Browserbase MCP (Stagehand) vs Apify Actors MCP (RAG Web Browser)

A side-by-side comparison of two Browser Automation servers — tools, transport, auth, maintenance, and copy-paste config for each.

	Browserbase MCP (Stagehand) Official Browserbase cloud-browser MCP built on Stagehand — natural-language act/extract/observe. Verified stdio (local) API key TypeScript	Apify Actors MCP (RAG Web Browser) Run Apify's RAG Web Browser and 5,000+ Actors as MCP tools — web search and scrape to clean markdown. Verified stdio (local) API key TypeScript
Category	Browser Automation	Browser Automation
Language	TypeScript	TypeScript
Transport	stdio (local)	stdio (local)
Auth	API key	API key
GitHub stars	3.0k	600
Last commit	16 days ago	1 month ago
Verified
Actively maintained
Install	`npx -y @browserbasehq/mcp`	`npx -y @apify/actors-mcp-server`
Repo	Open	Open

Verdict

Pick Browserbase MCP (Stagehand) if you prefer the more popular, battle-tested option.

Pick Apify Actors MCP (RAG Web Browser) if you need the broadest set of tools.

Add Browserbase MCP (Stagehand)

Install / run

npx -y @browserbasehq/mcp

Paste into ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "browserbase-mcp-stagehand": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@browserbasehq/mcp"
      ],
      "env": {
        "GEMINI_API_KEY": "<your-gemini-api-key>",
        "BROWSERBASE_API_KEY": "<your-browserbase-api-key>",
        "BROWSERBASE_PROJECT_ID": "<your-browserbase-project-id>"
      }
    }
  }
}

Add Apify Actors MCP (RAG Web Browser)

Install / run

npx -y @apify/actors-mcp-server

Paste into ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "apify-actors-mcp-rag-web-browser": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@apify/actors-mcp-server"
      ],
      "env": {
        "APIFY_TOKEN": "<your-apify-api-token>"
      }
    }
  }
}

FAQ

Browserbase MCP (Stagehand) or Apify Actors MCP (RAG Web Browser) — which is better?

Pick Browserbase MCP (Stagehand) if you prefer the more popular, battle-tested option. Pick Apify Actors MCP (RAG Web Browser) if you need the broadest set of tools.

Can I use both Browserbase MCP (Stagehand) and Apify Actors MCP (RAG Web Browser)?

Yes — MCP clients let you enable multiple servers at once. Add both configs to your client's mcpServers and use whichever tool fits the task.

Do Browserbase MCP (Stagehand) and Apify Actors MCP (RAG Web Browser) work with Claude, Cursor and Windsurf?

Both do. Copy the per-client config below into Claude Desktop, Cursor, or Windsurf.

View Browserbase MCP (Stagehand) →View Apify Actors MCP (RAG Web Browser) →More comparisons →