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Web search and research using Perplexity AI. Use when user says "search", "find", "look up", "ask", "research", or "what's the latest" for generic queries. NOT…
Perplexity Tools
Use ONLY when user says "search", "find", "look up", "ask", "research", or "what's the latest" for generic queries. NOT for library/framework docs (use Context7), gt CLI (use Graphite MCP), or workspace questions (use Nx MCP).
Quick Reference
Which Perplexity tool?
Need search results/URLs? → Perplexity Search
Need conversational answer? → Perplexity Ask
Need deep research? → Researcher agent (/research <topic>)
NOT Perplexity - use these instead:
Library/framework docs → Context7 MCP
Graphite gt CLI → Graphite MCP
THIS workspace → Nx MCP
Specific URL → URL Crawler
Perplexity Search
When to use:
Generic searches, finding resources
Current best practices, recent information
Tutorial/blog post discovery
User says "search for...", "find...", "look up..."
Default parameters (ALWAYS USE):
mcp__perplexity__perplexity_search({
query: "your search query",
max_results: 3, // Default is 10 - too many!
max_tokens_per_page: 512 // Reduce per-result content
})
When to increase limits:
Only if:
User explicitly needs comprehensive results
Initial search found nothing useful
Complex topic needs multiple sources
// Increased limits (use sparingly)
mcp__perplexity__perplexity_search({
query: "complex topic",
max_results: 5,
max_tokens_per_page: 1024
})
Perplexity Ask
When to use:
Need conversational explanation, not search results
Synthesize information from web
Explain concepts with current context
Usage:
mcp__perplexity__perplexity_ask({
messages: [
{
role: "user",
content: "Explain how postgres advisory locks work"
}
]
})
NOT for:
Library documentation (use Context7)
Deep multi-source research (use researcher agent)
Prohibited Tool
NEVER use: mcp__perplexity__perplexity_research
Use instead: Researcher agent (/research <topic>)
Token cost: 30-50k tokens
Provides multi-source synthesis with citations
Use sparingly for complex questions only
Tool Selection Chain
Priority order:
Context7 MCP - Library/framework docs
Graphite MCP - Any gt CLI mention
Nx MCP - THIS workspace questions
Perplexity Search - Generic searches
Perplexity Ask - Conversational answers
Researcher agent - Deep multi-source research
WebSearch - Last resort (after Perplexity exhausted)
Examples
✅ CORRECT - Use Perplexity Search:
"Find postgres migration best practices"
"Search for React testing tutorials"
"Look up latest trends in microservices"
✅ CORRECT - Use Perplexity Ask:
"Explain how postgres advisory locks work"
"What are the trade-offs of microservices?"
❌ WRONG - Use Context7 instead:
"Search for React hooks documentation" → Context7 MCP
"Find Next.js routing docs" → Context7 MCP
"Look up Temporal workflow API" → Context7 MCP
❌ WRONG - Use Graphite MCP instead:
"Search for gt stack commands" → Graphite MCP
"Find gt branch workflow" → Graphite MCP
❌ WRONG - Use Nx MCP instead:
"Search for build config" (in THIS workspace) → Nx MCP
"Find project dependencies" (in THIS workspace) → Nx MCP
Key Points
Default to limited results - avoid context bloat
Library docs = Context7 - ALWAYS try Context7 first
"gt" = Graphite MCP - ANY "gt" mention uses Graphite
Deep research = /research - NOT perplexity_research tool
Fallback chain - Search → Ask → WebSearch (last resort)don't have the plugin yet? install it then click "run inline in claude" again.