MCP Zotero

MCP Zotero

A Model Context Protocol server for Zotero integration that allows Claude to interact with your Zotero library.

Setup

1. Get your Zotero credentials:

    # First, create an API key at https://www.zotero.org/settings/keys
    # Then use it to get your user ID:
    curl -H "Zotero-API-Key: YOUR_API_KEY" https://api.zotero.org/keys/current

   The response will look like:

    {
      "userID": 123456,
      "username": "your_username",
      "access": {
        "user": {
          "library": true,
          "files": true,
          "notes": true,
          "write": true
        }
      }
    }

   The userID value is what you need.

2. Set environment variables:

    export ZOTERO_API_KEY="your-api-key"
    export ZOTERO_USER_ID="user-id-from-curl"

3. Verify your credentials:

    # Test that your credentials work:
    curl -H "Zotero-API-Key: $ZOTERO_API_KEY" \
         "https://api.zotero.org/users/$ZOTERO_USER_ID/collections"

   You should see your collections list in the response.

4. Install and run:

    # Install globally (recommended)
    npm install -g mcp-zotero
    mcp-zotero
   
    # Or run directly with npx
    npx mcp-zotero

Integration with Claude Desktop

To use this server with Claude Desktop, add the following to your Claude Desktop configuration:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "zotero": {
      "command": "mcp-zotero",
      "env": {
        "ZOTERO_API_KEY": YOUR_API_KEY,
        "ZOTERO_USER_ID": YOUR_USER_ID
      }
    }
  }
}

Available Tools

• get_collections: List all collections in your library
• get_collection_items: Get items in a specific collection
• get_item_details: Get detailed information about a paper
• search_library: Search your entire library
• get_recent: Get recently added papers

Troubleshooting

If you encounter any issues:

1. Verify your environment variables are set:

    echo $ZOTERO_API_KEY
    echo $ZOTERO_USER_ID

2. Check the installation:

    npm list -g mcp-zotero

3. Try reinstalling:

    npm uninstall -g mcp-zotero
    npm install -g mcp-zotero