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Scopus

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Scopus search, author and affiliation profiles, citation data, and PlumX metrics via Elsevier APIs.

Source code 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).

NPM package scopus-mcp
Claude Code 
claude mcp add scopus -e 'ELSEVIER_API_KEY=<your elsevier_api_key>' -e 'ELSEVIER_INST_TOKEN=<your elsevier_inst_token>' -- npx -y scopus-mcp@0.5.1
JSON configuration (Claude Desktop, Cursor, VS Code) 
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "scopus": {
            "command": "npx",
            "args": [
                "-y",
                "scopus-mcp@0.5.1"
            ],
            "env": {
                "ELSEVIER_API_KEY": "<your elsevier_api_key>",
                "ELSEVIER_INST_TOKEN": "<your elsevier_inst_token>"
            }
        }
    }
}

Environment variables

  • ELSEVIER_API_KEY required secret Elsevier API key from https://dev.elsevier.com. Required for every tool except subject_classifications; data access depends on your subscription and institutional access.
  • ELSEVIER_INST_TOKEN secret Institutional token supplied by Elsevier, if available for your institution. Used alongside the API key for institutional access.

Documentation

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

Contents
  1. scopus-mcp
  2. Quick start
  3. Configuration
  4. Tools
  5. Responses and errors
  6. API documentation
  7. Development
  8. License

scopus-mcp

An MCP server for the Elsevier Scopus API. Runs over stdio with npx and keeps the API's parameter names and JSON responses.

Quick start

Requires Node.js 22.22.0 or newer, npm, and an MCP client with stdio support. Get an API key from the Elsevier Developer Portal and add this server to your client's configuration:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "scopus": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "scopus-mcp"],
      "env": {
        "ELSEVIER_API_KEY": "your-elsevier-api-key"
      }
    }
  }
}

Reload the client to connect. To pin a release, use scopus-mcp@<version> in args.

Configuration

Environment variableDescription
ELSEVIER_API_KEYRequired for all tools except subject_classifications.
ELSEVIER_INST_TOKENInstitutional token, if provided by your institution.

Set credentials in the client's env object. The server does not load .env files. Access to data and views depends on your Elsevier subscription and institutional access.

The server reports its version in MCP serverInfo and the startup log on stderr.

Tools

ToolDescription
scopus_searchFind publications.
author_searchFind authors and co-authors.
affiliation_searchFind institutions.
author_retrievalGet author profiles by ID, EID, or ORCID.
affiliation_retrievalGet an institution profile by ID or EID.
citation_overviewGet yearly citation counts and summaries.
plumx_metricsGet publication metrics by identifier.
subject_classificationsLook up subject codes; no API key needed.

Each call makes one API request. For additional pages, use the tool's pagination parameters. Requests support cancellation and a 30-second timeout; retries and redirects are not automatic.

Responses and errors

Results follow each tool's outputSchema. The original API JSON is returned in both structuredContent and a text content block, without reshaping fields or converting values.

Available quota headers are returned as strings in _meta["scopus-mcp/headers"]: X-RateLimit-Limit, X-RateLimit-Remaining, X-RateLimit-Reset, and Retry-After.

API failures return isError: true and a JSON text error with code, message, and, when available, an HTTP status. Credentials are redacted. Invalid arguments are rejected before an API request.

ErrorWhat to check
MISSING_API_KEYSet ELSEVIER_API_KEY in the server's environment.
HTTP 401 or 403Check your key, subscription, institutional network, and token.
HTTP 429Check quota headers and Retry-After before retrying.
TIMEOUT or NETWORK_ERRORCheck connectivity to api.elsevier.com.
INVALID_RESPONSEElsevier returned invalid JSON or an unexpected response shape.

API documentation

Development

See Contributing for local setup and changes, and Releases for publishing.

License

MIT © 2026 Andrii Baran. Independent project, not affiliated with Elsevier.

Frequently asked questions

What is Scopus?

Scopus search, author and affiliation profiles, citation data, and PlumX metrics via Elsevier APIs.

How do I install Scopus?

It runs on your machine. In Claude Code: claude mcp add scopus -e 'ELSEVIER_API_KEY=<your elsevier_api_key>' -e 'ELSEVIER_INST_TOKEN=<your elsevier_inst_token>' -- npx -y scopus-mcp@0.5.1. For other clients, paste the JSON configuration from this page into their MCP settings.

Does Scopus need an API key?

Yes. It expects ELSEVIER_API_KEY, ELSEVIER_INST_TOKEN, which you set in its configuration.

Is Scopus open source?

Yes. Its code is on GitHub under the MIT license.

Who maintains Scopus?

It is published by Anddrrew. 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.