exa-code
: fast, efficient web context for coding agents
Vibe coding should never have a bad vibe. exa-code
is a huge step towards coding agents that never hallucinate.
When your coding agent makes a search query, exa-code
searches over billions of GitHub repos, docs pages, StackOverflow posts, and more to find the perfect, token-efficient context that the agent needs to code correctly. It’s powered by the Exa search engine.
Examples of queries you can make with exa-code
:
- use Exa search in python and make sure content is always livecrawled
- use correct syntax for vercel ai sdk to call gpt-5 nano asking it how are you
exa-code
. To maximize performance, be sure to leave only exa-code
turned on in your MCP client.
You can also use exa-code
through Smithery without an Exa API key.
Exa MCP Server enables AI assistants like Claude to perform real-time web searches through the Exa Search API, allowing them to access up-to-date information from the internet. It is open-source, check out GitHub.
Remote Exa MCP
Connect directly to Exa’s hosted MCP server using this URL:Claude Desktop Configuration for Remote MCP
Add this to your Claude Desktop configuration file:Cursor and Claude Code Configuration for Remote MCP
For Cursor and Claude Code, use this HTTP-based configuration format:Available Tools
Exa MCP includes several specialized search tools:Tool | Description |
---|---|
get_code_context_exa | NEW! Search and get relevant code snippets, examples, and documentation from open source libraries, GitHub repositories, and programming frameworks. Perfect for finding up-to-date code documentation, implementation examples, API usage patterns, and best practices from real codebases |
web_search_exa | Performs real-time web searches with optimized results and content extraction |
deep_researcher_start | Start a smart AI researcher for complex questions. The AI will search the web, read many sources, and think deeply about your question to create a detailed research report |
deep_researcher_check | Check if your research is ready and get the results. Use this after starting a research task to see if it’s done and get your comprehensive report |
company_research | Comprehensive company research tool that crawls company websites to gather detailed information about businesses |
crawling | Extracts content from specific URLs, useful for reading articles, PDFs, or any web page when you have the exact URL |
linkedin_search | Search LinkedIn for companies and people using Exa AI. Simply include company names, person names, or specific LinkedIn URLs in your query |
Usage Examples
Once configured, you can ask Claude to perform searches:Code Search Examples
- “Show me how to use React hooks with TypeScript”
- “Find examples of how to implement authentication with NextJS”
- “Get documentation and examples for the pandas library”
Other Search Examples
- “Research the company exa.ai and find information about their pricing”
- “Start a deep research project on the impact of artificial intelligence on healthcare, then check when it’s complete to get a comprehensive report”
Local Installation
Prerequisites
- Node.js v18 or higher.
- Claude Desktop installed (optional). Exa MCP also works with other MCP-compatible clients like Cursor, Windsurf, and more).
- An Exa API key (see above).
Using Claude Code
The quickest way to set up Exa MCP is using Claude Code:YOUR_API_KEY
with your Exa API key from above.
Using NPX
The simplest way to install and run Exa MCP is via NPX:Configuring Claude Desktop
To configure Claude Desktop to use Exa MCP:-
Enable Developer Mode in Claude Desktop
- Open Claude Desktop
- Click on the top-left menu
- Enable Developer Mode
-
Open the Configuration File
- After enabling Developer Mode, go to Settings
- Navigate to the Developer Option
- Click “Edit Config” to open the configuration file
Windows: -
Add Exa MCP Configuration
Add the following to your configuration:
Replace
your-api-key-here
with your actual Exa API key. -
Enabling Specific Tools
To enable only code search (recommended for developers):
To enable code search and web search together:To enable only web search:To enable deep researcher tools:
-
Restart Claude Desktop
- Completely quit Claude Desktop (not just close the window)
- Start Claude Desktop again
- Look for the 🔌 icon to verify the Exa server is connected
Troubleshooting
Common Issues
-
Server Not Found
- Ensure the npm package is correctly installed
-
API Key Issues
- Confirm your EXA_API_KEY is valid
- Make sure there are no spaces or quotes around the API key
-
Connection Problems
- Restart Claude Desktop completely