Web search over MCP
SpecStream's MCP server gives any agent the most accurate web search API in the world. SpecStream leads WideSearch (60.9, on the low-cost model; the best other API scores 57.6 even on the larger model) and SimpleQA Verified (99). See the benchmarks. Add https://api.specstream.ai/mcp to Claude Code, Cursor, or any MCP client, and the agent can call search_web, read pages with read_pages, and build structured rows with Deep Search, on one sign-in and one balance. SpecStream is the live web data engine for teams and agents.
New accounts get $10 of credit for their first 30 days, no card.
Six MCP servers for web search, side by side
| SpecStream | Tavily | Exa | Perplexity | Parallel | Brave | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WideSearch, low-cost model | 60.9 | 47.9 | 53 | 47 | 45.5 (Fast), 44 (Turbo) | Not in the published scores |
| SimpleQA Verified, larger model | 99 | 92 | 91 | 95 | 97 (Advanced, Basic) | Not in the published scores |
| Remote endpoint | api.specstream.ai/mcp | mcp.tavily.com/mcp/ | mcp.exa.ai/mcp | api.perplexity.ai/mcp | search.parallel.ai/mcp (labeled legacy) | None stated; a local npx server |
| Claude Code install | One claude mcp add line | One claude mcp add line | A plugin install | One claude mcp add line | One claude mcp add line | Not stated |
| Search tool | search_web | tavily_search | web_search_exa | perplexity_search | web_search | brave_web_search |
| Page reading tool | read_pages, $0.80 per 1,000 pages; a page with no text is not charged | tavily_extract | web_fetch_exa | Not stated | web_fetch | Not stated |
| Research tool | Deep Search: structured rows at 5¢, 15¢ or $1 a delivered row | tavily_research | agent_run | perplexity_research | web_research in the main Parallel MCP | Not stated |
| Price per 1,000 searches | $5 | $8 (basic), $16 (advanced) | $7 (auto, fast), $4 (lite, instant) | $5, $1 (Fast Search) | $5 (basic, advanced), $1 (turbo, fast) | $5 |
| Spending cap before a run | A quote with a maximum you approve | Not stated | Not stated | Not stated | Not stated | Not stated |
Why agents search over SpecStream's MCP server
The search tool decides the answer
An agent trusts what its search tool returns. With SpecStream, an agent on the low-cost model scored 60.9 on WideSearch, above every other API in the published scores on either model, and 99 on SimpleQA Verified on the larger model. search_web runs on the same Search API, at the same $5 per 1,000 searches.
One server for the whole engine
search_web answers a question with a value, the page it came from, and the time it was read. read_pages reads pages as markdown at $0.80 per 1,000, and a page with no text is not charged. For a dataset, the agent calls compile to read a request in plain words, quote_capacity_work to price it, and authorize_capacity_work to run it. Rows cost 5¢, 15¢ or $1 each, plus 5¢ for an email and 15¢ for a phone, and a run that finds nothing costs nothing.
Spending the agent cannot exceed
Searches and page reads run at their list price with no approval step. Deep Search runs only after you approve the maximum in its quote, passed as confirm_max_cents, and the run stays under it. Saved requests rerun from hourly to yearly, with changed rows at half rate and unchanged rows at 1¢, and results go to Slack, email, a sheet, a CRM, or a signed webhook.
How SpecStream scores
The same numbers as the benchmarks page, from the official tasks and scorers.
| SpecStream |  Parallel |  Exa |  Tavily |  Perplexity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Web researchWideSearch, GPT-5.6 Luna | 60.9 | 45.5 | 53.0 | 47.9 | 47.0 |
| Factual accuracySimpleQA Verified, GPT-5.6 Luna | 96 | 94 | 91 | 94 | 94 |
| Factual accuracySimpleQA Verified, GPT-5.6 Sol | 99 | 97 | 91 | 92 | 95 |
How to add SpecStream
New accounts get $10 of credit for their first 30 days, no card. In Claude Code, run claude mcp add --transport http specstream https://api.specstream.ai/mcp and sign in with OAuth when it asks, or add --header "Authorization: Bearer $SPECSTREAM_API_KEY" to use a key.
Other clients take the config below. The MCP client guides show where each client keeps it, Cursor included.
{
"mcpServers": {
"specstream": {
"url": "https://api.specstream.ai/mcp",
"headers": { "Authorization": "Bearer ${env:SPECSTREAM_API_KEY}" }
}
}
}Frequently asked questions
Something we didn't answer? Talk to a human
What is the best MCP server for web search?
search_web tool runs the most accurate web search API in the world. SpecStream leads WideSearch (60.9, on the low-cost model; the best other API scores 57.6 even on the larger model) and SimpleQA Verified (99). See the benchmarks. The same server reads pages and builds structured rows.How do I add SpecStream to Claude Code?
claude mcp add --transport http specstream https://api.specstream.ai/mcp and sign in when asked. To use a key, add --header "Authorization: Bearer $SPECSTREAM_API_KEY".What does SpecStream's MCP server cost?
search_web call is $0.005, the Search API's $5 per 1,000. read_pages is $0.80 per 1,000 pages, with no charge for a page with no text. Deep Search rows are 5¢, 15¢ or $1, shown in a quote before anything runs. New accounts get $10 of credit for their first 30 days, no card.Which transport does SpecStream's MCP server use?
https://api.specstream.ai/mcp, with OAuth or a Bearer key. Agents that speak A2A reach the same engine at https://api.specstream.ai/a2a.What does `search_web` return?
answer with its value, page, and read time, ranked rows, and the sources behind them, each with its URL, title, site, snippet, and publish date.Sources
SpecStream wrote this page. Each rival figure comes from that company's own page.
- SpecStream pricingspecstream.ai/pricing, read Nov 8, 2026
- SpecStream for agentsspecstream.ai/agents.md, read Nov 8, 2026
- Other providers' benchmark scores, Sep 9, 2026parallel.ai/benchmarks, read Nov 8, 2026
- Tavily MCPdocs.tavily.com/documentation/mcp, read Nov 8, 2026
- Tavily API creditsdocs.tavily.com/documentation/api-credits, read Nov 8, 2026
- Exa MCPdocs.exa.ai/reference/exa-mcp, read Nov 8, 2026
- Exa pricingexa.ai/pricing, read Nov 8, 2026
- Perplexity MCP serverdocs.perplexity.ai/docs/getting-started/integrations/mcp-server, read Nov 8, 2026
- Perplexity pricingdocs.perplexity.ai/getting-started/pricing, read Nov 8, 2026
- Parallel Search MCPdocs.parallel.ai/integrations/mcp/search-mcp, read Nov 8, 2026
- Parallel pricingdocs.parallel.ai/getting-started/pricing, read Nov 8, 2026
- Brave Search MCP servergithub.com/brave/brave-search-mcp-server, read Nov 8, 2026
- Brave Search APIbrave.com/search/api/, read Nov 8, 2026