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Zotero MCP Local MCP Server

by piiinpiiins Your server? Claim it
local only

Zotero MCP Local runs on your own machine — the client starts it, so there is no endpoint to ping. 62 installs a week from pypi. Last commit 26 Jul 2026.

Search, read PDFs, and find related papers in your local Zotero library. Read-only, 100% local.

Installs per day peak 25 · avg 9 · -10% w/w
a month agotoday
62
Installs / week
pypi · zotero-mcp-local
8
Stars
0 open issues
26 Jul 2026
Last commit
0 releases in 90 days
MIT
License
Python

What the code does

We read the source, 21 h ago · rules 3dff92dd89df

Capabilities

What this server is able to do. For an MCP server this is often the job itself — a terminal server runs commands because that is what it is for. Listed so you know what you are plugging in, not as an accusation.

Builds a file path from a variable src/zotero_mcp/database.py:690
            pdf_path = os.path.join(self.storage_dir, attachment_key, filename)

Is this your server and something here is wrong? Tell us — corrections are free and do not require a plan.

This code can reach further than it looks

We found places where it runs commands, builds paths or queries from values it is given. None of that is a flaw by itself — it becomes one when the code changes, and code changes quietly between releases. We re-read it on every one.

Three servers free · no card

Connect this server

This server runs on your own machine — install it with the package manager and the client starts it for you. Package name taken from the official registry entry.

run in your terminal
claude mcp add zotero-mcp-local -- uvx zotero-mcp-local
~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "zotero-mcp-local": {
      "args": [
        "zotero-mcp-local"
      ],
      "command": "uvx"
    }
  }
}
~/.codex/config.toml
[mcp_servers.zotero-mcp-local]
command = "uvx"
args = ["zotero-mcp-local"]
.cursor/mcp.json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "zotero-mcp-local": {
      "args": [
        "zotero-mcp-local"
      ],
      "command": "uvx"
    }
  }
}
.vscode/mcp.json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "zotero-mcp-local": {
      "args": [
        "zotero-mcp-local"
      ],
      "command": "uvx"
    }
  }
}

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Zotero MCP Local — questions

Answers built from our own checks of this server.

Why is there no uptime for Zotero MCP Local?
Zotero MCP Local runs on your own machine over stdio — there is no network address to reach, so uptime cannot be measured for it by anyone. What can be measured is adoption: the pypi package zotero-mcp-local was installed 62 times last week.
How do I connect Zotero MCP Local?
Copy the ready config from this page — we generate it for Claude Code, Claude Desktop, Codex, Cursor and VS Code, each with the file path that client actually reads. It runs locally, so the command pulls zotero-mcp-local straight from pypi; nothing to host, nothing to sign up for.
How many people use Zotero MCP Local?
The pypi package zotero-mcp-local was installed 62 times in the last week. Week over week that is -10%. We show installs rather than GitHub stars on purpose: a star is a bookmark, an install is someone actually running it.
Is Zotero MCP Local open source?
Yes — it is published under the MIT licence, written in Python and 8 stars on GitHub. The source link is on this page, so you can read exactly what it does with your data before you connect it.