Exa MCP Compatibility Matrix
4,825 · Updated 5d ago
| Client | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Claude Desktopsetup ↗ | ✅ Supported | |
| Cursor | ✅ Supported | |
| VS Code | ✅ Supported | |
| Codex | ⚠️ Community | |
| Windsurf | ⚠️ Community |
Last verified: 2026-08-06 · Not yet human-reviewed — treat as community-sourced.
Setup by client
Claude Desktop
- Create an Exa API key at the Exa dashboard
- Add `npx -y exa-mcp-server` to `claude_desktop_config.json` with env `EXA_API_KEY` (or use the hosted endpoint via `npx -y mcp-remote https://mcp.exa.ai/mcp`)
- Restart and test with a search query
Cursor
- Use `cursor mcp add exa "npx -y exa-mcp-server"` and export `EXA_API_KEY`
- Verify the server shows as connected in Cursor Settings → MCP
Known issues & workarounds
⚠︎ Rate limit errors on research-heavy prompts
Exa free tier is limited; batch queries or upgrade the plan. The server also supports a controlled mode via `EXA_SEARCH` preferences.
Topics
code-searchcodesearchcrawlingmcpmcp-servermodel-context-protocolweb-searchwebsearch