MCPInstall

perplexity

by softaworksProductivity & Automation

Web search and research using Perplexity AI. Use when user says "search", "find", "look up", "ask", "research", or "what's the latest" for generic queries. NOT for library/framework docs (use Context7) or workspace questions.

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Install

Works with every agent the skills CLI supports.

npx skills add https://github.com/softaworks/agent-toolkit --skill perplexity
  1. 01

    Install

    Run the command in your project. The CLI asks which agents to install for.

  2. 02

    Describe the task

    Ask your agent for something this skill covers. It loads perplexity automatically when relevant.

  3. 03

    Review the result

    The agent follows the SKILL.md steps, scripts and references bundled with the skill.

SKILL.md

The instructions your agent reads when the skill is triggered.

Perplexity Tools

Use ONLY when user says "search", "find", "look up", "ask", "research", or "what's the latest" for generic queries. NOT for library/framework docs (use Context7), gt CLI (use Graphite MCP), or workspace questions (use Nx MCP).

Quick Reference

Which Perplexity tool?

  • Need search results/URLs? → Perplexity Search
  • Need conversational answer? → Perplexity Ask
  • Need deep research? → Researcher agent (/research <topic>)

NOT Perplexity - use these instead:

  • Library/framework docs → Context7 MCP
  • Graphite gt CLI → Graphite MCP
  • THIS workspace → Nx MCP
  • Specific URL → URL Crawler

Perplexity Search

When to use:

  • Generic searches, finding resources
  • Current best practices, recent information
  • Tutorial/blog post discovery
  • User says "search for...", "find...", "look up..."

Default parameters (ALWAYS USE):

mcp__perplexity__perplexity_search({
  query: "your search query",
  max_results: 3,           // Default is 10 - too many!
  max_tokens_per_page: 512  // Reduce per-result content
})

When to increase limits: Only if:

  • User explicitly needs comprehensive results
  • Initial search found nothing useful
  • Complex topic needs multiple sources
// Increased limits (use sparingly)
mcp__perplexity__perplexity_search({
  query: "complex topic",
  max_results: 5,
  max_tokens_per_page: 1024
})

Perplexity Ask

When to use:

  • Need conversational explanation, not search results
  • Synthesize information from web
  • Explain concepts with current context

Usage:

mcp__perplexity__perplexity_ask({
  messages: [
    {
      role: "user",
      content: "Explain how postgres advisory locks work"
    }
  ]
})

NOT for:

  • Library documentation (use Context7)
  • Deep multi-source research (use researcher agent)

Prohibited Tool

NEVER use: mcp__perplexity__perplexity_research

Use instead: Researcher agent (/research <topic>)

  • Token cost: 30-50k tokens
  • Provides multi-source synthesis with citations
  • Use sparingly for complex questions only

Tool Selection Chain

Priority order:

  1. Context7 MCP - Library/framework docs
  2. Graphite MCP - Any gt CLI mention
  3. Nx MCP - THIS workspace questions
  4. Perplexity Search - Generic searches
  5. Perplexity Ask - Conversational answers
  6. Researcher agent - Deep multi-source research
  7. WebSearch - Last resort (after Perplexity exhausted)

Examples

✅ CORRECT - Use Perplexity Search:

  • "Find postgres migration best practices"
  • "Search for React testing tutorials"
  • "Look up latest trends in microservices"

✅ CORRECT - Use Perplexity Ask:

  • "Explain how postgres advisory locks work"
  • "What are the trade-offs of microservices?"

❌ WRONG - Use Context7 instead:

  • "Search for React hooks documentation" → Context7 MCP
  • "Find Next.js routing docs" → Context7 MCP
  • "Look up Temporal workflow API" → Context7 MCP

❌ WRONG - Use Graphite MCP instead:

  • "Search for gt stack commands" → Graphite MCP
  • "Find gt branch workflow" → Graphite MCP

❌ WRONG - Use Nx MCP instead:

  • "Search for build config" (in THIS workspace) → Nx MCP
  • "Find project dependencies" (in THIS workspace) → Nx MCP

Key Points

  • Default to limited results - avoid context bloat
  • Library docs = Context7 - ALWAYS try Context7 first
  • "gt" = Graphite MCP - ANY "gt" mention uses Graphite
  • Deep research = /research - NOT perplexity_research tool
  • Fallback chain - Search → Ask → WebSearch (last resort)

FAQ

What does the perplexity skill do?

Web search and research using Perplexity AI. Use when user says "search", "find", "look up", "ask", "research", or "what's the latest" for generic queries. NOT for library/framework docs (use Context7) or workspace questions.

How do I install perplexity?

Run npx skills add https://github.com/softaworks/agent-toolkit --skill perplexity in your project. The skills CLI detects the agents you use and copies the skill into the right folder. For Claude Code you can also place the skill folder at ~/.claude/skills/perplexity/ (personal) or .claude/skills/perplexity/ (project).

Which AI agents can use perplexity?

Any agent that supports the open Agent Skills format (a folder with a SKILL.md file), including Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, Gemini CLI, Windsurf, Cline, OpenCode and more.

Is perplexity safe to install?

No partner security audit is available yet. Skills can run commands and scripts, so read the SKILL.md and any bundled files before installing.

Who maintains perplexity?

It is published by softaworks in softaworks/agent-toolkit. It has 773 recorded installs.

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