY-HERE"
            }
        }
    }
}

Adding an MCP server to a project

To add an MCP server to a project you can create a new .cursor/mcp.json file or add it to the existing one. This will look exactly the same as the global MCP server example above.

How to use the MCP server

Once the server is installed, you might need to head back to Settings > MCP and click the refresh button.

The Cursor agent will then be able to see the available tools the added MCP server has available and will call them when it needs to.

You can also explicitly ask the agent to use the tool by mentioning the tool name and describing what the function does.

For Claude Desktop

To add this MCP server to Claude Desktop:

1. Find your configuration file:

• macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
• Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json
• Linux: ~/.config/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

2. Add this to your configuration file:

{
    "mcpServers": {
        "perplexity-mcp": {
            "command": "perplexity-mcp",
            "args": [
                "--model",
                "sonar-pro",
                "--reasoning-model",
                "sonar-reasoning-pro"
            ],
            "env": {
                "PERPLEXITY_API_KEY": "pplx-YOUR-API-KEY-HERE"
            }
        }
    }
}

3. Restart Claude Desktop for the changes to take effect