seo-suite-dataforseo

An optional connector for seo-suite. It adds DataForSEO’s official v3 MCP server: the npm package dataforseo-mcp-server, pinned to 3.1.3 and run locally over stdio. Its tools appear as mcp__plugin_seo-suite-dataforseo_dataforseo__<tool>.

The server has four tools:

• docs_index, docs_list_sections and docs_search are free.
• api_request calls any api.dataforseo.com endpoint.

DataForSEO is pay-as-you-go. The minimum top-up is $50, and the funds don’t expire.

You need Node.js 22 or newer and npx. The first start downloads the package, which can take a moment.

Set up (once)

1. Install the core plugin and this connector: claude plugin install seo-suite@seo-suite and claude plugin install seo-suite-dataforseo@seo-suite.
2. Enter the API credentials. In a Claude Code session, run /plugin configure seo-suite-dataforseo@seo-suite and fill in:
   • dataforseo_login
   • dataforseo_password

   Both come from the DataForSEO dashboard under API access. The API password is not your dashboard password.

   • Both values are masked and stored in the system keychain.
   • Don’t pass them with --config on the command line, because they would land in your shell history.
   • Never paste them into the chat.
3. Set a daily spending limit at DataForSEO, which only you can do. Go to app.dataforseo.com/api-settings. Calls over the limit fail with error 40203, and the limit resets at 00:00 UTC.
4. Set a budget. Run /plugin configure seo-suite@seo-suite and set dataforseo_monthly_usd. A budget of 0 (the default) blocks every paid DataForSEO call.

If you would rather use OAuth than a password, add the hosted server yourself: claude mcp add --transport http dataforseo https://mcp.dataforseo.com/v3/mcp, then /mcp → Authenticate. The credit guard covers mcp__dataforseo__* and mcp__dfs-mcp__* too.

What the credit guard does with DataForSEO

The guard is scripts/credit_guard.py in the core plugin.

• Free calls. These run without budget checks: the docs tools, appendix/user_data (your balance), tasks_ready and task_get.

• Estimates. Each api_request is estimated from its endpoint path (October 2026 prices):

  Endpoint	Price
  SERP, Standard queue	$0.0006 per 10 results
  SERP, Live	$0.002 per 10 results
  Google Ads volumes	$0.06 (Standard) or $0.09 (Live) per task of up to 1,000 keywords
  Labs	$0.012 + $0.00012 per item
  Backlinks	$0.024 + $0.000036 per row
  LLM Mentions	$0.1 + $0.001 per row
  On-Page	$0.00015 per page, plus JavaScript or browser-rendering add-ons

  SERP surcharges: search operators cost five times as much each, priority 2 doubles the Standard price, and AI Overview loading or calculate_rectangles each add one base price.

• Row limits. The guard caps limit, depth and max_crawl_pages at max_rows (default 50). It also adds the limit when a list endpoint or On-Page crawl leaves it out.
• Actual cost. When a response shows its cost, the ledger records that figure instead of the estimate.
• Batching. Prefer the Standard queue (task_post, then free tasks_ready and task_get) for bulk work. It is 3.3 times cheaper for SERPs, and posted tasks stay retrievable for 30 days. A cached task_post response gives the task ids to fetch again for free.

Limits

• A Live endpoint takes one task per call; the MCP sends only the first task. Google Ads Live is limited to 12 calls a minute.
• api_request only reaches api.dataforseo.com, so the free sandbox can’t be used through the MCP.

See the autonomy policy for what runs without asking.