Exa MCP Server vs Scrapi

A side-by-side look at the Exa MCP Server and Scrapi MCP servers: transport, auth, tools, quality signals, and the config to install either one in Claude, Cursor, Windsurf or VS Code.

Exa MCP Server logoExa MCP ServerSearch & Data Extraction · Local subprocess (stdio)A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server lets AI assistants like Claude use the Exa AI Search API for web searches. This setup allows AI models to get real-time web information in a safe and controlled way.73GreatAuth: no auth requiredScrapi logoScrapiSearch & Data Extraction · Local subprocess (stdio)Web scraping for AI agents. Converts URLs to clean, LLM-ready Markdown with anti-bot bypass.59GoodAuth: not declared

Verdict: choose Exa MCP Server for search & data extraction work as a local process; choose Scrapi for search & data extraction as a local process. You can also run both side by side in one mcpServers block.

Which MCP server should you choose?

Exa MCP Server logoChoose Exa MCP Server when

  • You need dedicated capabilities in the Search & Data Extraction domain.
  • You prefer a local stdio subprocess transport.
  • Its auth model fits you: No auth required.
  • You want tools like web_search_exa, web_fetch_exa.
Explore Exa MCP Server

Scrapi logoChoose Scrapi when

  • You need dedicated capabilities in the Search & Data Extraction domain.
  • You prefer a local stdio subprocess transport.
  • You have the keys it needs: SCRAPI_API_KEY.
  • You want tools like scrape_url, scrape_urls, get_usage.
Explore Scrapi

Feature & specification comparison

Rows where the two servers differ are marked.

SpecExa MCP Server logoExa MCP ServerScrapi logoScrapi
CategorySearch & Data ExtractionSearch & Data Extraction
Quality signal73/100 · Great59/100 · Good
Install commandConfirmedConfirmed
TransportLocal subprocess (stdio)Local subprocess (stdio)
AuthNo auth requiredNot declared
PricingFreeNot declared
Required env varsNone listedSCRAPI_API_KEY
Verified ownerCommunity listingCommunity listing
GitHub stars5,1505
Directory activity 10 views 0 installs 0 upvotes 1 views 0 installs 0 upvotes
Tools25

Tools & capabilities

Exa MCP Server tools 2

  • web_search_exaSearch the web for any topic and get clean, ready-to-use content. Best for: Finding current information, news, facts, people, companies, or answering questions about any topic. Returns: Clean text content from top search results. Query tips: describe the ideal page, not keywords. "blog post comparing React and Vue performance" not "React vs Vue". Use category:people / category:company to search through Linkedin profiles / companies respectively. If highlights are insufficient, follow up with web_fetch_exa on the best URLs.
  • web_fetch_exaRead a webpage's full content as clean markdown. Use after web_search_exa when highlights are insufficient or to read any URL. Best for: Extracting full content from known URLs. Batch multiple URLs in one call. Returns: Clean text content and metadata from the page(s).

Scrapi tools 5

  • scrape_urlScrapes a webpage and returns the content in AI-readable Markdown format. Can access blocked sites through browser rendering.
  • scrape_urlsScrapes multiple webpages in parallel and returns the content in AI-readable Markdown format. Can access blocked sites through browser rendering.
  • get_usageCheck API usage and remaining credits. Returns current plan, subscription credits, purchased credits, and total remaining credits.
  • scraper_server_statusCheck the status of all ScraperServer instances. Shows server health, circuit breaker state, failure counts, and last success/failure times.
  • get_billingRetrieve MCP billing information: subscription details, available plans, daily usage history, or spending limits.

Ready-to-paste client configs

Paste either block (or both) into your client config, e.g. claude_desktop_config.json or ~/.cursor/mcp.json. We only show a config when the install command is confirmed.

Exa MCP Server

mcpServers (Claude Desktop / Cursor)
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "exa-labs-exa-mcp-server": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "exa-mcp-server"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Scrapi

mcpServers (Claude Desktop / Cursor)
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "scrapi": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@scrapi.ai/mcp-server"
      ],
      "env": {
        "SCRAPI_API_KEY": "YOUR_SCRAPI_API_KEY_HERE"
      }
    }
  }
}

Frequently asked questions

Exa MCP Server is categorized under Search & Data Extraction and uses a local stdio subprocess. Scrapi belongs to Search & Data Extraction and uses a local stdio subprocess. Pick Exa MCP Server for search & data extraction work and Scrapi for search & data extraction.

Copy the mcpServers block from the config section on this page into your client's config (for example claude_desktop_config.json or ~/.cursor/mcp.json), then fully restart the client.

Exa MCP Server is listed as free. Auth: no auth required. Scrapi has no declared pricing — check the project's own site. If a server needs environment variables such as API keys, define them under the env key in your client's MCP config.

Yes. MCP clients support multiple servers: add exa-labs-exa-mcp-server and scrapi as separate keys in the same mcpServers object, and your assistant will call tools from either one.

On AllMCPs, Exa MCP Server has a quality signal of 73/100 (Great) with 10 views, 0 installs and 5,150 GitHub stars. Scrapi has 59/100 (Good) with 1 views, 0 installs and 5 GitHub stars.