How to add Perplexity to Windsurf

Official Perplexity MCP server — web search, ask, deep research, and reasoning via Sonar models. Paste the config into ~/.codeium/windsurf/mcp_config.json and restart Windsurf.

Last updated June 15, 2026 · 2.3k★ · stdio · apikey · official

Windsurf config for Perplexity

npx -y @perplexity-ai/mcp-server

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "perplexity": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@perplexity-ai/mcp-server"
      ],
      "env": {
        "PERPLEXITY_API_KEY": "<your-perplexity-api-key>"
      }
    }
  }
}

Setup steps

1Open Windsurf → Cascade → the hammer/MCP icon → Configure (or edit ~/.codeium/windsurf/mcp_config.json).
2Paste the Perplexity config below.
3Fill in placeholder secrets, then save.
4Click Refresh in the MCP panel.
5Perplexity's tools become available to Cascade.

Before you start

Node.js with npx available
A Perplexity API key from the API portal at https://www.perplexity.ai/account/api/group (set as PERPLEXITY_API_KEY)
API access requires adding a payment method / credits to your Perplexity account

What Perplexity can do in Windsurf

perplexity_search

Direct web search via the Perplexity Search API, returning ranked search results.

perplexity_ask

General-purpose conversational answers with real-time web search using the sonar-pro model.

perplexity_research

Deep, comprehensive research and detailed reports using the sonar-deep-research model.

perplexity_reason

Advanced reasoning and problem-solving for complex analytical tasks using sonar-reasoning-pro.

Security

Requires a PERPLEXITY_API_KEY that incurs usage charges; keep it secret and rotate if exposed. Returned answers summarize live web content, so verify citations before relying on them for high-stakes decisions.

Perplexity + Windsurf FAQ

Where is the Windsurf config file?

Windsurf reads MCP servers from ~/.codeium/windsurf/mcp_config.json. Paste the Perplexity config there under the "mcpServers" key and restart the client.

Is Perplexity safe to use with Windsurf?

Is the Perplexity API free?

No. The Sonar API is usage-based and requires a payment method/credits on your Perplexity account; there is no fully free tier for the MCP server's API calls.

What is the difference between perplexity_research and perplexity_reason?

Research uses sonar-deep-research for thorough, report-style analysis, while reason uses sonar-reasoning-pro for structured multi-step problem solving on complex analytical tasks.

What does the strip_thinking parameter do?

On the research and reasoning tools, setting strip_thinking: true removes intermediate thinking tags from the response, reducing token usage in your client's context.

View repo Full Perplexity page