Integration Guide
Connect ScraperCity to Perplexity as a local MCP connector. Ask questions about companies, people, or markets and Perplexity pulls live B2B data from ScraperCity into your research in real time.
Perplexity already searches the web. With ScraperCity connected as a local MCP server, it can also pull structured B2B data on demand. Instead of getting generic search results about a company, you get actual contact records, verified emails, phone numbers, and enrichment data - all surfaced inside the same conversational interface you already use for research.
The Model Context Protocol (MCP) is an open standard that lets AI assistants connect to external tools and data sources. Perplexity supports local MCP connectors on the macOS app, which means you can run the ScraperCity MCP server locally and have it available as a source every time you open Perplexity. No copy-pasting between tabs, no context switching - just ask and get structured data back.
Ask about a company and get real contacts with emails and titles, not just a Wikipedia summary.
Ask for a specific person's business email. Perplexity calls the email finder and returns a verified result.
Ask how many plumbers are in Denver. Perplexity triggers a Google Maps count and returns a real number.
Ask what tech stack a company uses. Perplexity calls BuiltWith and returns actual technology data.
Ask whether a contact's email is valid before outreach. Perplexity runs the email validator and tells you the deliverability status.
Ask who owns a specific address. Perplexity calls the property lookup tool and returns owner contact details.
When you ask Perplexity a question with the ScraperCity connector active, Perplexity decides whether your question needs a web search, a ScraperCity tool, or both. For questions about specific contacts, emails, business counts, or technology stacks, it routes the request to the appropriate ScraperCity endpoint and returns structured results as part of its answer.
The MCP server runs locally on your Mac. Your ScraperCity API key stays in your environment variables and is never sent to Perplexity directly - only the tool call and its response pass through. Each ScraperCity tool call deducts credits from your wallet at the standard per-result rate, the same as calling the API directly.
Every tool in the ScraperCity catalog is available: Apollo B2B leads, Google Maps businesses, email finder, email validator, mobile finder, people finder, BuiltWith tech stack, Shopify/WooCommerce stores, Airbnb hosts, Yelp listings, property lookup, criminal records, and more. Perplexity determines which tool to call based on how you phrase your question.
Perplexity supports local MCP connectors on the macOS app. Requires Perplexity Pro.
Open the Perplexity Mac app. Go to Settings, then Connectors. You will be prompted to install the PerplexityXPC helper application. Install it before proceeding.
The helper is required because macOS sandboxes apps from the App Store - PerplexityXPC gives Perplexity secure access to run local MCP servers on your machine.
Go to app.scrapercity.com/dashboard/api-docs and copy your API key. You will need it in the next step.
Add your ScraperCity API key to your shell profile so the MCP server can read it at startup. Open your terminal and run:
echo 'export SCRAPERCITY_API_KEY="your_api_key_here"' >> ~/.zshrc
source ~/.zshrcIf you use Bash instead of Zsh, replace ~/.zshrc with ~/.bash_profile. You can verify it is set by running echo $SCRAPERCITY_API_KEY in a new terminal window.
Go back to Perplexity Settings, then Connectors. Click Add Connector. Fill in the Simple tab fields:
ScraperCitynpx -y --package scrapercity scrapercity-mcpMake sure Node.js is installed before saving. Run node -v in your terminal to check. If it is not installed, run brew install node first.
Click Save. Perplexity will attempt to start the MCP server. Wait for the ScraperCity connector to show a Running status in the Connectors list. If it shows an error, see the Troubleshooting section below.
Go back to the Perplexity homepage. Under Sources, toggle the ScraperCity MCP connector on. Then test it with a simple query:
Perplexity will prompt you to confirm the tool call. Approve it. If your balance returns correctly, the integration is working and you are ready to use all ScraperCity tools from inside Perplexity.
“Find the CEO and CTO of Notion. Get their business email addresses using ScraperCity.”
Perplexity searches the web for leadership info, then calls the email finder to pull verified emails for each person.
“How many coffee shops are in Austin, TX? Use ScraperCity Google Maps scraper to get an exact count.”
Perplexity triggers a Maps scrape for coffee shops in Austin and returns the total count from real data.
“What technology does figma.com use? Check with ScraperCity BuiltWith.”
Perplexity calls the BuiltWith endpoint and returns the actual tech stack: frameworks, analytics, hosting, and more.
“I need to reach someone in marketing at Stripe. Find 3 marketing contacts with email addresses.”
Perplexity uses the email finder or Lead Database to pull actual contacts with verified emails.
“Is [email protected] a valid business email? Use ScraperCity to validate it.”
Perplexity calls the email validator and returns deliverability status, catch-all detection, and MX record results.
“Find 5 Shopify stores selling outdoor furniture. Use ScraperCity Store Leads.”
Perplexity calls the Store Leads endpoint and returns matching stores with contact info and revenue signals.
“Who owns the property at 123 Main St, Chicago, IL? Get their contact info.”
Perplexity calls the property lookup tool and returns owner name, mailing address, and available contact details.
Note: Perplexity is best for quick lookups and research questions. For bulk scraping (thousands of leads, full Apollo exports, batch validation), use Claude Code, Gemini CLI, or Copilot CLI instead.
These are the patterns that work best when combining Perplexity’s web search with ScraperCity’s structured data tools. Each workflow takes advantage of Perplexity’s ability to combine public web context with ScraperCity’s proprietary data in a single conversational turn.
Most setup issues come down to three things: a missing API key, a missing Node.js installation, or the PerplexityXPC helper not being installed. Work through these in order before checking anything else.
Connector shows error or won't start
First, confirm Node.js is installed by running node -v in your terminal. If not installed, run brew install node. Then confirm your SCRAPERCITY_API_KEY is set by running echo $SCRAPERCITY_API_KEY. If it returns empty, re-add the export line to your shell profile and run source ~/.zshrc. Then remove the connector from Perplexity and re-add it.
Connector shows Running but tools fail
This usually means the API key is set but invalid or has no wallet balance. Log in to app.scrapercity.com/dashboard/api-docs and confirm your key is correct. Then ask Perplexity to check your ScraperCity wallet balance to confirm the connection is working end-to-end.
Perplexity doesn't seem to use ScraperCity when I ask
Make sure the connector is toggled ON under Sources on the Perplexity homepage - the toggle needs to be active for each session. Also phrase your question explicitly, for example: 'Use ScraperCity to find the email for...' rather than just 'Find the email for...' Being explicit helps Perplexity route the request to the right tool.
npx command not found
npx ships with Node.js. If npx is not found, Node.js is either not installed or not on your PATH. Run brew install node if you use Homebrew, then open a new terminal window and try again. You can also run which npx to confirm it is on your PATH.
Tool call runs but returns no data
Some ScraperCity scrapers have delivery delays - Apollo scrapes take 11 to 48+ hours, while most other tools complete in minutes. For lookups that return empty in Perplexity, try the same query in the ScraperCity dashboard to confirm it is a data availability issue and not a connection issue.
Every endpoint in the ScraperCity catalog is exposed through the MCP server and callable from Perplexity. Here is a quick reference of what each tool does and when Perplexity will use it.
| Tool | What it returns | Cost | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apollo | B2B contacts by title, industry, location | $0.0039/lead | 11-48+ hrs |
| Google Maps | Local businesses with phones, emails, reviews | $0.01/place | 5-30 min |
| Email Finder | Business email from name + company domain | $0.05/contact | 1-10 min |
| Email Validator | Deliverability, catch-all, MX record check | $0.0036/email | 1-10 min |
| Mobile Finder | Phone numbers from LinkedIn or email | $0.25/input | 1-5 min |
| People Finder | Skip trace by name, email, phone, address | $0.02/result | 2-10 min |
| BuiltWith | All sites using a specific technology | $4.99/search | 1-5 min |
| Store Leads | Shopify/WooCommerce stores with contacts | $0.0039/lead | Instant |
| Property Lookup | Property data and owner contact info | $0.15/address | 2-10 min |
| Lead Database | 3M+ B2B contacts, instant query | $649/mo plan | Instant |
| Yelp | Business listings from Yelp | $0.01/listing | 5-15 min |
| Wallet | Check your ScraperCity credit balance | Free | Instant |
All plans ($49, $149, $649/mo) include API access to every tool except Lead Database, which requires the $649/mo plan. Credits are consumed per result at the rates above.