Ad library MCP servers compared: ads and store data for AI agents

An MCP server hands an AI client a list of tools, and the agent picks the one that fits your question. An ad library server's tools search ads by brand, copy or landing page, so you can ask "which skincare brands kept the same video ad running for a month" and get the ads back in the chat. For code you write yourself, see our ad library API guide. For the protocol itself, our MCP server page explains what an MCP server is.

How we compared ad library MCP servers

For each server we noted the same facts:

• Where it runs. A hosted (remote) server is a web address you add to your client. A local server is a package your computer runs, for desktop clients such as Claude Desktop or Cursor; the local servers listed here run on Node.js.
• How you sign in. A sign-in in your browser (OAuth), or an API key.
• The data. The ad networks it names, and any stores, products, emails or traffic.
• Plans and volume. Which plans include the server, and the calls or credits each allows.

We do not copy other tools' prices, which change often. The lists under each table link their pricing pages instead, and our own price is on our pricing page.

Which MCP servers search ad libraries?

We found eleven ad research tools with their own MCP server. Here they are in alphabetical order.

Pages read on October 26, 2026: AdLibrary.com pricing and its API page, Atria's homepage, MCP page and pricing, Brandsearch's homepage, MCP page and pricing, Copyfy's homepage and pricing, Foreplay's MCP page and pricing, GetHookd's homepage and MCP page, Panoramata pricing and its connect page, PiPiAds' MCP page, PPSPY's homepage, Winning Hunter's homepage, MCP guide, tools reference and credits page. On October 23, 2026: PPSPY's MCP page, and Kalodata's homepage and blog post, used in the list of tools with no MCP server below.

Where the others go further than us: AdLibrary.com names the most networks, from X and LinkedIn to Unity Ads and AdMob. Panoramata puts SMS and email flows next to the ads. PiPiAds and Winning Hunter cover TikTok Shop. AdLibrary.com, Panoramata and Winning Hunter name Pinterest. SellWinners has no Pinterest, LinkedIn, X or TikTok Shop data, and its YouTube ads are Google video ads with no video file: you watch them on Google.

For one-to-one comparisons, see SellWinners vs Brandsearch, SellWinners vs Winning Hunter and PiPiAds alternatives.

Which MCP servers give store and traffic data?

These four center on store, technology or traffic data rather than an ad library.

Pages read on October 26, 2026: BuiltWith plans and its llms.txt file (builtwith.com/llms.txt), Cart pricing and API documentation, Similarweb's MCP docs, StoreLeads' MCP help page and homepage.

Cart is the only one of the four with a free tier that includes MCP, and the only one whose docs show ads, in examples that use Facebook. StoreLeads adds contact details, which SellWinners does not have. None of the four is built around an ad library, and that is where SellWinners differs: its Shopify stores sit next to Meta, Google and TikTok ads, and a Meta ad links to the store behind it. For store research tools in general, see the best Shopify spy tools.

Which ad spy tools have no MCP server yet?

On October 26, 2026 we found no MCP server on the pages of these tools. That does not prove they have none, and these offers change fast.

• AdSpy. Facebook and Instagram ads. Its homepage mentions no API, MCP server or AI agent. See AdSpy alternatives.
• BigSpy. Its pricing page lists a "Creative to AI Prompt" tool on every plan, and no API or MCP server. See BigSpy alternatives.
• Kalodata. TikTok Shop data. On October 23, 2026, its menu linked to an API in its Open Center, and its blog described an agent skill for Codex and Claude Code that runs on a Kalodata API key. We found no MCP server. Its pages did not load for us on October 26.
• Minea. Its pricing page names an AI analysis of an ad and AI transcripts inside the app, and no API or MCP server. See Minea alternatives.
• PowerAdSpy. Its homepage says reports can be "piped straight into your BI stack via API", and mentions no MCP server. See SellWinners vs PowerAdSpy.

To compare these tools on the ads themselves, see the best ad spy tools.

How do you connect an ad library MCP server to Claude or ChatGPT?

A hosted server needs its address and a sign-in or a key. A local server needs Node.js and an entry in your desktop client's config file.

Claude

1. Open Customize, then Connectors. Select + Add, then Add custom connector.
2. Enter a name and the server's address, then check the sign-in settings: sign in now, sign in when needed, or no sign-in. A server that takes an API key gets it under Request headers.
3. Select Add. In a chat, turn the connector on from the + button, under Connectors.

On Anthropic's help page, custom connectors work on the Free, Pro, Max, Team and Enterprise plans, with one custom connector on Free. On Team and Enterprise, an Owner adds the connector in the organization settings and each member connects. Claude reaches the server from Anthropic's cloud, so the server must be on the public internet. A local package such as PiPiAds', PPSPY's or Cart's goes in Claude Desktop's config file instead, and it is then not available in claude.ai (checked on October 26, 2026).

ChatGPT

1. On ChatGPT on the web, open Plugins, select the plus button, then Add custom MCP server.
2. Enter a name and the server's address, then set the authentication.
3. Review the risk warning, create the server as a plugin, and install the plugin before you use it in a chat.

OpenAI's developer guide names OAuth and no authentication, and does not mention API keys (checked on October 26, 2026). So for ChatGPT, prefer a hosted server with a browser sign-in: Foreplay, Panoramata, StoreLeads and Winning Hunter describe one, and so does SellWinners. In a company workspace, the workspace's permissions apply.

Cursor, VS Code and other clients

These take a JSON entry with the server's address and, for most servers, an API key in a header. Our MCP server page has ready configs for Cursor, VS Code and Claude Desktop.

How do MCP quotas and permissions differ?

An agent may make several tool calls to answer one question, and each server counts them its own way:

• Per call. Winning Hunter charges 1 credit per successful tool call and allows 300 MCP calls a minute. Atria counts MCP calls a month on Core and charges 1 AI credit for each call over the cap.
• Per result. PiPiAds' lists and searches cost typically 1 credit per result.
• By tool. GetHookd's search tools use credits, and its lookup tools, such as opening one ad, are free.
• Per day and per minute. Cart's tiers count API requests a day. AdLibrary.com's API allows 100 requests a minute and 10,000 a day per key.
• SellWinners. A tool call costs the results it returns, from the same monthly credits as the REST API. 1 credit = 1 result returned: one brand's details, one ad, or one row of a list. An empty result is free. Failed calls, usage_get and check_credits cost nothing.

Permissions matter as much as quotas, because some tools change your account. StoreLeads says its server is read-only. Winning Hunter's tools reference says most of its tools are read-only; three write, to track a brand or a store and to save an ad, another can save transcripts, and it mentions no tool that deletes. GetHookd lets you limit a token to scopes, such as ad search only. The SellWinners server has tools that save, move, share or delete items on your boards, favorites and tracked brands, such as create_board_share_link and delete_from_brandtracker. Each tool tells your client whether it only reads and whether it can delete or change something, and the ones that delete, remove, archive or share run only with an explicit confirmation.

A few habits help with any server:

• Prefer a sign-in to a key when the client offers one: you can disconnect the app without touching your keys. SellWinners lists connected apps in your dashboard, under MCP server.
• Give each agent its own API key, so you can revoke one without breaking your scripts.
• Keep your client's confirmation step on for tools that write or delete.
• Connect only servers you trust. Anthropic's help page says custom connectors reach services Anthropic has not verified, and OpenAI's guide says to connect only MCP servers you trust.

Which ad library MCP server fits which job?

• Meta creatives and swipe files. GetHookd covers Facebook and Instagram only. Foreplay and Atria cover Meta and TikTok, and Foreplay adds YouTube and LinkedIn.
• The longest list of networks. AdLibrary.com, with MCP on its Business plan.
• Emails and the rest of a competitor's marketing. Panoramata tracks emails, SMS, flows and landing pages next to the ads, and Brandsearch keeps emails on its brand pages. SellWinners has search_emails and analyze_shop_emails.
• Ads and Shopify stores in one place. Brandsearch, PiPiAds, PPSPY, Winning Hunter and SellWinners. PiPiAds and Winning Hunter add TikTok Shop, and Winning Hunter's ad tools need its Standard plan.
• Google and YouTube ads. AdLibrary.com names Google and YouTube, Panoramata names Google Display and YouTube, Brandsearch names Google, Foreplay names YouTube, and Winning Hunter's MCP guide lists a Google ads search. SellWinners filters Google ads by network: Search, YouTube, Shopping and Maps.
• Store lists, apps and traffic. StoreLeads and BuiltWith for store lists and technologies, Similarweb for traffic, and Cart for store and product data with a free daily tier.

Before you pay, connect two servers and ask both the same question. Compare the answers, and the calls or credits each one used.

What can you ask the SellWinners MCP server?

Our server gives your agent the same data as Explore and the REST API. A few questions, and the tools the agent reaches for:

The server is on paid plans. The Free plan includes the MCP server too: 150 credits a month, 10 requests a minute, the first 10 results of each search. On paid plans: the API; Google ads, TikTok and brand emails; advertiser pages and brand trackers; product search; full shop analytics, shop filters and sorting; boards, favorites and share links. The setup for each client is on our MCP server page, and the post on AI agents for e-commerce research shows how an agent works through a research question.

AdLibrary.com, Atria, Brandsearch, BuiltWith, Cart, Copyfy, Foreplay, GetHookd, Kalodata, Minea, Panoramata, PiPiAds, PPSPY, Similarweb, StoreLeads, Winning Hunter, AdSpy, BigSpy and PowerAdSpy are trademarks of their owners. SellWinners is not affiliated with any of them, or with Meta, Google, TikTok, Anthropic or OpenAI.