Search the web
Perplexity Search API
Web search API that returns ranked results as JSON with query-relevant page text, without a generated answer.
Methods
| Method | Used for | How |
|---|---|---|
| API key | REST API, SDKs, CLI, MCP server | Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY; SDKs read PERPLEXITY_API_KEY |
| OAuth 2.1 with PKCE | Remote MCP server only | Add the server without credentials and sign in with a Perplexity account in the browser |
Source4Perplexity API MCP server
Getting access
- Who creates the account
- A person signs up (Google, Apple, SSO or email code) and creates a project; the Stripe Projects CLI can also create the account, project and key from a terminal or coding agent9
- Where to get a key
- API Console,
https://console.perplexity.ai/project/keys10 - Other requirements
- A project must exist before a key can be generated; admin permissions and a credit card for payment setup; Stripe Projects needs a Stripe payment method10
Read from Perplexity AI’s own pages on 2026-11-04. Every number links to the page a value came from. For agents, the same facts as markdown: /tools/search-the-web/perplexity.md