Pexels MCP Server

A production-ready Model Context Protocol (MCP) server for the Pexels API. It gives AI assistants - Claude Desktop, Claude Code, Cursor, VS Code, Windsurf, and any MCP client - tools to search and fetch Pexels photos, videos, and collections, covering every endpoint the Pexels API documents. It runs locally over stdio via the published package.

People connecting finance tools to Claude, Cursor, VS Code, or another MCP client. The project is written in TypeScript.

VERIFIED ACTIVE

LAST COMMIT 2026-08-19 · ★ 2 · #83 OF 283 MAINTAINED FINANCE · VERIFIED 2026-08-25

MIT · TypeScript servers · how we verify → /methodology

01 · Install Pexels MCP Server

before you install - you'll need

PEXELS_API_KEY

Environment variables documented in the project's README - it lists which are required and which have defaults.

Claude Code

claude mcp add hanoak-pexels-mcp-server -- npx -y @hanoak/pexels-mcp-server

Claude Desktop / Cursor / VS Code - add to config

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "hanoak-pexels-mcp-server": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@hanoak/pexels-mcp-server"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Same JSON for Cursor. For VS Code, rename the top-level key from `mcpServers` to `servers`.

Using another client? Same JSON, different key

Claude Desktop · mcpServers

Cursor · mcpServers

VS Code · servers

Windsurf · mcpServers

Zed · context_servers

Cline · mcpServers

Roo Code · mcpServers

Continue · mcpServers

LibreChat · mcpServers

Gemini CLI · mcpServers

Codex CLI · mcp_servers

Full setup guides: every client.

02 · Evidence

Security posture

What to check before giving this server access to your agent - from the registry, GitHub, and our own probes. We don't score safety; we show what's verifiable.

runs as local process (stdio) - runs on your machine with your user's permissions

repo age created 2026-08-11 - young repo, little track record yet

license MIT - declared in the repository

npm package @hanoak/pexels-mcp-server - published under the repo owner's npm scope (@hanoak)

registry namespace io.github.hanoak is GitHub-verified and matches the repo owner

03 · What Pexels MCP Server can do

Prose above is summarized from the project's README and registry record - no invented capabilities.

Latest releases

v1.0.2 · 2026-08-19

Re-publish to refresh git provenance after a repo-wide git history rewrite (author email correction). No functional or API changes; source content is unchanged. Note that the provenance attestations and gitHead…

v1.0.1 · 2026-08-11

Add an mcpName field to package.json so the package can be listed on the official MCP Registry (registry.modelcontextprotocol.io). No runtime or API changes.

v1.0.0 · 2026-08-11

Initial public release. An MCP server covering the complete documented Pexels API in one release - there's no OAuth tier to hold a v2 behind: · - Photos: pexels_search_photos, pexels_curated_photos, pexels_get_photo…

04 · Who maintains Pexels MCP Server

Pexels MCP Server is maintained by hanoak. We track 3 MCP servers from hanoak - 3 actively maintained, 4 combined GitHub stars, oldest repo from Jul 2026.

05 · Facts

repository: github.com/hanoak/pexels-mcp-server
website: https://github.com/hanoak/pexels-mcp-server#readme
category: finance - ranked #83 of 283 actively-maintained finance servers as of 2026-08-25.
release cadence: 3 releases in the last 90 days (latest 2026-08-19)
registry: io.github.hanoak/pexels-mcp-server (active, first published 2026-08-11)
packages: npm:@hanoak/pexels-mcp-server

06 · Pexels MCP Server FAQ

What is Pexels MCP Server?

Is Pexels MCP Server still maintained?

Yes - as of 2026-08-25, its last commit was 2026-08-19 and it shipped 3 releases in the last 90 days. We re-verify nightly.

How do I install Pexels MCP Server?

Run `npx -y @hanoak/pexels-mcp-server`. The README documents one environment variable (PEXELS_API_KEY) to set first. You can also paste the ready-made client config above.

Does Pexels MCP Server run locally?

Yes - it's a stdio server: it runs on your machine (via npx) with your user's permissions. Your data stays local unless the server itself calls external APIs.

07 · Alternatives to Pexels MCP Server

Alternatives to Pexels MCP Server

Maintained finance servers if Pexels MCP Server isn't the fit.

Pairs well with

Servers that cover what Pexels MCP Server doesn't - only shown when the pairing reason fits the companion.

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