Google Images Search

Search for Google images, view results, and download them directly within your IDE.

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Google Images Search MCP

Query for Google images from your editor/IDE and view search results as visual previews in your conversation. Then download and persist the selected image(s) to your local project.

The unique feature of this MCP is that it displays search results directly in the chat history as actual images, not just text descriptions or links. This visual integration currently works with Cline and Windsurf only.

Usage & Requirements

Requirements

  • Node.js v20+
  • Google Cloud Platform account (free tier sufficient)
  • Compatible IDE: Cline or Windsurf

Setup Guide

Follow these steps to set up your Google Images Search MCP:

Step 1: Create Google Custom search engine

  1. Go to Google Programmable Search Engine
  2. Click "Add" to create a new search engine
  3. In "Sites to search", enter * (asterisk) to search the entire web
  4. Give your search engine a name (e.g., "My Image Search")
  5. In the search engine settings, enable "Image search" option
  6. Click "Create"
  7. Copy the Search engine ID - you'll need this for configuration

Step 2: Get Google API Key

  1. Go to Google Cloud Console API Credentials
  2. If you don't have a project, create one
  3. Click "+ CREATE CREDENTIALS" → "API key"
  4. Copy the generated API key
  5. (Optional) Restrict the API key to "Custom Search API" for security

Step 3: Configure MCP in Your IDE

Add the following configuration to your MCP settings:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "googleImagesSearch": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@srigi/mcp-google-images-search"],
      "env": {
        "API_KEY": "your-google-api-key-here",
        "SEARCH_ENGINE_ID": "your-search-engine-id-here"
      },
      "autoApprove": ["search_image", "persist_image"]
    }
  }
}

Replace your-google-api-key-here and your-search-engine-id-here with the values from steps 1 and 2.

Usage Example

Here's how to use the MCP once configured:

  1. Search for images: Ask your AI assistant to search for images

    Search for image of F-22 in-air

  2. Get more results: Request additional search results

    Show me 3 more images

  3. Save an image: Ask to save a specific result to your project

    Save the 3rd image to the "assets" folder

The MCP will display the search results as actual images in your chat history, and you can easily save any of them to your local project directory.

Development & Dev-Requirements

Feel free to join development of this MCP. Quality contribution is welcomed.

Development requirements

  • Node.js v20+
  • direnv
  • PNPM v10

Development setup

For development, you need to start the dev build and use a different MCP configuration that points to the continuously recompiled source files:

Step 1: Configure Environment

  1. Copy .envrc (example) to .envrc
  2. Fill in your API_KEY and SEARCH_ENGINE_ID in .envrc

Step 2: Install Dependencies

pnpm install

Step 3: Start Development Mode

pnpm dev

This starts TypeScript compiler in watch mode, continuously recompiling changes.

Step 4: Configure IDE for Development

Use this MCP configuration for development (replace the path with your actual project path):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "googleImagesSearch": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["/absolute/path/to/project/src/index.js"],
      "env": {
        "API_KEY": "your-google-api-key-here",
        "SEARCH_ENGINE_ID": "your-search-engine-id-here"
      },
      "autoApprove": ["search_image", "persist_image"]
    }
  }
}

Development Tools

For debugging and testing, you can start the MCP inspector:

pnpx @modelcontextprotocol/inspector

Open the inspector URL that includes the MCP_PROXY_AUTH_TOKEN (reported on the terminal). In the inspector's UI fill the same Command: and Arguments: as in above MCP configuration, then click "▷ Connect". Finally click "List Tools" to see the MPC's tools, and invoke them with desired arguments.

Check the log file for debugging information.

Note: When you make changes to the source code, the dev build will automatically recompile, but you may need to restart the MCP server in your IDE to apply the changes.

Available Tools

search_image

Search for images using Google Custom Search API.

Parameters:

  • query (string, required): Search query for images
  • count (number, optional): Number of results to return (1-10, default: 2)
  • safe (string, optional): Safe search setting - 'off', 'medium', 'high' (default: 'off')
  • startIndex (number, optional): Starting index for pagination (default: 1)

persist_image

Download and save images from URLs to your local project directory.

Parameters:

  • link (string, required): URL to the full-quality image
  • path (string, required): Relative path where to save the image (can be folder or folder/filename.ext)

Features:

  • Automatic file extension detection from MIME type
  • Directory creation if needed
  • Security validation (prevents directory traversal)
  • Content type validation (images only)
  • Supports JPEG, PNG, GIF, WebP, SVG, BMP, TIFF, AVIF

TODO

  • add example usage screencast

  • open GH issue for image support in the chat history:

    • Augment
    • Claude (desktop)
    • Copilot
    • Cursor
    • RooCode
    • Zed

  • allow specifying of the output file in the chat

  • configurable logging severity

  • log directory in user profile folder (AppData\Roaming, Library/Application Support) or configurable

  • image fetch timeout & retry

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