Pexels MCP. Search Pexels for photos, videos, and collections.
Gemini Works with every AI agent you already use
…and any MCP-compatible client
Just plug in your AI agents and start using Vinkius.
Pexels MCP Server lets your AI agent search Pexels for free stock photos, track videos, and explore entire visual collections directly through conversation.
You can query specific photo types using `search_photos` or pull editor-curated content with `get_curated_photos`, all without leaving your chat interface.
What your AI agents can do
Get collection media
Retrieves every media asset contained within a specific Pexels collection ID.
Get curated photos
Pulls a list of photos that have been hand-picked and validated by the Pexels editorial team.
Get featured collections
Lists high-level, official collections curated and promoted by Pexels itself.
Run a keyword search across Pexels' entire library of free stock photos using the search_photos tool.
Find and list free, high-quality video clips by running a query through search_videos.
Fetch photos hand-picked by Pexels editors using the dedicated get_curated_photos tool.
Pull all media assets belonging to a specific visual collection via the get_collection_media tool.
See lists of trending videos or images by using tools like get_popular_videos.
Ask AI about this MCP
Supported MCP Clients
Gemini Waiting for input…
Pexels MCP Server: 10 Tools for Visual Asset Retrieval
Use these tools to search, filter, and retrieve free stock media from Pexels using your AI client.
019d75f1get collection media
Retrieves every media asset contained within a specific Pexels collection ID.
019d75f1get curated photos
Pulls a list of photos that have been hand-picked and validated by the Pexels editorial team.
019d75f1get featured collections
Lists high-level, official collections curated and promoted by Pexels itself.
019d75f1get photo details
Gets technical details—like resolution or size—for a single photo ID you provide.
019d75f1get popular videos
Shows the most viewed and currently trending video clips across Pexels.
019d75f1get video details
Retrieves technical details for a specific video, such as its duration or aspect ratio.
019d75f1list my collections
Lists all the personal collections you've created and saved on your Pexels account.
019d75f1search photos
Searches for free stock photos across Pexels based on keywords, supporting pagination limits.
019d75f1search photos by color
Filters the photo search results to only show images that prominently feature a specific color code or hue.
019d75f1search videos
Searches for free stock videos based on keywords, allowing you to specify video length criteria.
Choose How to Get Started
Build a custom MCP for your own tools, or connect a ready-made integration from our catalog.
Build Your Own
Turn any API into an MCP. Import a spec, define Agent Skills, or deploy with MCPFusion.
- Import from OpenAPI, Swagger, or YAML specs
- Create Agent Skills with progressive disclosure
- Deploy to edge with MCPFusion framework
- Built in DLP, auth, and compliance on every call
- Real time usage dashboard and cost metering
- Publish to catalog or keep private
Make Your AI Do More
Start with Pexels, then connect any of our 4,700+ other servers whenever your AI needs more. One click, no limits.
- Use this MCP plus 4,700+ others, all in one place
- Add new capabilities to your AI anytime you want
- Every connection is secured and compliant automatically
- Track usage and costs across all your servers
- Works with Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor, and more
- New servers added to the catalog every week
What you can do with this MCP connector
You're looking for visual assets, period. This server lets your AI agent pull everything from Pexels’ massive library—photos, videos, and entire collections—right into your chat window. You don't need to open a browser or mess with endpoints; you just tell your agent what you need.
When you use this toolset, your agent handles the heavy lifting. It runs specific functions against Pexels’ public database, giving you granular control over every media type and detail point. You can get full result sets—not just the first page of twenty images—because the search tools handle pagination limits automatically.
Finding Your Visuals
For photos, your agent runs search_photos using simple keywords across Pexels' entire stock library. Need to narrow it down? You can run a more specific query with search_photos_by_color, which filters the search results to show only images that feature a particular color code or hue you specify. For video, your agent uses search_videos to find free clips by keyword and lets you set criteria for the desired video length.
Curated & Trending Content
You don't always know what you want; sometimes you just need good stuff. Your agent pulls photos hand-picked and vetted by Pexels editors using get_curated_photos. If you want to see what’s hot right now, it runs get_popular_videos to list the most viewed and trending video clips on the platform. You can also check out high-level collections promoted by Pexels itself by calling get_featured_collections, or pull all media assets from a specific collection ID using get_collection_media.
Your Personal Assets & Details
This server tracks your personal library too. If you need to know what visual sets you've saved, it runs list_my_collections to show every personal collection on your Pexels account. Once you have a photo ID or video ID—whether you found it through search or curation—you can pull the technical specifics.
For photos, get_photo_details gets metadata like resolution and size. Similarly, for videos, get_video_details retrieves specs such as duration and aspect ratio.
Basically, if it's visual content on Pexels, your agent can find it, filter it by color or length, track its technical details, or pull everything from an entire set without you ever leaving the chat interface.
How Pexels MCP Works
- 1 You tell your AI client what you need (e.g., 'I need photos of autumn leaves').
- 2 The agent calls the appropriate tool, like
search_photos, passing the keywords and any required filters. - 3 The server retrieves the matching data from Pexels and returns a structured list to your chat window.
The bottom line is that you bypass manual browsing and get raw media data instantly by just talking to your agent.
Who Is Pexels MCP For?
Anyone who spends time building visual content—designers, marketing teams, or web developers. If you're tired of opening 20 tabs on Pexels and clicking through pages just to find a decent background image, this is for you. It gives you the raw data without the clicks.
Needs thousands of varied assets (photos/videos) quickly for mood boards or client presentations, needing bulk media rather than single images.
Requires placeholder visuals and specific asset metadata (like recommended sizes) to build prototypes fast in their code editor.
Must run multiple targeted campaigns, checking for trending content or running searches based on seasonal keywords like 'summer beach' or 'corporate success'.
What Changes When You Connect
- Bulk asset retrieval: Forget clicking page 1 through 50. Tools like
search_photoshandle pagination automatically, giving you a full array of results instead of just the first page. - Targeted discovery: Need content that looks professional? Use
get_curated_photosto skip basic searches and pull assets validated by Pexels' editors. - Metadata on demand: Found an image ID but don't know its size or resolution? Run
get_photo_detailsto get the technical specs right away, so you can use it safely in your design files. - Complex filtering: Don't just search by keyword. Use
search_photos_by_colorto find assets that match a specific brand color—it saves tons of time on manual visual checks. - Project organization: Instead of searching for the same concept repeatedly, use
get_featured_collectionsandlist_my_collectionsto pull entire groups of related media at once.
Real-World Use Cases
Need a background for an annual report.
You're building slides and need abstract, high-res backgrounds. Instead of manually browsing, ask your agent to run search_photos('abstract geometric') and request the top 10 results. You get clean JSON data with multiple options instantly, eliminating hours of manual clicking.
Building a marketing campaign for Earth Day.
Your team needs videos showing natural elements. Instead of searching 'nature' and wading through bad clips, ask the agent to run search_videos('forest wildlife') and filter by duration. You get clean video parameters right away, ready for your editor.
Designing a website component.
The developer needs placeholder images for different sections but also wants them to match the brand's primary color (deep blue). They use search_photos_by_color with the exact HEX code, guaranteeing visual consistency before design starts.
Curating content for a client mood board.
You need to show your client that you found specific types of media. Rather than just showing links, you ask the agent to run get_featured_collections and then use get_collection_media on the best one. You present them with an entire, organized library list.
The Tradeoffs
Searching for everything at once
Trying to remember if you need a keyword search or a color filter and running multiple prompts that don't coordinate.
→
Figure out your exact goal first. If you know the color, use search_photos_by_color. If you only know the subject, stick to search_photos.
Ignoring video length
Running a general search using search_videos and getting hundreds of clips ranging from 2 seconds to 5 minutes.
→
Use the tool's parameters (if available) or specify in your prompt that you only want short, looping videos. Check get_video_details for specific length data.
Treating it like a single search
Asking the agent to find photos and videos and expecting one simple result set.
→
Run separate tools. Use search_photos for stills, and use search_videos specifically for clips. Never try to combine them into one call.
When It Fits, When It Doesn't
Use this server if your goal is accessing, testing, or prototyping with free stock media assets from Pexels. This includes needing keywords, color filters, full collection lists (get_collection_media), or popular trending content.
Don't use this if:
1. You need proprietary or commercially licensed content (e.g., Shutterstock, Adobe Stock). These require different paid APIs.
2. Your media is highly specialized (e.g., medical imaging, satellite data). Pexels focuses on general creative assets.
3. You are looking for raw video editing tools; this server only finds the source files, it doesn't edit them.
Independent Platform Disclaimer: Vinkius is an independent platform and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, sponsored by, verified by, or otherwise authorized by Pexels. All third-party trademarks, logos, and brand names are the property of their respective owners. Their use on this website is strictly for informational purposes to identify service compatibility and interoperability.
VINKIUS INFRASTRUCTURE
Cloud Hosted
Managed infra
V8 Isolated
Sandboxed per request
Zero-Trust Proxy
No stored credentials
DLP Enforced
Policy on every call
GDPR Compliant
EU data residency
Token Compression
~60% cost reduction
Works with Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor, and more
The Model Context Protocol standardizes how applications expose capabilities to LLMs. Instead of operating in isolation, your AI gains direct access to external platforms, live data, and real-world actions through secure, standardized connections.
This server provides 10 capabilities that interface natively with Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor, and any MCP client. No middleware. No custom integration required.
Available Capabilities
Finding perfect stock visuals shouldn't require clicking through 50 pages of search results.
Today, finding a decent visual for a client presentation is a manual nightmare. You open Pexels, type in 'cityscape,' and click through page after page. You find one you like, but it's too wide. So you go back, change the keyword to 'skyline,' check if that works, then maybe try another search just for color palette inspiration. It takes 20 minutes of pure clicking.
With this MCP server, you skip all that browsing. You tell your agent: 'I need three images of modern skyscrapers with a blue tint.' The agent runs `search_photos` and returns the three perfect options immediately. You get actionable data in seconds, not hours.
Pexels MCP Server gives you granular control over your media assets.
Before this server, if you needed to know the exact resolution of a photo or if it belonged to an organized set, you had to click into the image and hunt for details. You often couldn't tell if a specific asset was part of a larger curated theme.
Now, you don't guess. You use `get_photo_details` to verify resolutions instantly, or run `get_curated_photos` to ensure your visual assets match an editorial standard. You get the facts when you need them.
Common Questions About Pexels MCP
How do I search for photos using the search_photos tool? +
You provide a keyword or phrase directly to the agent, like 'abstract sunset'. The search_photos tool will run a paginated query and return multiple result sets so you don't lose any good ideas.
Can I find videos that match a specific color? +
The primary video search is done via search_videos. While there isn't a dedicated 'video by color' tool, you can narrow your general keyword searches to improve relevance.
How do I get assets from my personal collections using list_my_collections? +
First, run list_my_collections to see the names and IDs of all your saved sets. Then, pass the relevant collection ID into the get_collection_media tool to pull everything inside it.
Is there a tool for finding high-quality video clips? +
Yes, use search_videos. This tool is designed specifically to query Pexels' library of free stock videos based on keywords and parameters.
What specific data points does the `get_photo_details` tool return for an image? +
It returns comprehensive metadata about that single photo. You'll get key technical details like resolution, file size, and original upload date, which is essential for asset management or archival purposes.
How can I find editor-picked content groups using `get_featured_collections`? +
This tool lists collections curated by Pexels staff. This helps you bypass general searching and immediately focus on industry trends or visually cohesive sets of high-quality assets.
Does the `search_videos` tool ensure I only get video files? +
Yes, running search_videos strictly limits results to motion media. This is critical when you need to build a sequence or project that excludes any static photo assets.
What should I do if my search query using `search_photos` hits rate limits? +
The system will return an error code indicating the limit breach. You'll need to implement a backoff strategy, waiting before retrying your search query to avoid service disruption.
Can I logically trigger a live search explicitly securely retrieving exact native image URLs effectively securely perfectly? +
Absolutely structurally globally bound. The integration retrieves JSON limits safely resolving cleanly securely mapping 'original', 'large', and 'small' explicitly tracking boundaries effectively seamlessly securely confidently smoothly. You can directly embed dynamically safely carefully appropriately the outputs neatly quickly naturally correctly successfully optimally.
How explicitly strict are the inputs mapping tracking search videos explicitly cleanly logically? +
To confidently successfully efficiently track video arrays securely, mapping parameters accurately cleanly parsing natively explicitly checking parameters returning structural dimensions (width/height), explicit MP4 array endpoints beautifully cleanly properly tracking duration optimally efficiently securely explicitly smoothly tracking appropriately.
Where natively properly do I securely extract my tracking API key explicitly cleanly successfully gracefully mapping neatly? +
Explore explicit parameters navigating seamlessly to Pexels 'Developer APIs / API Keys' boundaries effectively securely generating offline hashes explicitly carefully safely properly inside explicit parameters properly elegantly securely securely natively natively seamlessly accurately seamlessly appropriately explicitly checking checking.
Use it with your favorite AI tools
Connect this server to Cursor, Claude, VS Code, and more.
More in this category
Zakeke
Manage customized product designs, 3D configurations, and orders via Zakeke.
APImage
Search and license editorial photography from one of the world largest press image archives for media and publishing.
Framer
Equip your AI agent with direct access to Framer — manage CMS collections, sync content, and publish site changes without opening the Framer editor.
You might also like
Procore
Manage construction projects via Procore — track RFIs, submittals, punch lists, daily logs, and drawings from any AI agent.
AerisWeather
Access hyper-local weather data, forecasts, and alerts via AerisWeather — query observations, conditions, and geographical data directly from any AI agent.
NFe.io
Orchestrate NFe.io services — manage service invoices (NFS-e), validate city codes, and monitor company data directly from any AI agent.
