Add the Brave Search MCP server to Claude Code

Config last verified Jun 1, 2026

The exact config to run Brave Search in Claude Code — paste it in, restart, and the tools load.

Prerequisites

Claude Code installed.
BRAVE_API_KEY — API key for the Brave Search API.

Setup

1. Open `~/.claude.json`

2. Add this configuration

Add to ~/.claude.json

~/.claude.json

json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "brave-search": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@brave/brave-search-mcp-server",
        "--transport",
        "stdio"
      ],
      "env": {
        "BRAVE_API_KEY": "<BRAVE_API_KEY>"
      }
    }
  }
}

Or via CLI

bash

claude mcp add brave-search -- npx -y @brave/brave-search-mcp-server --transport stdio

3. Restart Claude Code and confirm the Brave Search tools load.

Gotchas

Claude Code stores MCP servers under an "mcpServers" object in ~/.claude.json. It also reads a project-scoped .mcp.json and supports adding servers from the command line with "claude mcp add". Each entry must declare either a "type" or a "command"; Claude Code refuses an entry that has neither. Remote servers connect natively over Streamable HTTP with OAuth.

← Back to the Brave Search MCP server