MCP server
Apify MCP server
Apify's official MCP server lets AI find and run ready-made scrapers and automation tools, called Actors, and read their results.
- Official server
- Browser automation
At a glance
- Maintained by
- Apify
- Tools exposed
- 9 listed below
- Reviewed
- September 24, 2026
Why it matters
What it does and why it matters
Apify runs a large store of ready-made scrapers and automation tools, called Actors, for sites such as maps, marketplaces and social networks. Its official MCP server lets an assistant search that store, read an Actor's details, run it, check the run and read the results.
That means an assistant can collect structured data from many sources without anyone writing a scraper. Ask for local businesses in a city or reviews of a product, and it can find a suitable Actor and run it.
Running Actors uses paid Apify credits, so an agent with this server can spend money. We set a budget in the Apify account, limit which Actors may be called and require approval before large runs. The older SSE endpoint was removed, so use the current hosted address.
Check each source site's terms before collecting data, and handle any personal data in results according to privacy rules.
Use cases
Best business use cases
Content monitoring
Apify docs
Tools
Available tools
Tool names as published by the maintainer at review time. Versions change, so check the repository for the current list.
Read and write: Read and write: searches and reads data, and can start or abort paid scraper runs; optional tools create tasks and schedules.
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search-actorsSearch for Actors in Apify Store.
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fetch-actor-detailsGet an Actor's input schema, README, pricing and output schema.
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call-actorRun an Actor and get its results.
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get-actor-runGet details about a specific Actor run.
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get-dataset-itemsRead items from a dataset with filtering and pagination.
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get-key-value-store-recordGet a value by key from a key-value store.
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abort-actor-runStop a running Actor run.
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search-apify-docsSearch the Apify documentation.
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fetch-apify-docsFetch the full text of an Apify docs page.
Workflows
Example workflows
Build a local prospect list
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1
Ask for businesses of a type in a city.
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2
The assistant searches for a suitable Actor.
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3
It shows the Actor details and expected cost.
-
4
You approve the run.
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5
It reads the dataset and returns a clean list.
Monthly review snapshot
-
1
Choose products to track.
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2
The assistant runs the review Actor with limits.
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3
It reads the results.
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4
It groups reviews by theme.
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5
It sends a short summary.
Prompts
Example prompts
“Find an Actor that collects public business listings and show me its cost before running it.”
“Run it for dental clinics in Austin and return name, address and website.”
“Summarize the latest 200 reviews collected for our product.”
Setup
Installation and configuration
Examples for Claude Desktop and Claude Code. Replace the placeholder values with your own keys, and store secrets outside version control.
Claude Desktop: claude_desktop_config.json
{
"mcpServers": {
"actors-mcp-server": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"@apify/actors-mcp-server"
],
"env": {
"APIFY_TOKEN": "YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN"
}
}
}
}Claude Code: terminal
claude mcp add --transport http apify https://mcp.apify.com- Hosted server: streamable-http; https://mcp.apify.com; OAuth, or header Authorization: Bearer <APIFY_TOKEN>.
- Local server: stdio; @apify/actors-mcp-server.
- Needs: APIFY_TOKEN (local, or bearer header on remote; OAuth also supported on remote).
Security
Security considerations
-
Spending
Runs use paid credits. Set account limits and approve large runs.
-
Allowed Actors
Limit which Actors the assistant may call.
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Site terms
Respect source site terms and privacy rules.
-
Token safety
Keep the Apify token out of shared files.
Related servers
Servers that pair well with it
Firecrawl
Firecrawl's official MCP server lets AI scrape, map, crawl and search the web and get clean, AI-ready content back.
Playwright
Microsoft's Playwright MCP server lets AI drive a real browser: open pages, read them, click, type, fill forms and take screenshots.
Browserbase
Browserbase's hosted MCP server gives AI a cloud browser that can browse, act on pages, observe elements and extract data.
Keep exploring
Solutions and services that use it
Related services
View all related services- MCP integration Connect AI assistants to your CRM, files, databases and tools through Model Context Protocol servers, with safe permissions.
- AI agents AI that takes actions in your systems, such as qualifying leads or processing requests, with people checking the results.
- Automation and Integrations CRM, payment and API integrations, MCP connections and workflows that stop people copying data by hand.
- Ecommerce websites Online stores with clean product catalogs, simple checkout and the integrations that keep orders moving.
- Website speed optimization Find what makes a site slow and fix it, so pages load quickly on phones and rank better in search.
- CRM integration Connect your CRM to forms, email, billing and support so customer records stay complete without typing.
Solutions
View all solutions- Price monitoring Collect competitor prices automatically, match them to your products and alert you when something changes.
- AI sales research agent Short, sourced briefings on each prospect before a call, drafted by an AI agent from public information and your CRM.
- AI lead qualification Score, research and route every new inquiry so your team talks to the best leads first.
- AI automation and integrations Connect the tools you already use so data moves once, correctly, and AI reads the parts that arrive as text or documents.
- Email triage Sort a shared inbox by topic and urgency, pull out the key details and draft replies for a person to send.
Industries
View all industriesGuides and articles
View all guides and articles- What are AI agents and how do businesses use them? What AI agents are, real business uses, the controls they need and how to start with one safely.
- What is the Model Context Protocol? A business guide to MCP: what it is, how MCP servers work, who supports it and how to start using it.
- How to build an AI workflow with MCP servers Plan, connect and test an AI workflow that uses MCP servers, from a single task to a reliable process.
- AI chatbot vs AI agent What separates a chatbot that answers from an agent that acts, and when you need each.
AI models
View all ai models- Claude Fable 5.1 The top tier of the Claude family, for the most demanding reasoning and long-horizon agent work, priced above Opus.
- Claude Opus 5.5 Anthropic's recommended starting point for most serious work: long-running agentic coding and knowledge work, with a 1M token context window.
- GPT-6 Astra OpenAI's most capable model, built for the hardest end-to-end work: complex reasoning, coding, computer use and research.
- DeepSeek V4 Pro DeepSeek's model for demanding reasoning and agent work, with thinking effort levels, tool calling, JSON output and a 1 million token window.
- Grok 4.7 xAI's current flagship for coding, agent tasks and knowledge work, with image input, tool calling, structured outputs, reasoning effort levels and a 500K window.
- Reasoning Models that think through multi-step problems before answering: analysis, planning, math, complex documents and agent work.
Glossary terms
View all glossary terms- AI agent An AI agent is software that uses a language model to plan steps, call tools and act toward a goal, instead of only answering one question.
- API integration An API integration connects two or more systems through their APIs so data and actions flow between them automatically.
- Model Context Protocol The Model Context Protocol, or MCP, is an open standard for connecting AI assistants to external tools and data in a consistent way.
- MCP server An MCP server is a program or hosted service that exposes a system's data and actions as tools that AI assistants can use through the Model Context Protocol.
- Tool calling Tool calling is when an AI model asks the application to run a tool, such as a search or database lookup, and then uses the result in its answer.
- CRM A CRM, or customer relationship management system, stores contacts, companies, deals and interactions so a team can manage its customer relationships in one place.
FAQ
Questions people ask us
Have a question that is not here? Ask us directly.
Yes. It is maintained by Apify.
Running Actors uses Apify credits. Set limits in your account.
Ready-made scrapers and automation tools in the Apify store.