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firecrawl-deep-research

firecrawl/firecrawl-workflows

Produce rigorous, cited analytical reports on complex topics with multi-angle research and contrarian views.

What is firecrawl-deep-research?

Firecrawl Deep Research generates intensive, formal written reports synthesizing complex topics (scientific, technical, policy, market) with executive summaries, detailed findings, contrarian views, and full source citations. Use only when the user explicitly needs a rigorous report, not for product picks, top-N lists, or quick lookups.

  • Conducts multi-angle web research via Firecrawl search and scrape
  • Synthesizes findings into formal markdown reports with full citations
  • Identifies and presents contrarian views, risks, and limitations
  • Flags uncertainty and conflicting evidence in analysis
  • Supports three depth tiers (Quick, Thorough, Exhaustive) based on runtime
  • Prioritizes primary sources and expert perspectives

How to install firecrawl-deep-research

npx skills add https://github.com/firecrawl/firecrawl-workflows --skill firecrawl-deep-research
Prerequisites
  • Firecrawl API key (FIRECRAWL_API_KEY environment variable)
Claude Code
Cursor
Windsurf
Cline

How to use firecrawl-deep-research

  1. 1.Define your research topic and desired output format
  2. 2.Answer the onboarding question about runtime (Quick ~5 min, Thorough ~10-15 min, Exhaustive unlimited)
  3. 3.Optionally specify critical angles or source constraints if topic is unclear
  4. 4.The skill will conduct parallel research across multiple angles (overview, technical details, market context, contrarian views, primary sources)
  5. 5.Review the final markdown report with executive summary, key findings, detailed analysis, contrarian views, open questions, and full source citations

Use cases

Good for
  • Researching emerging scientific or technical fields for a formal report
  • Analyzing market trends and competitive landscapes with cited evidence
  • Evaluating policy proposals with multiple stakeholder perspectives
  • Investigating complex technical implementations with contrarian analysis
  • Synthesizing academic or industry research on a specialized topic
Who it's for
  • Researchers and analysts needing formal, cited reports
  • Product strategists evaluating market or technical landscapes
  • Policy analysts synthesizing evidence across sources
  • Technical teams investigating complex implementation approaches
  • Anyone needing rigorous synthesis beyond a quick search

firecrawl-deep-research FAQ

When should I use this skill vs. a regular search?

Use this skill only when you need a formal, rigorous written report with full citations and multi-angle synthesis. For product picks, top-N lists, quick lookups, or routine questions, use standard search instead.

How long does a research task take?

Runtime depends on the depth tier you choose: Quick (~5 minutes), Thorough (~10-15 minutes), or Exhaustive (longer, no time limit). You specify this during onboarding.

What sources does it prioritize?

The skill prioritizes primary sources, official documentation, research papers, and expert perspectives. It flags uncertainty and conflicting evidence when present.

Can I specify research angles or constraints?

Yes. After defining your topic and runtime, you can specify critical angles or source constraints (e.g., focus on academic sources, exclude certain vendors). Otherwise the skill infers angles automatically.

What format is the output?

Default is markdown with sections for executive summary, key findings, detailed analysis, contrarian views, open questions, and full source citations. JSON and brief formats are also supported.

Full instructions (SKILL.md)

Source of truth, from firecrawl/firecrawl-workflows.


name: firecrawl-deep-research description: | Produce an intensive, cited analytical report: executive summary, multi-angle findings, contrarian views, open questions, and full sources. Use only when the user needs rigorous synthesis of a complex topic (scientific, technical, policy, or market-analytical) that cannot be answered with a short search, and wants a formal written report, not a recommendation list.

Do not use for product picks, top-N lists, quick lookups, or routine "find out about X" tasks. If the request does not clearly need this kind of report, do not use this skill. license: ISC metadata: author: firecrawl version: "0.1.0" homepage: https://www.firecrawl.dev source: https://github.com/firecrawl/firecrawl-workflows inputs:

  • name: FIRECRAWL_API_KEY description: Firecrawl API key for hosted Firecrawl requests. required: true

Firecrawl Deep Research

Use this only for report-scale research: a rigorous, cited synthesis the user explicitly wants delivered as a formal written report. If the request is a product pick, a top-N list, a quick lookup, or anything answerable with a short search, stop; do not use this skill, let the request be handled the standard way.

Onboarding Interview

Infer the topic and output format from context. Before starting, unless already specified, always ask one short question to define the scope:

"How long do you want this research task to run?"

Map the answer to a depth tier in the Collection Plan below:

  • A few minutes → Quick
  • ~10-15 minutes → Thorough
  • Longer / no limit → Exhaustive

If the topic itself is unclear, you may ask at most 1-2 additional concise questions (topic, or a critical angle/source constraint). Otherwise proceed once the runtime is set.

Firecrawl Collection Plan

Use Firecrawl search and scrape through the CLI or equivalent tool surface. Match depth to the runtime the user chose during onboarding.

  • Quick (~a few minutes): search 3-5 queries and scrape 5-10 high-quality sources.
  • Thorough (~10-15 minutes): search 5-10 queries from different angles and scrape 15-25 sources.
  • Exhaustive (longer): search 10+ queries and scrape 25+ sources, including primary sources, research papers, expert views, and contrarian sources.

Avoid re-scraping URLs already returned with full content from a search-with-scrape result.

Parallel Work

If appropriate, use sub-agents or equivalent parallel task runners by research angle:

  • overview and definitions
  • technical or implementation details
  • market and industry context
  • contrarian views, risks, and limitations
  • primary sources and official docs

Each researcher should return claims, source URLs, source quality notes, and uncertainty.

Final Deliverable

Default structure:

# Deep Research: [Topic]

## Executive Summary
[2-3 paragraphs]

## Key Findings
[Numbered findings with source links]

## Detailed Analysis
[Themes, evidence, and synthesis]

## Contrarian Views And Risks
[Counterarguments, limitations, failure modes]

## Open Questions
[What remains uncertain]

## Sources
[Every URL used with a one-line note]

## Rerun Inputs
workflow: firecrawl-deep-research
topic: [topic]
depth: [quick/thorough/exhaustive]
output: [markdown/json/brief]

Quality Bar

  • Cite sources for factual claims.
  • Prefer primary sources when available.
  • Flag uncertainty and conflicting evidence.
  • Synthesize instead of listing scrape summaries.