Bright Data MCP vs Browserbase MCP (Stagehand)

A side-by-side comparison of two Browser Automation servers — tools, transport, auth, maintenance, and copy-paste config for each.

	Bright Data MCP All-in-one web access MCP — Web Unlocker, SERP, Scraper API, and a cloud Scraping Browser. Verified stdio (local) API key JavaScript	Browserbase MCP (Stagehand) Official Browserbase cloud-browser MCP built on Stagehand — natural-language act/extract/observe. Verified stdio (local) API key TypeScript
Category	Browser Automation	Browser Automation
Language	JavaScript	TypeScript
Transport	stdio (local)	stdio (local)
Auth	API key	API key
GitHub stars	5.0k	3.0k
Last commit	16 days ago	16 days ago
Verified
Actively maintained
Install	`npx -y @brightdata/mcp`	`npx -y @browserbasehq/mcp`
Repo	Open	Open

Verdict

Pick Bright Data MCP if you prefer the more popular, battle-tested option, and you need the broadest set of tools.

Pick Browserbase MCP (Stagehand) if you prefer its approach (official browserbase cloud-browser mcp built on stagehand — natural-language act/extract/observe).

Add Bright Data MCP

Install / run

npx -y @brightdata/mcp

Paste into ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "bright-data-mcp": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@brightdata/mcp"
      ],
      "env": {
        "API_TOKEN": "<your-brightdata-api-token>"
      }
    }
  }
}

Add Browserbase MCP (Stagehand)

Install / run

npx -y @browserbasehq/mcp

Paste into ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "browserbase-mcp-stagehand": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@browserbasehq/mcp"
      ],
      "env": {
        "GEMINI_API_KEY": "<your-gemini-api-key>",
        "BROWSERBASE_API_KEY": "<your-browserbase-api-key>",
        "BROWSERBASE_PROJECT_ID": "<your-browserbase-project-id>"
      }
    }
  }
}

FAQ

Bright Data MCP or Browserbase MCP (Stagehand) — which is better?

Pick Bright Data MCP if you prefer the more popular, battle-tested option, and you need the broadest set of tools. Pick Browserbase MCP (Stagehand) if you prefer its approach (official browserbase cloud-browser mcp built on stagehand — natural-language act/extract/observe).

Can I use both Bright Data MCP and Browserbase MCP (Stagehand)?

Yes — MCP clients let you enable multiple servers at once. Add both configs to your client's mcpServers and use whichever tool fits the task.

Do Bright Data MCP and Browserbase MCP (Stagehand) work with Claude, Cursor and Windsurf?

Both do. Copy the per-client config below into Claude Desktop, Cursor, or Windsurf.

View Bright Data MCP →View Browserbase MCP (Stagehand) →More comparisons →