parallel-web-search

name: parallel-web-search description: "CLI-backed web search. Use when the user explicitly invokes this skill, needs CLI-only controls or saved JSON output, or no Parallel web_search MCP tool is available. When the bundled Parallel Search MCP is available, prefer its web_search tool for ordinary lookups and current-information queries. Only use parallel-deep-research if the user explicitly requests deep or exhaustive research." user-invocable: true argument-hint: <query> context: fork agent: parallel:parallel-subagent compatibility: Requires parallel-cli and internet access. allowed-tools: Bash(parallel-cli:*) metadata: author: parallel

Web Search

Search the web for: $ARGUMENTS

Command

Choose a short, descriptive filename based on the query (e.g., ai-chip-news, react-vs-vue). Use lowercase with hyphens, no spaces. Substitute it into the command inline — $FILENAME and <keyword> below are placeholders, not shell variables; do not copy them verbatim.

parallel-cli search "$ARGUMENTS" -q "<keyword1>" -q "<keyword2>" --json --max-results 10 --excerpt-max-chars-total 27000 -o "/tmp/$FILENAME.json"

Concrete example for a query about React 19:

parallel-cli search "latest React 19 features and adoption" -q "React 19" -q "concurrent rendering" --json --max-results 10 --excerpt-max-chars-total 27000 -o "/tmp/react-19-features.json"

The first argument is the objective — a natural language description of what you're looking for. It replaces multiple keyword searches with a single call for broad or complex queries. Add -q flags for specific keyword queries to supplement the objective. The -o flag saves the full results to a JSON file for follow-up questions.

Options if needed:

• --after-date YYYY-MM-DD for time-sensitive queries
• --include-domains domain1.com,domain2.com to limit to specific sources
• --exclude-domains domain.com to filter out noisy sources
• --mode turbo for simple fact lookups where speed matters most; supports English and Japanese queries
• --mode fast for high-quality search within an approximately one-second latency budget; requires CLI ≥ 0.9.2, and latency is not guaranteed
• --mode advanced for harder questions (multi-step, agentic search). Keep the default basic unless the request needs another mode
• --location us (ISO 3166-1 alpha-2) for geo-targeted results
• --session-id "<returned-session-id>" to group related Search/Extract calls when a prior response returned one. A session_id or search_id is not a Task interaction ID or research run ID; never send it to research status/poll or --previous-interaction-id

Parsing results

Read the saved -o JSON file as the authoritative payload. Result and excerpt limits bound requested content, but stdout can still exceed the tool's output limit. Truncated stdout is not parseable JSON and is not proof of incomplete saved results. Inspect an existing output path before using it because Search overwrites that file. For each result, extract:

• title, url, and publish_date if provided; omit unknown dates
• Useful content from excerpts (skip navigation noise like menus, footers, "Skip to content")

Check the exit status, returned API error and warnings before presenting results. On an error or empty results, report what happened and do not fabricate an answer. An old output file is not evidence that a failed request succeeded. For sparse results, state the coverage limits; refine the objective or queries only when useful for the user's request.

Response format

CRITICAL: Every claim must have an inline citation. Use markdown links like Title pulling only from the JSON output. Never invent or guess URLs.

Synthesize a response that:

• Leads with the key answer/finding
• Includes specific facts, names, numbers, dates
• Cites every fact inline as Source Title — do not leave any claim uncited
• Organizes by theme if multiple topics

End with a Sources section listing every URL referenced:

Sources:
- [Source Title](https://example.com/article) (Feb 2026)
- [Another Source](https://example.com/other) (Jan 2026)

This Sources section is mandatory. Do not omit it.

Only include source dates that were returned or verified in the retrieved content. Leave the date out when unknown.

After the Sources section, mention the output file path (/tmp/$FILENAME.json) so the user knows it's available for follow-up questions.

Setup

If parallel-cli is not found, install and authenticate:

/parallel:parallel-cli-setup

If a documented command or option is missing, check the installed version and upgrade through its installation method: standalone parallel-cli update, pipx pipx upgrade parallel-web-tools, uv uv tool upgrade parallel-web-tools, Homebrew brew upgrade parallel-web/tap/parallel-cli, or npm npm update -g parallel-web-cli. Verify help in the same terminal before retrying.

For authentication errors, inspect parallel-cli auth --json and its authenticated boolean; exit zero alone does not prove authentication. A 403 can indicate permissions, policy or billing. Report the actual error; check balance only for a billing-specific failure and never add funds without explicit confirmation.