FAQ: MCP - Bright Data Docs

What is Bright Data MCP?

Bright Data MCP (Model Context Protocol) is a server that enables LLMs, AI agents, and applications to access, discover, and extract web data in real-time. It allows MCP clients like Claude Desktop, Cursor, and Windsurf to search the web, navigate websites, take actions, and retrieve data without getting blocked, making it perfect for web scraping tasks.

The MCP server provides advanced capabilities, including:

Bypassing geo-restrictions to access content regardless of location
Navigating websites with bot detection protection using Web Unlocker technology
Structured data extraction from platforms like Amazon, LinkedIn, Instagram, and many other data feeds
Remote browser automation for complex web interactions
Access to a global IP network to avoid blocking or rate limiting

Where do I get my API token?

You can get your API token from the user settings page in your Bright Data account.

Make sure you have an account on brightdata.com - new users get free credit for testing, and pay-as-you-go options are available after that.

How do I enable browser control tools?

To enable browser control tools:

Visit your Bright Data control panel at brightdata.com/cp/zones
Create a new ‘Browser API’ zone
Once created, copy the authentication string from the Browser API overview tab
The authentication string will be formatted like: brd-customer-[your-customer-ID]-zone-[your-zone-ID]:[your-password]
Add this authentication string to your MCP configuration as the BROWSER_AUTH environment variable

What tools are available in the Bright Data MCP?

Bright Data MCP offers a comprehensive set of tools, including:

Search and basic scraping:

search_engine: Scrape search results from Google, Bing or Yandex
scrape_as_markdown: Scrape a webpage and get results in Markdown format
scrape_as_html: Scrape a webpage and get results in HTML format
session_stats: View tool usage during the current session

Structured data extraction:

Amazon: web_data_amazon_product, web_data_amazon_product_reviews
LinkedIn: web_data_linkedin_person_profile, web_data_linkedin_company_profile
ZoomInfo: web_data_zoominfo_company_profile
Instagram: web_data_instagram_profiles, web_data_instagram_posts, web_data_instagram_reels, web_data_instagram_comments
Facebook: web_data_facebook_posts, web_data_facebook_marketplace_listings, web_data_facebook_company_reviews
Various others: web_data_x_posts, web_data_zillow_properties_listing, web_data_booking_hotel_listings, web_data_youtube_videos

Browser automation:

scraping_browser_navigate: Navigate to a URL
scraping_browser_go_back/scraping_browser_go_forward: Navigate browser history
scraping_browser_click: Click on an element
scraping_browser_links: Get all links on the current page
scraping_browser_type: Type text into an element
scraping_browser_wait_for: Wait for an element to appear
scraping_browser_screenshot: Take a screenshot
scraping_browser_get_html/scraping_browser_get_text: Get page content

How do I handle timeout issues when using Bright Data MCP?

Some web data tools can take longer to execute, especially when dealing with complex websites. To ensure your agent can consume the data:

Set a high enough timeout in your agent settings (180 seconds is recommended for 99% of requests)
For particularly slow sites, you may need to increase this value further
Use the specialized web_data_* tools when available, as they’re often faster than general scraping
For browser automation sequences, keep operations close together in time

What security considerations should I keep in mind?

Always treat scraped web content as untrusted data. Never use raw scraped content directly in LLM prompts to avoid potential prompt injection risks.

Instead:

Filter and validate all web data before passing it to the LLM
Use structured data extraction rather than raw text when possible
Be cautious with executing JavaScript from scraped content

Why am I getting a 'spawn npx ENOENT' error?

This error occurs when your system cannot find the npx command. To fix it:

Find your Node.js path:
- On macOS: Run which node in Terminal
- On Windows: Run where node in Command Prompt
Update your MCP configuration to use the full path instead of npx:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "Bright Data": {
      "command": "/usr/local/bin/node", // Replace with your actual Node.js path
      "args": ["node_modules/@brightdata/mcp/index.js"],
      "env": {
        "API_TOKEN": "<your-api-token>"
      }
    }
  }
}

How do I monitor my usage and costs?

You can use the session_stats tool to check your usage during the current session. For comprehensive usage tracking and billing information, log in to your Bright Data account dashboard.

The session_stats tool will show you information about:

Number of requests made during the current session
Tools used and their frequency

Is there a playground where I can try Bright Data MCP?

Yes, you can try Bright Data MCP without any setup using the playground on Smithery.

This platform provides an easy way to explore the capabilities of Bright Data MCP without any local setup. Just sign in and start experimenting with web data collection!