SE Ranking MCP Server

The SE Ranking MCP Server connects AI assistants to the data and projects in your SE Ranking account. You ask, for example, how the rankings of your key keywords have developed over the last few weeks, which backlinks a competitor has recently gained or which technical errors the latest website audit found, and the assistant fetches the answers directly from SE Ranking. MCP, the Model Context Protocol, is an open standard that assistants such as Claude, ChatGPT, Codex or Cursor use to call external tools. SE Ranking runs the server centrally at https://api.seranking.com/mcp; no local installation is required.

Four data areas in one server

According to the vendor, the server bundles four interfaces. The Data API delivers keyword research, backlinks, domain analysis and SERP data. The Project API accesses your own projects: rank tracking, audits and tracked competitors. The Local Marketing API covers locations, local rankings, Google Business Profiles, directory listings and reviews. Finally, the SE Visible API manages AI visibility projects with brands, topics, prompts and sources. It is precisely this combination of classic SEO, local visibility and visibility in AI answers that sets SE Ranking apart from many other SEO servers that cover only one of these areas.

Broad client support

SE Ranking documents the setup for Claude on the web and desktop, Claude Code, ChatGPT, Codex, Cursor, VS Code, Windsurf, Zed, the Gemini CLI and Vercel's v0. Clients with built-in support for remote servers and OAuth, such as Claude Code or Cursor, connect directly. For clients without that support, SE Ranking recommends the helper mcp-remote, which is started via npx and bridges the connection locally.

Sign-in

OAuth 2.1 is the default: a browser window opens, you sign in to SE Ranking and approve access. Alternatively, the server accepts an API key in the X-Api-Key header. Important: according to the vendor, such a key has the same access as the entire account; restricted or read-only keys are not available yet. Users of sub-accounts currently cannot sign in via OAuth and need the API key from the main account's administrator.

Matching Agent Skills

SE Ranking maintains an official catalogue of Agent Skills for Claude on GitHub that builds on this server. The skills turn raw data into finished deliverables such as content briefs, competitor analyses or AI visibility reports. If you use the server regularly, this spares you from writing the same instructions over and over.

Cost

The server carries no extra charge, but it requires an SE Ranking account with API access enabled. According to the vendor, which data is available through the server depends on your subscription, and not every API endpoint is reachable via MCP. Current terms are listed on SE Ranking's official pages.

Who is the SE Ranking MCP Server for?

It pays off for agencies and companies that already use SE Ranking for rank tracking and audits and want to produce reports faster, and especially for anyone who wants to keep an eye on local visibility and their brand's presence in AI answers alongside classic rankings. Because an API key has full account access, prefer OAuth and have actions that change projects confirmed first.

An SE Ranking account with API access enabled (check in the API Dashboard) and an MCP client with HTTP transport, such as Claude Code, Cursor or Codex. For clients without remote support, additionally Node.js (for npx and mcp-remote).

Step 1: Check API access

Sign in to SE Ranking and open the API Dashboard. It shows whether API access is enabled for your account. Without it, the server will not show any tools later. If you work in a sub-account, get the API key from the main account's administrator; OAuth sign-in currently does not work for sub-accounts.

Step 2: Add it to Claude Code

Open a terminal and run this command:

claude mcp add --transport http se-ranking https://api.seranking.com/mcp

Start Claude Code, enter the following command and sign in to SE Ranking in the browser:

/mcp

If you prefer to work with an API key (for example as a sub-account user), use this command instead and replace YOUR_API_KEY with your key:

claude mcp add --transport http se-ranking https://api.seranking.com/mcp --header "X-Api-Key: YOUR_API_KEY"

Step 3: Alternatively in Claude on the web or ChatGPT

In Claude, open Customize and Connectors, search for SE Ranking and click Connect. In ChatGPT, install the official SE Ranking plugin via the plugin search and confirm the sign-in.

Step 4: Alternatively in Cursor

Create the file .cursor/mcp.json in your project, or ~/.cursor/mcp.json for all projects, and add:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "se-ranking": {
      "url": "https://api.seranking.com/mcp"
    }
  }
}

On first use, the SE Ranking sign-in window opens.

Step 5: Alternatively in Codex

Run this in your terminal:

codex mcp add se-ranking --url https://api.seranking.com/mcp

According to SE Ranking, older Codex versions additionally need this setting in ~/.codex/config.toml the first time:

[features]
experimental_use_rmcp_client = true

Then sign in with:

codex mcp login se-ranking

Step 6: Alternatively in VS Code, Windsurf, Gemini CLI and other clients

Clients without direct support for remote servers connect through mcp-remote. This requires Node.js. Add the following to the client's MCP configuration:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "se-ranking": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "mcp-remote", "https://api.seranking.com/mcp"]
    }
  }
}

In Zed, the entry in the settings looks slightly different:

{
  "context_servers": {
    "se-ranking": {
      "source": "custom",
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "mcp-remote", "https://api.seranking.com/mcp"],
      "env": {}
    }
  }
}

Step 7: Test the connection

Ask your assistant, for example:

Use SE Ranking and show me the estimated organic traffic of example.com in the United States.

Troubleshooting

If you get an internal server error, SE Ranking recommends deleting mcp-remote's cached credentials and reconnecting:

rm -rf ~/.mcp-auth

If your client shows no tools, check API access in the API Dashboard and, if needed, add the server to Claude Code again. On Windows with WSL, the OAuth redirect can fail; in that case set up the client on the Windows side.

OAuth 2.1 with Dynamic Client Registration (browser sign-in) or an API key in the X-Api-Key header. Sub-accounts can currently only connect using the main account's API key.

Access to the Data API (keywords, backlinks, domains, SERP), Project API (rank tracking, audits, competitors), Local Marketing API (locations, local rankings, business profiles, reviews) and SE Visible API (AI visibility), depending on subscription. According to the vendor, an API key has full account access.

Requests go through api.seranking.com. Retrieved project and analytics data enter the AI client context and therefore reach the model provider. mcp-remote stores credentials locally in the ~/.mcp-auth folder.

According to the vendor, API keys cannot yet be restricted to read access; a leaked key opens up the entire account. Through the Project API, an assistant can change projects, keywords and audits. Many queries use up subscription allowances.