exa

Web Search

web_search_exa

Read-onlyIdempotent

Search the web for any topic and get clean, ready-to-use content.

  Best for: Finding current information, news, facts, people, companies, or answering questions about any topic.
  Returns: Clean text content from top search results.

  Query tips:
  describe the ideal page, not keywords. "blog post comparing React and Vue performance" not "React vs Vue".
  Use category:people / category:company to search through Linkedin profiles / companies respectively.
  If highlights are insufficient, follow up with web_fetch_exa on the best URLs.

Input Schema

Name	Required	Description
`query`	Yes	Natural language search query. Should be a semantically rich description of the ideal page, not just keywords. Optionally include category:<type> (company, people) to focus results — e.g. 'category:people John Doe software engineer'.
`objective`	Yes	Goal for this search turn; say which documents should rank first, which should be excluded, and what specific facts or figures to pull from them.
`numResults`	No	Number of search results to return (default: 10).

Schema Changelog

Changes observed during successful MCP inspections.

Changed2 schema fields changedSep 10, 2026

addedInput schema / properties / objective

Added value: +{
+  "description": "Goal for this search turn; say which documents should rank first, which should be excluded, and what specific facts or figures to pull from them.",
+  "maxLength": 4096,
+  "minLength": 1,
+  "type": "string"
+}

changedInput schema / required

Previous value: -[
-  "query"
-]New value: +[
+  "query",
+  "objective"
+]

Changed2 schema fields changedSep 10, 2026

removedInput schema / properties / objective

Removed value: -{
-  "description": "Goal for this search turn; say which documents should rank first, which should be excluded, and what specific facts or figures to pull from them.",
-  "maxLength": 4096,
-  "minLength": 1,
-  "type": "string"
-}

changedInput schema / required

Previous value: -[
-  "query",
-  "objective"
-]New value: +[
+  "query"
+]

Changed2 schema fields changedSep 10, 2026

addedInput schema / properties / objective

Added value: +{
+  "description": "Goal for this search turn; say which documents should rank first, which should be excluded, and what specific facts or figures to pull from them.",
+  "maxLength": 4096,
+  "minLength": 1,
+  "type": "string"
+}

changedInput schema / required

Previous value: -[
-  "query"
-]New value: +[
+  "query",
+  "objective"
+]

Changed2 schema fields changedSep 10, 2026

removedInput schema / properties / objective

Removed value: -{
-  "description": "Goal for this search turn; say which documents should rank first, which should be excluded, and what specific facts or figures to pull from them.",
-  "maxLength": 4096,
-  "minLength": 1,
-  "type": "string"
-}

changedInput schema / required

Previous value: -[
-  "query",
-  "objective"
-]New value: +[
+  "query"
+]

Changed2 schema fields changedSep 10, 2026

addedInput schema / properties / objective

Added value: +{
+  "description": "Goal for this search turn; say which documents should rank first, which should be excluded, and what specific facts or figures to pull from them.",
+  "maxLength": 4096,
+  "minLength": 1,
+  "type": "string"
+}

changedInput schema / required

Previous value: -[
-  "query"
-]New value: +[
+  "query",
+  "objective"
+]

Changed2 schema fields changedSep 10, 2026

removedInput schema / properties / objective

Removed value: -{
-  "description": "Goal for this search turn; say which documents should rank first, which should be excluded, and what specific facts or figures to pull from them.",
-  "maxLength": 4096,
-  "minLength": 1,
-  "type": "string"
-}

changedInput schema / required

Previous value: -[
-  "query",
-  "objective"
-]New value: +[
+  "query"
+]

Changed2 schema fields changedSep 10, 2026

addedInput schema / properties / objective

Added value: +{
+  "description": "Goal for this search turn; say which documents should rank first, which should be excluded, and what specific facts or figures to pull from them.",
+  "maxLength": 4096,
+  "minLength": 1,
+  "type": "string"
+}

changedInput schema / required

Previous value: -[
-  "query"
-]New value: +[
+  "query",
+  "objective"
+]

Changed1 schema field changedSep 9, 2026

removedInput schema / properties / objective

Removed value: -{
-  "description": "The broader task this search is part of. Always include it when known. It supplements the query rather than replacing it so write the query as you normally would.",
-  "maxLength": 4096,
-  "minLength": 1,
-  "type": "string"
-}

Changed1 schema field changedSep 9, 2026

addedInput schema / properties / objective

Added value: +{
+  "description": "The broader task this search is part of. Always include it when known. It supplements the query rather than replacing it so write the query as you normally would.",
+  "maxLength": 4096,
+  "minLength": 1,
+  "type": "string"
+}

Changed1 schema field changedSep 5, 2026

removedInput schema / properties / objective

Removed value: -{
-  "description": "The broader task this search is part of. Always include it when known. It supplements the query rather than replacing it so write the query as you normally would.",
-  "maxLength": 4096,
-  "minLength": 1,
-  "type": "string"
-}

Changed1 schema field changedSep 5, 2026

addedInput schema / properties / objective

Added value: +{
+  "description": "The broader task this search is part of. Always include it when known. It supplements the query rather than replacing it so write the query as you normally would.",
+  "maxLength": 4096,
+  "minLength": 1,
+  "type": "string"
+}

Changed1 schema field changedSep 4, 2026

removedInput schema / properties / objective

Removed value: -{
-  "description": "The broader task this search is part of. Always include it when known. It supplements the query rather than replacing it so write the query as you normally would.",
-  "maxLength": 4096,
-  "minLength": 1,
-  "type": "string"
-}

Changed1 schema field changedSep 4, 2026

addedInput schema / properties / objective

Added value: +{
+  "description": "The broader task this search is part of. Always include it when known. It supplements the query rather than replacing it so write the query as you normally would.",
+  "maxLength": 4096,
+  "minLength": 1,
+  "type": "string"
+}

Changed1 schema field changedSep 3, 2026

removedInput schema / properties / objective

Removed value: -{
-  "description": "The broader task this search is part of. Always include it when known. It supplements the query rather than replacing it so write the query as you normally would.",
-  "maxLength": 4096,
-  "minLength": 1,
-  "type": "string"
-}

Changed1 schema field changedSep 3, 2026

addedInput schema / properties / objective

Added value: +{
+  "description": "The broader task this search is part of. Always include it when known. It supplements the query rather than replacing it so write the query as you normally would.",
+  "maxLength": 4096,
+  "minLength": 1,
+  "type": "string"
+}

Changed1 schema field changedSep 1, 2026

removedInput schema / properties / objective

Removed value: -{
-  "description": "The broader task this search is part of. Always include it when known. It supplements the query rather than replacing it so write the query as you normally would.",
-  "maxLength": 4096,
-  "minLength": 1,
-  "type": "string"
-}

Changed1 schema field changedSep 1, 2026

addedInput schema / properties / objective

Added value: +{
+  "description": "The broader task this search is part of. Always include it when known. It supplements the query rather than replacing it so write the query as you normally would.",
+  "maxLength": 4096,
+  "minLength": 1,
+  "type": "string"
+}

Changed1 schema field changedAug 28, 2026

removedInput schema / properties / objective

Removed value: -{
-  "description": "The broader task this search is part of. Always include it when known. It supplements the query rather than replacing it so write the query as you normally would.",
-  "maxLength": 4096,
-  "minLength": 1,
-  "type": "string"
-}

Changed1 schema field changedAug 28, 2026

addedInput schema / properties / objective

Added value: +{
+  "description": "The broader task this search is part of. Always include it when known. It supplements the query rather than replacing it so write the query as you normally would.",
+  "maxLength": 4096,
+  "minLength": 1,
+  "type": "string"
+}

Changed1 schema field changedAug 27, 2026

removedInput schema / properties / objective

Removed value: -{
-  "description": "The broader task this search is part of. Always include it when known. It supplements the query rather than replacing it so write the query as you normally would.",
-  "maxLength": 4096,
-  "minLength": 1,
-  "type": "string"
-}

Changed1 schema field changedAug 27, 2026

addedInput schema / properties / objective

Added value: +{
+  "description": "The broader task this search is part of. Always include it when known. It supplements the query rather than replacing it so write the query as you normally would.",
+  "maxLength": 4096,
+  "minLength": 1,
+  "type": "string"
+}

Changed1 schema field changedAug 24, 2026

removedInput schema / properties / objective

Removed value: -{
-  "description": "The broader task this search is part of. Always include it when known. It supplements the query rather than replacing it so write the query as you normally would.",
-  "maxLength": 4096,
-  "minLength": 1,
-  "type": "string"
-}

Changed1 schema field changedAug 24, 2026

addedInput schema / properties / objective

Added value: +{
+  "description": "The broader task this search is part of. Always include it when known. It supplements the query rather than replacing it so write the query as you normally would.",
+  "maxLength": 4096,
+  "minLength": 1,
+  "type": "string"
+}

Changed1 schema field changedAug 24, 2026

removedInput schema / properties / objective

Removed value: -{
-  "description": "The broader task this search is part of. Always include it when known. It supplements the query rather than replacing it so write the query as you normally would.",
-  "maxLength": 4096,
-  "minLength": 1,
-  "type": "string"
-}

Changed1 schema field changedAug 24, 2026

addedInput schema / properties / objective

Added value: +{
+  "description": "The broader task this search is part of. Always include it when known. It supplements the query rather than replacing it so write the query as you normally would.",
+  "maxLength": 4096,
+  "minLength": 1,
+  "type": "string"
+}

Changed1 schema field changedAug 13, 2026

removedInput schema / properties / objective

Removed value: -{
-  "description": "The broader task this search is part of. Always include it when known. It supplements the query rather than replacing it so write the query as you normally would.",
-  "maxLength": 4096,
-  "minLength": 1,
-  "type": "string"
-}

Changed1 schema field changedAug 13, 2026

addedInput schema / properties / objective

Added value: +{
+  "description": "The broader task this search is part of. Always include it when known. It supplements the query rather than replacing it so write the query as you normally would.",
+  "maxLength": 4096,
+  "minLength": 1,
+  "type": "string"
+}

Changed1 schema field changedAug 13, 2026

changedOutput schema / (root)

Previous value: -{
-  "$schema": "http://json-schema.org/draft-07/schema#",
-  "additionalProperties": false,
-  "properties": {
-    "results": {
-      "items": {
-        "additionalProperties": true,
-        "properties": {
-          "author": {
-            "type": "string"
-          },
-          "highlights": {
-            "items": {
-              "type": "string"
-            },
-            "type": "array"
-          },
-          "publishedDate": {
-            "type": "string"
-          },
-          "text": {
-            "type": "string"
-          },
-          "title": {
-            "type": [
-              "string",
-              "null"
-            ]
-          },
-          "url": {
-            "type": "string"
-          }
-        },
-        "type": "object"
-      },
-      "type": "array"
-    },
-    "searchTime": {
-      "type": "number"
-    }
-  },
-  "required": [
-    "results"
-  ],
-  "type": "object"
-}New value: +null

Changed1 schema field changedAug 13, 2026

changedOutput schema / (root)

Previous value: -nullNew value: +{
+  "$schema": "http://json-schema.org/draft-07/schema#",
+  "additionalProperties": false,
+  "properties": {
+    "results": {
+      "items": {
+        "additionalProperties": true,
+        "properties": {
+          "author": {
+            "type": "string"
+          },
+          "highlights": {
+            "items": {
+              "type": "string"
+            },
+            "type": "array"
+          },
+          "publishedDate": {
+            "type": "string"
+          },
+          "text": {
+            "type": "string"
+          },
+          "title": {
+            "type": [
+              "string",
+              "null"
+            ]
+          },
+          "url": {
+            "type": "string"
+          }
+        },
+        "type": "object"
+      },
+      "type": "array"
+    },
+    "searchTime": {
+      "type": "number"
+    }
+  },
+  "required": [
+    "results"
+  ],
+  "type": "object"
+}

Changed4 schema fields changedMay 11, 2026
- changedInput schema / properties / numResults / description
```
Previous value: -"Number of search results to return (must be a number, default: 10)."New value: +"Number of search results to return (default: 10)."
```
- removedInput schema / properties / numResults / maximum
```
Removed value: -100
```
- removedInput schema / properties / numResults / minimum
```
Removed value: -1
```
- addedInput schema / properties / query / minLength
```
Added value: +1
```

Changed3 schema fields changedApr 9, 2026

changedInput schema / properties / numResults / description

Previous value: -"Number of search results to return (must be a number, default: 5)"New value: +"Number of search results to return (must be a number, default: 10)."

changedInput schema / properties / numResults / maximum
```
Previous value: -20New value: +100
```

changedInput schema / properties / query / description

Previous value: -"Natural language search query. Should be a semantically rich description of the ideal page, not just keywords."New value: +"Natural language search query. Should be a semantically rich description of the ideal page, not just keywords. Optionally include category:<type> (company, people) to focus results — e.g. 'category:people John Doe software engineer'."

Changed5 schema fields changedApr 6, 2026

removedInput schema / properties / freshness

Removed value: -{
-  "description": "How recent results should be. Only set when recency matters.",
-  "enum": [
-    "24h",
-    "week",
-    "month",
-    "year",
-    "any"
-  ],
-  "type": "string"
-}

removedInput schema / properties / includeDomains

Removed value: -{
-  "description": "List of domains to include in the search. If specified, results will only come from these domains.",
-  "items": {
-    "type": "string"
-  },
-  "type": "array"
-}

changedInput schema / properties / numResults / description

Previous value: -"Number of search results to return (must be a number, default: 8)"New value: +"Number of search results to return (must be a number, default: 5)"

changedInput schema / properties / numResults / maximum
```
Previous value: -100New value: +20
```

removedInput schema / properties / type

Removed value: -{
-  "description": "Search type - 'auto': balanced search (default), 'fast': quick results",
-  "enum": [
-    "auto",
-    "fast"
-  ],
-  "type": "string"
-}

Changed1 schema field changedMar 26, 2026

removedInput schema / properties / category

Removed value: -{
-  "description": "Filter results to a specific category",
-  "enum": [
-    "company",
-    "research paper",
-    "news",
-    "personal site",
-    "people",
-    "financial report"
-  ],
-  "type": "string"
-}

Changed1 schema field changedMar 24, 2026

changedInput schema / properties / category / enum

Previous value: -[
-  "company",
-  "research paper",
-  "news",
-  "tweet",
-  "personal site",
-  "people",
-  "financial report"
-]New value: +[
+  "company",
+  "research paper",
+  "news",
+  "personal site",
+  "people",
+  "financial report"
+]

Changed1 schema field changedMar 24, 2026

removedInput schema / properties / livecrawl

Removed value: -{
-  "description": "Live crawl mode - 'fallback': use live crawling as backup if cached content unavailable, 'preferred': prioritize live crawling (default: 'fallback')",
-  "enum": [
-    "fallback",
-    "preferred"
-  ],
-  "type": "string"
-}

Changed7 schema fields changedMar 23, 2026

changedInput schema / properties / category / description

Previous value: -"Filter results to a specific category - 'company': company websites and profiles, 'research paper': academic papers and research, 'people': LinkedIn profiles and personal bios"New value: +"Filter results to a specific category"

changedInput schema / properties / category / enum

Previous value: -[
-  "company",
-  "research paper",
-  "people"
-]New value: +[
+  "company",
+  "research paper",
+  "news",
+  "tweet",
+  "personal site",
+  "people",
+  "financial report"
+]

addedInput schema / properties / freshness

Added value: +{
+  "description": "How recent results should be. Only set when recency matters.",
+  "enum": [
+    "24h",
+    "week",
+    "month",
+    "year",
+    "any"
+  ],
+  "type": "string"
+}

addedInput schema / properties / includeDomains

Added value: +{
+  "description": "List of domains to include in the search. If specified, results will only come from these domains.",
+  "items": {
+    "type": "string"
+  },
+  "type": "array"
+}

addedInput schema / properties / numResults / maximum
```
Added value: +100
```
addedInput schema / properties / numResults / minimum
```
Added value: +1
```

changedInput schema / properties / query / description

Previous value: -"Websearch query"New value: +"Natural language search query. Should be a semantically rich description of the ideal page, not just keywords."

Changed1 schema field changedMar 20, 2026

removedInput schema / properties / contextMaxCharacters

Removed value: -{
-  "description": "Maximum characters for context string optimized for LLMs (must be a number, default: 10000)",
-  "type": "number"
-}

Changed1 schema field changedMar 6, 2026

addedInput schema / properties / category

Added value: +{
+  "description": "Filter results to a specific category - 'company': company websites and profiles, 'research paper': academic papers and research, 'people': LinkedIn profiles and personal bios",
+  "enum": [
+    "company",
+    "research paper",
+    "people"
+  ],
+  "type": "string"
+}

Changed2 schema fields changedFeb 3, 2026

changedInput schema / properties / contextMaxCharacters / description

Previous value: -"Maximum characters for context string optimized for LLMs (default: 10000)"New value: +"Maximum characters for context string optimized for LLMs (must be a number, default: 10000)"

changedInput schema / properties / numResults / description

Previous value: -"Number of search results to return (default: 8)"New value: +"Number of search results to return (must be a number, default: 8)"

Changed2 schema fields changedFeb 1, 2026

changedInput schema / properties / type / description

Previous value: -"Search type - 'auto': balanced search (default), 'fast': quick results, 'deep': comprehensive search"New value: +"Search type - 'auto': balanced search (default), 'fast': quick results"

changedInput schema / properties / type / enum

Previous value: -[
-  "auto",
-  "fast",
-  "deep"
-]New value: +[
+  "auto",
+  "fast"
+]

First observedJan 31, 2026

TDQS

A3.6/5.0

Behavior3/5

Does the description disclose side effects, auth requirements, rate limits, or destructive behavior?

Annotations already declare readOnlyHint, openWorldHint, idempotentHint and destructiveHint=false, so the safety profile is covered. The description adds the return shape ('clean text content from top search results') and category-scoping behavior, which is useful but modest; there is no mention of rate limits, result freshness, or ranking behavior.

Agents need to know what a tool does to the world before calling it. Descriptions should go beyond structured annotations to explain consequences.

Conciseness4/5

Is the description appropriately sized, front-loaded, and free of redundancy?

Front-loaded with what the tool does, then scannable Best-for / Returns / Tips sections with no filler. The query-tip example slightly duplicates the schema wording, but the structure is clean and appropriately short.

Shorter descriptions cost fewer tokens and are easier for agents to parse. Every sentence should earn its place.

Completeness4/5

Given the tool's complexity, does the description cover enough for an agent to succeed on first attempt?

With no output schema, the description supplies the missing return information ('clean text content from top search results'), and annotations cover the safety profile. The category:people/company guidance is a genuinely useful extra, though result count and pagination behavior are only implied by the schema's numResults default.

Complex tools with many parameters or behaviors need more documentation. Simple tools need less. This dimension scales expectations accordingly.

Parameters3/5

Does the description clarify parameter syntax, constraints, interactions, or defaults beyond what the schema provides?

Schema description coverage is 100%, so the schema already documents query (semantically rich description, category: syntax) and objective (ranking/exclusion goals). The description's 'Query tips' largely restate what the schema says, so it adds little meaning beyond the structured fields – baseline 3 applies.

Input schemas describe structure but not intent. Descriptions should explain non-obvious parameter relationships and valid value ranges.

Purpose4/5

Does the description clearly state what the tool does and how it differs from similar tools?

States a specific verb+resource ('Search the web') and scopes it with a 'Best for' list covering current information, news, facts, people, and companies. The closing line naming web_fetch_exa as a follow-up partially differentiates it from the sibling, though it doesn't state outright that fetching content from a known URL is web_fetch_exa's job, not this tool's.

Agents choose between tools based on descriptions. A clear purpose with a specific verb and resource helps agents select the right tool.

Usage Guidelines4/5

Does the description explain when to use this tool, when not to, or what alternatives exist?

Gives clear context for when to use it ('Finding current information, news, facts, people, companies') and explicitly routes follow-up work to web_fetch_exa when highlights are insufficient. It stops short of stating exclusions (e.g., when not to use search vs. a direct fetch), so it is clear context without full when/when-not coverage.

Agents often have multiple tools that could apply. Explicit usage guidance like "use X instead of Y when Z" prevents misuse.

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Web Search

Input Schema

Schema Changelog

TDQS

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