mcp-searxng MCP — Use Cases, Install & Live Demo

Why use it

Key features

Two tools: searxng_web_search and web_url_read
Search filters: pagination, time range, language, safe search
web_url_read returns clean Markdown with heading/paragraph filtering
Works with self-hosted or public SearXNG instances via SEARXNG_URL
HTTP transport via MCP_HTTP_PORT, plus STDIO default

Live Demo

What it looks like in practice

searxng.replay ▶ ready

0/0

Install

Pick your client

~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json · Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "searxng": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "mcp-searxng"
      ],
      "_inferred": true
    }
  }
}

Open Claude Desktop → Settings → Developer → Edit Config. Restart after saving.

~/.cursor/mcp.json · .cursor/mcp.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "searxng": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "mcp-searxng"
      ],
      "_inferred": true
    }
  }
}

Cursor uses the same mcpServers schema as Claude Desktop. Project config wins over global.

VS Code → Cline → MCP Servers → Edit

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "searxng": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "mcp-searxng"
      ],
      "_inferred": true
    }
  }
}

Click the MCP Servers icon in the Cline sidebar, then "Edit Configuration".

~/.codeium/windsurf/mcp_config.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "searxng": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "mcp-searxng"
      ],
      "_inferred": true
    }
  }
}

Same shape as Claude Desktop. Restart Windsurf to pick up changes.

~/.continue/config.json

{
  "mcpServers": [
    {
      "name": "searxng",
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "mcp-searxng"
      ]
    }
  ]
}

Continue uses an array of server objects rather than a map.

~/.config/zed/settings.json

{
  "context_servers": {
    "searxng": {
      "command": {
        "path": "npx",
        "args": [
          "-y",
          "mcp-searxng"
        ]
      }
    }
  }
}

Add to context_servers. Zed hot-reloads on save.

claude mcp add searxng -- npx -y mcp-searxng

One-liner. Verify with claude mcp list. Remove with claude mcp remove.

Use Cases

Real-world ways to use mcp-searxng

Give your AI private web search via self-hosted SearXNG

👤 Privacy-minded devs, self-hosters ⏱ ~10 min intermediate

When to use: You don't want Tavily/Brave/Google to see every AI query.

Prerequisites

A SearXNG instance — docker run -p 8080:8080 searxng/searxng (see docs for config)
SEARXNG_URL env var — Set to http://localhost:8080 or your remote instance

Flow

Search

Search: 'mcp protocol spec 2026'. Time range last 3 months.✓ Copied

→ Result list
Read top result

web_url_read on the top result — give me the headings and first 5 paragraphs.✓ Copied

→ Markdown excerpt
Follow up

Based on that page, what's the single most important change in the spec?✓ Copied

→ Grounded answer

Outcome: Full research loop with zero third-party key exposure.

Pitfalls

SearXNG instance rate-limits or fails due to upstream engine blocking it — Rotate engines in SearXNG settings; consider running multiple instances
Self-hosted SearXNG needs periodic updates as engines change — Pin image tag and update monthly

Combine with: filesystem

Fact-check a claim against multiple sources

👤 Writers, analysts ⏱ ~10 min beginner

When to use: You need to confirm something across a few independent sources.

Flow

Search

Search the exact claim phrase. Return top 10 from different domains.✓ Copied

→ Diverse result list
Cross-read

web_url_read on the 3 most authoritative — quote the sections that speak to the claim.✓ Copied

→ Quoted excerpts
Verdict

Claim: supported, contested, or false? Cite specifically.✓ Copied

→ Verdict with citations

Outcome: A cited fact-check.

Build a zero-API-key research assistant for your team

👤 Teams that won't/can't buy search API keys ⏱ ~40 min intermediate

When to use: Everyone wants AI search but no one wants to manage Tavily keys per person.

Flow

Run SearXNG behind your intranet

Set up SearXNG container on the team server, point mcp-searxng at it.✓ Copied

→ All team AI clients search via shared instance
Test from multiple clients

Run the same query from Claude Desktop and Cursor — both should hit the same SearXNG.✓ Copied

→ Consistent results

Outcome: Team-wide AI search with one instance, no per-user billing.

Combinations

Pair with other MCPs for X10 leverage

searxng + filesystem

Research and save notes

Search 'SBOM best practices', web_url_read the top 3, save a distilled memo to ./notes/sbom.md.✓ Copied

searxng + kindly-web-search

Stack both — kindly for platform-aware full fetches, searxng for private general search

Use searxng for the initial search; if any result is SO/GitHub, fall back to kindly for richer content.✓ Copied

Tools

What this MCP exposes

Tool	Inputs	When to call	Cost
searxng_web_search	query: str, pageno?: int, time_range?: day\|week\|month\|year, language?: str, safesearch?: 0\|1\|2	Any web search	free (your SearXNG)
web_url_read	url: str, start_heading?: int, end_heading?: int, start_paragraph?: int, end_paragraph?: int	Clean extraction of an article	free

Cost & Limits

What this costs to run

API quota: Unlimited (your SearXNG instance)
Tokens per call: Search: 500-1500 tokens. Read: 1-10k depending on page.
Monetary: Free
Tip: Narrow queries with time_range and language — cuts both tokens and SearXNG load.

Security

Permissions, secrets, blast radius

Credential storage: No keys needed; just SEARXNG_URL

Data egress: Your SearXNG instance (which in turn queries upstream engines)

Public SearXNG instances can be monitored by their operators — host your own for real privacy.
Extracted content reflects the live page — verify for critical decisions.

Troubleshooting

Common errors and fixes

Connection refused

SearXNG not running or SEARXNG_URL wrong. curl the URL directly first.

Verify: curl $SEARXNG_URL

Empty results for any query

SearXNG blocked by upstream engines or misconfigured. Check /search directly in browser.

Verify: Open $SEARXNG_URL/search?q=test

web_url_read returns mostly nav junk

Some sites are JS-heavy; narrow with heading/paragraph ranges, or use a different extractor.

Alternatives

mcp-searxng vs others

Alternative	When to use it instead	Tradeoff
omnisearch	You want multi-provider + AI search	Requires provider API keys
kindly-web-search	You want platform-aware full content	Still needs Serper/Tavily key unless paired with SearXNG
brave-search	You're OK with one commercial provider	Paid above the free tier

More

Resources

📖 Read the official README on GitHub

🐙 Browse open issues

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