local-websearch-mcp

Small Python MCP server that provides two tools:

• web_search: search the public web through DuckDuckGo HTML results

• web_fetch: fetch a page and extract readable text

No API key is required.

Requirements

• Linux server or workstation

• Python 3.10+

• Outbound internet access for:

  • pip install

  • web searches and page fetches at runtime

Related MCP server: mcp-ddg-research

Quick install

git clone <this-repo-url> local-websearch-mcp
cd local-websearch-mcp
chmod +x install.sh
./install.sh

That creates .venv/, installs the package, and runs a built-in health check.

Manual install

python3 -m venv .venv
. .venv/bin/activate
pip install --upgrade pip
pip install .
local-websearch-mcp --self-test

Run

.venv/bin/local-websearch-mcp

Or:

python -m local_websearch_mcp.server

MCP client config

Use the installed executable directly:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "local-websearch": {
      "command": "/absolute/path/to/local-websearch-mcp/.venv/bin/local-websearch-mcp"
    }
  }
}

Health check

.venv/bin/local-websearch-mcp --self-test

Expected output:

{
  "server": "local-websearch",
  "status": "ok",
  "tools": ["web_search", "web_fetch"]
}

Tools

• web_search(query: str, max_results: int = 5)

• web_fetch(url: str, max_chars: int = 12000)

Local demo

python examples/simple_client.py

Repo contents

• src/local_websearch_mcp/: MCP server and helpers

• examples/: local demo client

• install.sh: one-command local install

Notes

• DuckDuckGo HTML markup can change, so selectors may need maintenance.

• This server uses direct HTTP requests. Respect site terms and robots policies.