Staan vs Open WebSearch
A side-by-side look at the Staan and Open WebSearch MCP servers: transport, auth, tools, quality signals, and the config to install either one in Claude, Cursor, Windsurf or VS Code.
S
StaanSearch & Data Extraction · Local subprocess (stdio)Web search with full-page content and grounded answers from the Staan API.52GoodAuth: api key requiredVerdict: choose Staan for search & data extraction work as a local process; choose Open WebSearch 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?
SChoose Staan when
- You need dedicated capabilities in the Search & Data Extraction domain.
- You prefer a local stdio subprocess transport.
- Its auth model fits you: API key required.
- You have the keys it needs:
STAAN_API_KEY. - You want tools like
web_search, answer.
Choose Open WebSearch 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
search, fetchLinuxDoArticle, fetchCsdnArticle.
Feature & specification comparison
Rows where the two servers differ are marked.
| Spec | S Staan | |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Search & Data Extraction | Search & Data Extraction |
| Quality signal | 52/100 · Good | 71/100 · Great |
| Install command | Confirmed | Confirmed |
| Transport | Local subprocess (stdio) | Local subprocess (stdio) |
| Auth | API key required | No auth required |
| Pricing | Not declared | Free |
| Required env vars | STAAN_API_KEY | None listed |
Tools & capabilities
Staan tools 2
web_searchSearches the web through `POST /v2/search/web`. Each call returns one page of up to 10 resultsanswerAsks `POST /v2/answer` for an answer grounded in web sources (or in sources you supply). The
Open WebSearch tools 6
searchSearch the web using multiple engines (e.g., Baidu, Bing, DuckDuckGo, CSDN, Exa, Brave, Juejin(掘金), Startpage, Sogou(搜狗)) with no API key required. searchMode meanings: omit or set auto to use the server configured SEARCH_MODE; request forces request-based search; playwright forces browser-based search.fetchLinuxDoArticleFetch full article content from a linux.do post URLfetchCsdnArticleFetch full article content from a csdn post URLfetchGithubReadmeFetch README content from a GitHub repository URLfetchWebContentFetch content from a public HTTP(S) URL (supports Markdown files and normal web pages)fetchJuejinArticleFetch full article content from a Juejin(掘金) post URL
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.
Staan
{
"mcpServers": {
"staan": {
"command": "uvx",
"args": [
"staan-mcp"
],
"env": {
"STAAN_API_KEY": "YOUR_STAAN_API_KEY_HERE"
}
}
}
}
Open WebSearch
{
"mcpServers": {
"aas-ee-open-websearch": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"open-websearch@latest"
]
}
}
}
Frequently asked questions
Staan is categorized under Search & Data Extraction and uses a local stdio subprocess. Open WebSearch belongs to Search & Data Extraction and uses a local stdio subprocess. Pick Staan for search & data extraction work and Open WebSearch 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.
Staan has no declared pricing — check the project's own site. Auth: api key required. Open WebSearch is listed as free. Auth: no auth required. 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 staan and aas-ee-open-websearch as separate keys in the same mcpServers object, and your assistant will call tools from either one.
On AllMCPs, Staan has a quality signal of 52/100 (Good) with 0 views, 0 installs and 0 GitHub stars. Open WebSearch has 71/100 (Great) with 3 views, 0 installs and 1,867 GitHub stars.
