CurlShot MCP server

Let your AI agent take screenshots of web pages. CurlShot runs a hosted Model Context Protocol server, so there is nothing to install: point your MCP client at the endpoint and add your API key.

https://curlshot.com/api/mcp

Transport: streamable HTTP (JSON-RPC 2.0 over POST). The server is stateless, so a GET answers 405.
Auth: Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY
Protocol versions: 2025-06-18, 2025-03-26, 2024-11-05

This repository holds the documentation, the server.json manifest (MCP Registry format) and the license. The server itself runs at curlshot.com.

Tools

Tool	What it does	Needs a key
`take_screenshot`	Renders a public web page and returns it as an image, a PDF, or a video of the page scrolling. Each successful call uses one screenshot of your quota. Cache hits and failed renders are free.	Yes
`list_devices`	Lists the device presets (phones, tablets, desktops) that `take_screenshot` accepts in `viewport_device`.	No

take_screenshot arguments:

Argument	Meaning
`url` (required)	Full address of the page, starting with `http://` or `https://`.
`format`	`png`, `jpeg` (default), `webp`, `pdf`, `mp4`, `webm` or `gif`. The video formats record the page scrolling from top to bottom, on plans that include video.
`full_page`	Capture the whole page, not only the first screen.
`viewport_device`	A device preset such as `iphone_15_pro` (see `list_devices`).
`viewport_width`, `viewport_height`	Browser window size in pixels (default 1280 x 1024).
`dark_mode`	Ask the page for its dark theme.
`block_ads`, `block_cookie_banners`	On by default.
`selector`	Capture only the first element matching this CSS selector.
`wait_until`, `delay`	When the page counts as loaded, plus extra seconds to wait.
`cache`	Reuse a stored copy of the same request.

Small results come back inline as an image the model can see. Results over 6 MB come back as a download link valid for about a day.

Get an API key

Sign up at curlshot.com/register. The free plan includes 100 screenshots a month, no card needed.
Create a separate API key for your agent in the dashboard, so you can revoke it on its own.
Leave Require signature off for that key. MCP calls are not signed.

Keep the key in your client configuration, not in a prompt. The examples below use YOUR_API_KEY as a placeholder.

Client setup

Claude Code

claude mcp add --transport http curlshot https://curlshot.com/api/mcp \
  --header "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY"

Claude Desktop

Claude Desktop starts local (stdio) servers from its config file, so connect through the mcp-remote proxy. Edit claude_desktop_config.json (Settings → Developer → Edit Config):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "curlshot": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "mcp-remote",
        "https://curlshot.com/api/mcp",
        "--transport",
        "http-only",
        "--header",
        "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Restart Claude Desktop after saving. This needs Node.js.

Cursor

Add to ~/.cursor/mcp.json (all projects) or .cursor/mcp.json (one project):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "curlshot": {
      "url": "https://curlshot.com/api/mcp",
      "headers": {
        "Authorization": "Bearer YOUR_API_KEY"
      }
    }
  }
}

VS Code (GitHub Copilot)

Add to .vscode/mcp.json. VS Code asks for the key once and stores it securely:

{
  "inputs": [
    {
      "type": "promptString",
      "id": "curlshot-api-key",
      "description": "CurlShot API key",
      "password": true
    }
  ],
  "servers": {
    "curlshot": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://curlshot.com/api/mcp",
      "headers": {
        "Authorization": "Bearer ${input:curlshot-api-key}"
      }
    }
  }
}

Other clients

Any client that supports remote servers over streamable HTTP works. Most take a config like this:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "curlshot": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://curlshot.com/api/mcp",
      "headers": {
        "Authorization": "Bearer YOUR_API_KEY"
      }
    }
  }
}

Clients that only start local servers can use the mcp-remote command shown for Claude Desktop.

Try it with curl

curl -X POST "https://curlshot.com/api/mcp" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "jsonrpc": "2.0",
    "id": 1,
    "method": "tools/call",
    "params": {
      "name": "take_screenshot",
      "arguments": { "url": "https://example.com", "format": "webp" }
    }
  }'

Limits and pricing

Free plan: 100 screenshots a month, no card. Paid plans start at $19 a month. See pricing.
Only successful renders count. Cache hits and failed renders are free.
The MCP endpoint accepts 120 requests per minute per IP address, on top of your plan's own limits.
When the monthly limit is reached, the tool returns an error with an upgrade link instead of an image.

License

MIT

CurlShot MCP server