How do I install the Tavily skill?

Run npx skillmds@latest add lev-os/tavily in your terminal (requires Node.js), paste this page's agent-chat prompt into Claude, Cursor, or any MCP-connected agent, or download the SKILL.md file and copy it into your agent's skills directory.

What does the Tavily skill do?

AI-optimized web search via Tavily API. Returns concise, relevant results for AI agents. It is listed under Integrations & APIs on SkillMD.

Is Tavily safe to use?

This skill has not completed SkillMD's automated safety review yet. Capability flags: executes scripts, makes network calls. SkillMD never runs a skill's scripts for you; review the SKILL.md before installing.

Which AI agents work with Tavily?

This skill is tagged as working with Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex. SKILL.md is an open format, so most agents that read a skills directory can load it too.

Is Tavily free to use?

Yes. Installing skills from SkillMD is free, and the skill stays under its author's original license.

Who published Tavily?

lev-os (@lev-os) published this skill. Their other Agent Skills are listed on their SkillMD profile.

Tavily by lev-os — Agent Skill

Name: Tavily
Rating: 4.2 (5 reviews)
Author: lev-os

File contents

Tavily Search

AI-optimized web search using Tavily API. Designed for AI agents - returns clean, relevant content.

Search

node {baseDir}/scripts/search.mjs "query"
node {baseDir}/scripts/search.mjs "query" -n 10
node {baseDir}/scripts/search.mjs "query" --deep
node {baseDir}/scripts/search.mjs "query" --topic news

Options

-n <count>: Number of results (default: 5, max: 20)
--deep: Use advanced search for deeper research (slower, more comprehensive)
--topic <topic>: Search topic - general (default) or news
--days <n>: For news topic, limit to last n days

Extract content from URL

node {baseDir}/scripts/extract.mjs "https://example.com/article"

Notes:

Needs TAVILY_API_KEY from https://tavily.com
Tavily is optimized for AI - returns clean, relevant snippets
Use --deep for complex research questions
Use --topic news for current events

Related Search Tools

tavily-search is for single-query AI-optimized search. For more:

Tool	Use When	Example
deep-research	Multi-query Tavily synthesis	`deep-research "query" --deep` (uses this + more)
valyu	Turn-based recursive research	`valyu research "query" --turns 5`
lev-research	Multi-perspective orchestration	`lev-research "query"`
lev-find	Unified local + external	`lev find "query" --scope=research`
brave-search	Quick web lookups	`brave-search "query"`
exa-plus	Neural search, GitHub, papers	`exa search "query"`
grok-research	Real-time X/Twitter	`grok-research "query"`
firecrawl	Content extraction	`firecrawl scrape <url>`
qmd	Local session search	`qmd query "query"`

Tavily hierarchy:

tavily-search (this) - Single query, clean snippets
deep-research - Multi-query orchestration using Tavily backend

When to use tavily-search:

✅ Quick AI-optimized results
✅ Clean snippets for LLM context
✅ Current events with --topic news
❌ Multi-query synthesis (use deep-research)
❌ Turn-based refinement (use valyu)

See skill://deep-research for comprehensive Tavily workflows.

---name: tavilydescription: AI-optimized web search via Tavily API. Returns concise, relevant results for AI agents.---# Tavily SearchAI-optimized web search using Tavily API. Designed for AI agents - returns clean, relevant content.## Search```bashnode {baseDir}/scripts/search.mjs "query"node {baseDir}/scripts/search.mjs "query" -n 10node {baseDir}/scripts/search.mjs "query" --deepnode {baseDir}/scripts/search.mjs "query" --topic news```## Options- `-n <count>`: Number of results (default: 5, max: 20)- `--deep`: Use advanced search for deeper research (slower, more comprehensive)- `--topic <topic>`: Search topic - `general` (default) or `news`- `--days <n>`: For news topic, limit to last n days## Extract content from URL```bashnode {baseDir}/scripts/extract.mjs "https://example.com/article"```Notes:- Needs `TAVILY_API_KEY` from https://tavily.com- Tavily is optimized for AI - returns clean, relevant snippets- Use `--deep` for complex research questions- Use `--topic news` for current events## Related Search Tools**tavily-search is for single-query AI-optimized search. For more:**| Tool | Use When | Example ||------|----------|---------|| **deep-research** | Multi-query Tavily synthesis | `deep-research "query" --deep` (uses this + more) || **valyu** | Turn-based recursive research | `valyu research "query" --turns 5` || **lev-research** | Multi-perspective orchestration | `lev-research "query"` || **lev-find** | Unified local + external | `lev find "query" --scope=research` || **brave-search** | Quick web lookups | `brave-search "query"` || **exa-plus** | Neural search, GitHub, papers | `exa search "query"` || **grok-research** | Real-time X/Twitter | `grok-research "query"` || **firecrawl** | Content extraction | `firecrawl scrape <url>` || **qmd** | Local session search | `qmd query "query"` |**Tavily hierarchy:**- **tavily-search** (this) - Single query, clean snippets- **deep-research** - Multi-query orchestration using Tavily backend**When to use tavily-search:**- ✅ Quick AI-optimized results- ✅ Clean snippets for LLM context- ✅ Current events with `--topic news`- ❌ Multi-query synthesis (use deep-research)- ❌ Turn-based refinement (use valyu)See `skill://deep-research` for comprehensive Tavily workflows.

Frequently asked questions

Tavily