ZoteroMCP

Zotero MCP – Setup

> Connect Zotero to Claude via a local MCP server and access your reference manager directly.

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Prerequisites

• Zotero is installed and running
• Node.js is installed (verify with node --version)
• The ZoteroMCP project is cloned and available locally

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Step 1 – Enable the Local API in Zotero

1. Open Zotero
2. Open Preferences via the menu or the shortcut:

`` Cmd + , ``

1. Navigate to Advanced → Miscellaneous
2. Enable the following option:

> ✅ Allow other applications on this computer to communicate with Zotero

The local API URL will then be displayed, for example:

`` http://localhost:23119/api/ ``

> Tip: Note down the port number — you'll need it in the next step.

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Step 2 – Connect the API to the Project

Create the file src/config.ts in the project directory and replace the placeholders with your actual URL from Zotero:

// src/config.ts

export const API_CONFIG = {
  baseUrl: "http://localhost:23119/api", // Use the port from your Zotero settings
  userPrefix: "users/0",                 // Local user (default: 0)
  timeout: 500,                          // Timeout in milliseconds
};

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Step 3 – Build the Project

Navigate to the project directory and run the build command:

# Navigate to the project directory
cd /path/to/project/ZoteroMCP

# Install dependencies (only required once)
npm install

# Build the project
npm run build

> Alternative: In Visual Studio Code you can run the build directly via the integrated terminal or a tasks.json configuration.

After the build, the compiled file will be available at dist/index.js.

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Step 4 – Register the MCP Server in Claude Desktop

For Claude to recognize the MCP server, the Claude Desktop configuration file needs to be updated.

Path to the configuration file:

/Users/YOUR-USERNAME/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

Add the following block to the mcpServers object:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "zotero": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["/absolute/path/to/project/ZoteroMCP/dist/index.js"]
    }
  }
}

> Important: Always use the absolute path to dist/index.js — relative paths are not reliably resolved here.

Restart Claude Desktop after saving the change for the MCP server to be picked up.

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Troubleshooting

| Problem | Likely Cause | Solution | |---|---|---| | API not reachable | Zotero is not running | Start Zotero and verify the API option is enabled | | Wrong port | Port has changed | Check the port in Zotero settings and update config.ts | | MCP not recognized | Incorrect path in JSON | Use the absolute path to dist/index.js | | dist/index.js missing | Build was not run | Run npm run build again |

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Project Structure (after build)

ZoteroMCP/
├── src/
│   ├── config.ts        # API configuration
│   └── index.ts         # MCP server entry point
├── dist/
│   └── index.js         # Compiled output (used by Claude)
├── package.json
└── tsconfig.json

Source & license

This open-source MCP server is cataloged on AgentStack and links to its original source — we do not rehost the code.

• Author: LevinTheDoctor
• Source: LevinTheDoctor/ZoteroMCP
• License: MIT

Install and usage instructions live in the source repository linked above.