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OpenAlex MCP Server

Official registry Search and web

Search OpenAlex papers, authors, institutions and citations. Hosted on Apify; needs an Apify token.

Source code Website Documentation

Install

Add this to your client's MCP configuration (Claude Desktop: claude_desktop_config.json; Cursor: .cursor/mcp.json; VS Code and others use the same "mcpServers" shape).

Remote (streamable-http)
Claude Code 
claude mcp add --transport http openalex-mcp-server 'https://agentic-solutions--openalex-mcp.apify.actor/mcp' --header 'Authorization: <Bearer <your Apify API token> (get one at https://console.apify.com/settings/integrations)>'
JSON configuration (Claude Desktop, Cursor, VS Code) 
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "openalex-mcp-server": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://agentic-solutions--openalex-mcp.apify.actor/mcp",
            "headers": {
                "Authorization": "<Bearer <your Apify API token> (get one at https://console.apify.com/settings/integrations)>"
            }
        }
    }
}

Documentation

From the project's README on GitHub, refreshed weekly. Links open on GitHub.

Contents
  1. OpenAlex MCP Server (listing)
  2. Connect
  3. Tools
  4. Pricing
  5. Data and licence

OpenAlex MCP Server (listing)

This repository is listing metadata only. It holds no source code. The server is hosted on Apify: **https://apify.com/agentic_solutions/openalex-mcp**

An MCP server that lets Claude, Cursor and other AI agents search OpenAlex: scholarly works, authors, institutions, and citations/references. It returns compact JSON with abstracts.

Connect

Endpoint (streamable HTTP): https://agentic-solutions--openalex-mcp.apify.actor/mcp Auth header: Authorization: Bearer <your Apify API token>

{"mcpServers": {"openalex": {"url": "https://agentic-solutions--openalex-mcp.apify.actor/mcp",
  "headers": {"Authorization": "Bearer YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN"}}}}

For stdio-only clients: npx mcp-remote https://agentic-solutions--openalex-mcp.apify.actor/mcp --header "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN"

Tools

search_works, get_work, get_citations, get_references, search_authors, get_author, search_institutions. All are read-only.

Pricing

$0.015 per successful tool call, billed through your Apify account. Failed calls, initialize and tools/list aren't charged. Scoped Apify tokens need "Full access" run mode for Standby. Apify also bills its normal Standby platform usage. An OpenAlex API key is optional (bring your own for higher limits).

Data and licence

Data from OpenAlex (CC0). Please cite: Priem, J., Piwowar, H., & Orr, R. (2022). arXiv:2205.01833. Not affiliated with or endorsed by OpenAlex or OurResearch.

Maintained by Agentica (agenticsolutionsteam@gmail.com).

Listed on:

Frequently asked questions

What is OpenAlex MCP Server?

Search OpenAlex papers, authors, institutions and citations. Hosted on Apify; needs an Apify token.

How do I install OpenAlex MCP Server?

It runs as a remote server. In Claude Code: claude mcp add --transport http openalex-mcp-server 'https://agentic-solutions--openalex-mcp.apify.actor/mcp' --header 'Authorization: <Bearer <your Apify API token> (get one at https://console.apify.com/settings/integrations)>'. For other clients, paste the JSON configuration from this page into their MCP settings.

Does OpenAlex MCP Server need an API key?

Yes. It expects Authorization, which you set in its configuration.

Is OpenAlex MCP Server open source?

Its code is public on GitHub, but the repository does not declare a standard license.

Who maintains OpenAlex MCP Server?

It is published by agenticsolutions-hq. AI.tn lists it but does not maintain or endorse it.

From the official MCP Registry. Listing is not an endorsement: review a server's code and permissions before giving it access to your data.