Perplexity Ask MCP Server Setup Guide

Step 1: Clone the Repository

Clone the repository to your local machine:

git clone [email protected]:ppl-ai/modelcontextprotocol.git

Navigate to the perplexity-ask directory and install the necessary dependencies:

cd modelcontextprotocol/perplexity-ask && npm install

Step 2: Get a Sonar API Key

Sign up for a Sonar API account.
Follow the account setup instructions and generate your API key from the developer dashboard.
Set the API key in your environment as PERPLEXITY_API_KEY.

Step 3: Configure Claude Desktop

Download Claude desktop.
Add the following configuration to your claude_desktop_config.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
  "perplexity-ask": {
  "command": "docker",
  "args": [
  "run",
  "-i",
  "--rm",
  "-e",
  "PERPLEXITY_API_KEY",
  "mcp/perplexity-ask"
  ],
  "env": {
  "PERPLEXITY_API_KEY": "YOUR_API_KEY_HERE"
  }
  }
  }
 }

Alternatively, use the NPX configuration:

{
  "mcpServers": {
  "perplexity-ask": {
  "command": "npx",
  "args": [
  "-y",
  "@modelcontextprotocol/server-perplexity-ask"
  ],
  "env": {
  "PERPLEXITY_API_KEY": "YOUR_API_KEY_HERE"
  }
  }
  }
 }

Access the file using:

vim ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

Step 4: Build the Docker Image

Build the Docker image with the following command:

docker build -t mcp/perplexity-ask:latest -f Dockerfile .

Step 5: Testing

Ensure Claude for Desktop is recognizing the tools by looking for the hammer icon.
Click the hammer icon to verify the tools from the Filesystem MCP Server are visible.