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Record · paper-searchMCP serverCosts not checkedRecord checked Sep 23, 2026

Paper Search MCP

Search and download academic papers from arXiv, PubMed, bioRxiv, Semantic Scholar and many more sources.

Visit Paper Search MCP →View repository

Sources and review

Checked against public documentation on . Suitability guidance is our editorial judgment; this is not a performance benchmark or an endorsement.

Best for

Literature searches that span several databases from one assistant.

Avoid if

You'd enable its optional Sci-Hub fallback; the project leaves it off by default and makes its use the user's responsibility.

About Paper Search MCP

Paper Search MCP searches and downloads papers from many sources, including arXiv, PubMed, bioRxiv, medRxiv, Google Scholar, Semantic Scholar, Crossref, OpenAlex, PubMed Central, CORE and Europe PMC, and extracts their text. It follows a free-first strategy that prefers open-access routes, with optional API keys for better coverage, and is also available as a CLI and agent skills.

Paper Search MCP is listed in this index written primarily in Python, with 3.0k stars on GitHub. Its latest recorded repository push was in October 2026; that is not an ASE editorial review date.

Before connecting: access and data

This record's specific permissions have not been reviewed by ASE. Read the publisher's documentation before copying setup or connecting.

  • List the accounts, files and services the enabled tools can read, change or execute. Check your actual credentials and discovered tools.
  • Use narrowly scoped credentials and read-only mode where supported. Review proposed writes before approving them; a generated configuration does not apply these limits for you.
  • Local launch is not local-only data processing. External services receive requests, and your client may pass tool results to its model provider. Check both destinations before sharing private data.
  • Keep keys and browser session files out of shared config, repositories and screenshots. Know how to disconnect the server and separately revoke its credentials or account sessions.

Read the setup guide →

Add Paper Search MCP to your MCP client

Generated from the launch command in the project's README. Your client starts the server on demand.

Claude CodeRun in your terminal
claude mcp add paper-search-mcp -- uvx paper-search-mcp
Cursor~/.cursor/mcp.json or .cursor/mcp.json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "paper-search-mcp": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": ["paper-search-mcp"]
    }
  }
}
VS Code.vscode/mcp.json
{
  "servers": {
    "paper-search-mcp": {
      "type": "stdio",
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": ["paper-search-mcp"]
    }
  }
}
Claude Desktopclaude_desktop_config.json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "paper-search-mcp": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": ["paper-search-mcp"]
    }
  }
}
Codex~/.codex/config.toml
[mcp_servers.paper-search-mcp]
command = "uvx"
args = ["paper-search-mcp"]

Check the project's README for required accounts, keys and permissions before connecting. Setup guide for each client →

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