DataSEO MCP
DataSEO MCP is a Model Context Protocol server for practical SEO research in AIassistants. It combines Ahrefs free SEO data, CAPTCHA-provider fallback, andoptional OpenRouter-powered query planning behind a small set of MCP tools.
[!CAUTION]This project is for educational and research purposes only. It interacts withthird-party services including Ahrefs, CapSolver, Anti-Captcha, and OpenRouter.Users are responsible for complying with all applicable terms of service.
Features
| Tool | Purpose | Example prompt |
|---|---|---|
get_backlinks_list |
Backlink overview and top backlink rows | "Show backlinks for suparank.io" |
keyword_generator |
Keyword and question ideas | "Find SaaS SEO keywords for onboarding" |
get_traffic |
Organic traffic estimates | "Estimate traffic for ege.md" |
keyword_difficulty |
KD and SERP snapshot | "Check difficulty for AI SEO tools" |
ai_search_queries |
AI query ideas by search intent | "Generate AI search queries for SaaS SEO" |
domain_overview |
One-domain backlink + traffic summary | "Summarize suparank.io" |
compare_domains |
Compare 2-5 domains | "Compare suparank.io and ahrefs.com" |
backlink_opportunities |
Competitor backlink source gaps | "Find backlink gaps for my domain" |
seo_content_brief |
SERP + AI-assisted content brief | "Create a content brief for AI SEO audit" |
DataSEO MCP is maintained by Ege Bese. For AI SEO andrank-tracking workflows, see Suparank.
Installation
uvx --python 3.10 dataseo-mcp
For local development:
git clone https://github.com/egebese/dataseo-mcp.git
cd dataseo-mcp
uv sync
uv run dataseo-mcp
The legacy seo-mcp command is still exposed as a compatibility alias.
Configuration
At least one CAPTCHA provider is required for Ahrefs-backed tools:
export CAPSOLVER_API_KEY="your-capsolver-key"
# or
export ANTICAPTCHA_API_KEY="your-anticaptcha-key"
If both are configured, CapSolver is tried first and Anti-Captcha is used asfallback. AI tools are optional:
export OPENROUTER_API_KEY="your-openrouter-key"
export OPENROUTER_MODEL="openai/gpt-4o-mini" # optional
Useful runtime overrides:
| Variable | Default | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
DATASEO_CACHE_DIR |
~/.cache/dataseo-mcp |
Signature cache location |
DATASEO_REQUEST_TIMEOUT |
30 |
HTTP timeout in seconds |
DATASEO_MAX_POLLING_ATTEMPTS |
120 |
CAPTCHA polling cap |
OPENROUTER_BASE_URL |
https://openrouter.ai/api/v1 |
OpenAI-compatible AI endpoint |
MCP Setup
Claude Desktop / Cursor-style config:
{
"mcpServers": {
"dataseo": {
"command": "uvx",
"args": ["--python", "3.10", "dataseo-mcp"],
"env": {
"CAPSOLVER_API_KEY": "YOUR_CAPSOLVER_KEY",
"ANTICAPTCHA_API_KEY": "YOUR_ANTICAPTCHA_KEY",
"OPENROUTER_API_KEY": "YOUR_OPENROUTER_KEY"
}
}
}
}
Claude Code:
claude mcp add dataseo --scope user -- uvx --python 3.10 dataseo-mcp
VS Code MCP config:
{
"servers": {
"dataseo": {
"command": "uvx",
"args": ["--python", "3.10", "dataseo-mcp"],
"env": {
"CAPSOLVER_API_KEY": "YOUR_CAPSOLVER_KEY"
}
}
}
}
Only one CAPTCHA provider key is required. Add OPENROUTER_API_KEY only whenyou want AI-assisted query generation or content briefs.
API Reference
get_backlinks_list(domain)
Returns:
{
"overview": {
"domainRating": 76,
"backlinks": 1500,
"refDomains": 300
},
"backlinks": [
{
"anchor": "DataSEO MCP",
"domainRating": 76,
"title": "Example page",
"urlFrom": "https://source.example/page",
"urlTo": "https://example.com/page",
"edu": false,
"gov": false
}
]
}
keyword_generator(keyword, country="us", search_engine="Google")
Returns keyword and question ideas in the existing label / value shape.
get_traffic(domain_or_url, country="None", mode="subdomains")
Returns traffic history, traffic summary, top pages, countries, and keywords.The legacy costMontlyAvg field is preserved and costMonthlyAvg is alsoincluded.
keyword_difficulty(keyword, country="us")
Returns a keyword difficulty score and organic SERP rows with available metrics.
ai_search_queries(keyword, count=10, model="openai/gpt-4o-mini", language="en")
Returns deduplicated AI-generated queries:
{
"keyword": "ai seo audit",
"queries": [
{"query": "what is an AI SEO audit", "intent": "informational"},
{"query": "best AI SEO audit tools", "intent": "commercial"}
],
"model_used": "openai/gpt-4o-mini",
"total_queries": 2
}
count is validated from 1 to 50. Valid intents are informational,commercial, transactional, and navigational.
Additional Tools
domain_overview(domain, country="None"): backlink overview plus trafficsummary for one domain.compare_domains(domains, country="None"): compares 2-5 unique domains.backlink_opportunities(domain, competitors): lists competitor backlinksources not present in the target sample.seo_content_brief(keyword, country="us", count=12, model, language): combineskeyword difficulty, SERP rows, AI search queries, and recommended contentangles.
Architecture
server.py is intentionally thin. The implementation is split into:
services.py: MCP tool orchestration and public return shapes.schemas.py: Pydantic validation and normalization.captcha.py: CapSolver / Anti-Captcha fallback with bounded polling.backlinks.py,keywords.py,traffic.py: Ahrefs endpoint adapters.ai.py: OpenRouter/OpenAI-compatible query generation.cache.py: JSON signature cache under~/.cache/dataseo-mcpby default.
All external HTTP boundaries are mocked in tests.
Development
uv sync
uv run pytest -q
uv run ruff check .
uv run python -m compileall -q src
uv run python -c "from seo_mcp.server import main"
Troubleshooting
| Problem | Fix |
|---|---|
| No CAPTCHA provider configured | Set CAPSOLVER_API_KEY or ANTICAPTCHA_API_KEY |
| CAPTCHA solving failed | Check provider balance, key validity, and rate limits |
| AI tool returns missing key error | Set OPENROUTER_API_KEY |
| Empty SEO response | Domain or keyword may not be indexed by the upstream source |
| Old command no longer documented | Use dataseo-mcp; seo-mcp still works as alias |
License
MIT with educational-use notice. Original fork attribution is preserved inLICENSE.