Free web search MCP servers, tested

We sent the same 3 questions with known answers to 6 free web search MCP servers on 2026-11-14, as read-only calls without an API key. All of them pass our daily live check. 2 gave answers you could rely on. Winner: Exa (3/3, 0.4 s).

The questions

latest stable Python release version → correct answer: Python 3.15.2 (checked at python.org/downloads)
current Node.js LTS version → correct answer: Node.js 26 (26.13.1) (checked at nodejs.org/dist/index.json)
how to add a remote MCP server in Claude Code → correct answer: claude mcp add --transport http (checked at code.claude.com/docs)

Results

#	Server	Q1	Q2	Q3	Score	Avg
1	Exa `https://mcp.exa.ai/mcp`	PASS	PASS	PASS	3/3	0.4 s
2	search-mcp (ioconnex) `https://search.ioconnex.dev/mcp`	PASS	HALF	PASS	2.5/3	2.0 s
3	Tanod Web Search `https://tanod.dev/mcp/web-search`	FAIL	FAIL	PASS	1/3	1.1 s
4	ManyLives `https://api.manylives.me/mcp`	PASS	NO REPLY	NO REPLY	1/3	14.3 s
5	Prieco `https://prieco.net/mcp`	FAIL	FAIL	FAIL	0/3	1.1 s
6	SSearch `https://api.ssearch.cc/mcp`	FAIL	FAIL	FAIL	0/3	0.5 s

Same questions with known answers sent to every server on the same day as read-only tool calls (no API key). PASS = the correct answer appears in the top results; HALF = partly right or outdated source; FAIL = wrong; NO REPLY = request refused. Results can change; live status is re-checked daily, tests are re-run periodically.

Evidence: what each server returned

Excerpts of the servers' own replies, quoted as returned.

1. Exa · 3 of 3, fastest, official docs first

PASS web_search_exa("latest stable Python release version")
"Python 3.15.2 Oct. 25, 2026 Download" (python.org)
PASS web_search_exa("current Node.js LTS version")
"Releases Node.js 26.13.1 (LTS) Nov 11, 2026"
PASS web_search_exa("how to add a remote MCP server in Claude Code")
URL: https://code.claude.com/docs/en/mcp (result #1)

2. search-mcp (ioconnex) · Good answers, a bit slow

PASS search_web("latest stable Python release version")
"As of October 2026, Python 3.15 is the latest stable release."
HALF search_web("current Node.js LTS version")
"Node.js 24 is the Active LTS line" (a July 2026 page)
PASS search_web("how to add a remote MCP server in Claude Code")
"claude mcp add --transport http remoteit ..."

3. Tanod Web Search · Clean JSON, stale versions

FAIL web_search("latest stable Python release version")
"title": "Python 3.14.0 and 3.13.8 released"
FAIL web_search("current Node.js LTS version")
"title": "Node.js — Node.js 5.0.0 (Current)"
PASS web_search("how to add a remote MCP server in Claude Code")
"title": "Connect to MCP servers - Claude Code Docs"

4. ManyLives · Right once, in 14 seconds. Then blocked

PASS web_search("latest stable Python release version")
"answer": "Python 3.15.2." (14.3 s)
NO REPLY web_search("current Node.js LTS version")
HTTP 403 Forbidden
NO REPLY web_search("how to add a remote MCP server in Claude Code")
HTTP 403 Forbidden

5. Prieco · Answers from 2025. 25 free searches a day

FAIL web_search("latest stable Python release version")
"Thursday, August 14, 2025 — It's the final penultimate 3.14 release candidate!"
FAIL web_search("current Node.js LTS version")
"That's why we created UpgradeJS.com. ... Our developers are used to Node 10..."

6. SSearch · Live, but the index was broken

FAIL search_web("latest stable Python release version")
"result_count": 0, "provider_failures": { "faiss": "HTTPStatusError: 400 Bad Request" }
FAIL search_web("current Node.js LTS version")
"title": "Node.js | CLion Documentation"
FAIL search_web("how to add a remote MCP server in Claude Code")
"title": "MCP Dev Quickstart Guides | AgentCat"