AI-agent web search, answer-ready content. Beats Tavily: 60.7% of quality duels, 20.2% fewer tokens.
Give any MCP client real-time web search with answer-ready results. SERPdive is the AI Search API: ask a question, get the actual content of the best pages, extracted, cleaned, and sized for an LLM. On a public, replayable 1,000-question benchmark, SERPdive runs at the same speed as Tavily, feeds your LLM 20.2% fewer tokens, and wins 60.7% of decided quality duels. If you are evaluating Tavily alternatives, that benchmark is public and replayable end to end: same questions, same judge, your machine.
There is a free tier, and it has no ceiling. The krill model is free and unlimited under fair use — no card, no credits, nothing to decrement. It returns the shortest set of sentences that still answers (about 700 tokens a search, roughly half what the usual alternatives send), one request at a time, at low priority. Use it to build; switch one word to mako when you need depth and steady latency.
One tool, serpdive_search. Two ways to run it:
https://mcp.serpdive.com, nothing to install.npx -y serpdive-mcp, stdio, zero dependencies.Get a free API key at serpdive.com/dashboard/keys (no card required).
claude mcp add --transport http serpdive https://mcp.serpdive.com \
--header "Authorization: Bearer sd_live_YOUR_KEY"
{
"mcpServers": {
"serpdive": {
"url": "https://mcp.serpdive.com/?key=sd_live_YOUR_KEY"
}
}
}
Both https://mcp.serpdive.com/ and https://mcp.serpdive.com/mcp answer, so either URL shape works.
Add to claude_desktop_config.json (Settings > Developer > Edit Config):
{
"mcpServers": {
"serpdive": {
"command": "npx",
"args": ["-y", "serpdive-mcp"],
"env": { "SERPDIVE_API_KEY": "sd_live_YOUR_KEY" }
}
}
}
claude mcp add serpdive --env SERPDIVE_API_KEY=sd_live_YOUR_KEY -- npx -y serpdive-mcp
{
"mcpServers": {
"serpdive": {
"command": "npx",
"args": ["-y", "serpdive-mcp"],
"env": { "SERPDIVE_API_KEY": "sd_live_YOUR_KEY" }
}
}
}
serpdive_search(query, model?, max_results?)
| Argument | Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
query | string, required | The search, in any language. Localization is automatic. |
model | "mako" | "moby" | mako (default): the fact-carrying sentences of each page, fast. moby: full page text — slower (~1s more) and several times more tokens; use only when mako's key sentences are insufficient (long-document analysis, deep research). |
max_results | integer, 1-10 | Cap on delivered results. Omit for the engine's calibrated mix. |
The response is the raw SERPdive JSON: query, model, response_time_ms, optional extra_info, and results as [{ url, title, date?, content }]. Failed searches are never billed.
There is no answer argument here, on purpose. Over MCP the consumer is always an
LLM, which can write its own answer from the extracted content — a second,
server-side synthesis costs a round-trip on every search and buys nothing. The
API still offers answer: true for callers that are
not models.
A mako search costs 1 credit, moby 1.5. Every account gets free monthly credits, no card required. Full reference: serpdive.com/docs.
MIT
Source-derived launch command. Check the maintainer’s required arguments and credentials before running:
npx -y serpdive-mcpMerge this template into ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json. Keep existing servers. Add any arguments, credentials, and permissions required by the maintainer; this template has not been install-tested.
{
"mcpServers": {
"com-serpdive-serpdive-mcp": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"serpdive-mcp"
]
}
}
}Restart Claude Desktop completely for changes to take effect. Confirm the server appears connected in the client’s tool list, then try a read-only example from its documentation.
Claude Desktop setup referenceserpdive-mcpnpmSERPdive Web Search works with any MCP-compatible client. Copy the config snippet from the Configuration section above and add it to the file shown for your client, then restart the application.
~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.jsonRestart Claude Desktop completely for changes to take effect.~/.cursor/mcp.jsonRestart Cursor for changes to take effect..vscode/mcp.jsonReload VS Code window for changes to take effect.~/.codeium/windsurf/mcp_config.jsonRestart Windsurf for changes to take effect..mcp.jsonSave at the project root, then start Claude Code in that project and review the MCP server approval prompt. Keep real credentials out of shared files.