About mcp-docs-server
mcp-docs-server provides AI assistants with access to Mapbox documentation and reference material. It supports search and single or batch page retrieval, with no Mapbox access token required.
Key features
- 01Search across Mapbox documentation
- 02Fetch a full documentation page
- 03Fetch up to 20 pages in one call
- 04Reference resources for APIs and SDKs
- 05Hosted, npx, Docker, and source setups
Use cases
- 01Finding documentation for a Mapbox API
- 02Retrieving details for a style layer
- 03Collecting several documentation pages at once
MCP support
Exposes Mapbox documentation search and retrieval tools, plus reference resources, to MCP clients. It can be connected through a hosted endpoint or run locally.
Configuration
Remote servers need no local install. Pick your client, then copy the config or install in one click.
https://mcp-docs.mapbox.com/mcpclaude mcp add --transport http mapbox-mcp-docs-server https://mcp-docs.mapbox.com/mcp{"mcpServers":{"mapbox-mcp-docs-server":{"type":"http","url":"https://mcp-docs.mapbox.com/mcp"}}}Open in Cursor{"servers":{"mapbox-mcp-docs-server":{"type":"http","url":"https://mcp-docs.mapbox.com/mcp"}}}Open in VS Code{"mcpServers":{"mapbox-mcp-docs-server":{"type":"http","url":"https://mcp-docs.mapbox.com/mcp"}}}{"mcpServers":{"mapbox-mcp-docs-server":{"serverUrl":"https://mcp-docs.mapbox.com/mcp"}}}Run commands in a terminal; paste JSON into the client’s MCP config and restart. Servers that need sign-in will prompt on first connect.
Tools
3| Parameter | Type | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| url | string | Yes | URL of a Mapbox documentation page to fetch. Must be a mapbox.com URL (e.g. https://docs.mapbox.com/api/search/geocoding/). |
Details
From the project READMEMapbox MCP Documentation Server
A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that gives AI assistants instant access to Mapbox documentation and reference materials — no Mapbox access token required.
Quick Start
Hosted (no install required)
Connect directly to the hosted endpoint — nothing to install or maintain:
Claude Code / Claude Desktop / Cursor / VS Code
{
"mcpServers": {
"mapbox-docs": {
"url": "https://mcp-docs.mapbox.com/mcp"
}
}
}
npx (runs locally, no install)
Claude Code — run claude mcp add:
claude mcp add mapbox-docs -- npx -y @mapbox/mcp-docs-server
Claude Desktop — add to ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json (macOS) or %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json (Windows):
{
"mcpServers": {
"mapbox-docs": {
"command": "npx",
"args": ["-y", "@mapbox/mcp-docs-server"]
}
}
}
Cursor / VS Code — add the same mcpServers block to your editor's MCP settings file.
Docker
Build the image:
docker build -t mapbox/mcp-docs-server .
Or pull from the registry:
docker pull mapbox/mcp-docs-server
Claude Desktop / Cursor / VS Code — configure your MCP client to run the container:
{
"mcpServers": {
"mapbox-docs": {
"command": "docker",
"args": ["run", "--rm", "-i", "mapbox/mcp-docs-server"]
}
}
}
Local (from source)
git clone https://github.com/mapbox/mcp-docs-server.git
cd mcp-docs-server
npm install
npm run build
Claude Desktop / Cursor / VS Code:
{
"mcpServers": {
"mapbox-docs": {
"command": "node",
"args": ["/absolute/path/to/mcp-docs-server/dist/esm/index.js"]
}
}
}
Tools
get_document_tool — Fetches the full content of a specific Mapbox documentation page by URL. Use this to follow a link from a resource and retrieve the complete page content.
Example prompts:
- "What Mapbox APIs are available?"
- "How do I add a custom layer to a Mapbox style?"
- "What's the latest Mapbox GL JS version?"
batch_get_documents_tool — Fetches multiple Mapbox documentation pages in a single call (max 20). More efficient than calling get_document_tool multiple times. Failed pages include an error message rather than failing the whole batch.
search_mapbox_docs_tool — Searches Mapbox documentation across API reference, GL JS, Help Center, Style Spec, Studio, Search JS, iOS/Android Maps and Navigation SDKs, and Tilesets, returning ranked page URLs and descriptions. Use this to find relevant documentation before fetching full pages with get_document_tool or batch_get_documents_tool.
Example prompts:
- "Find docs about camera animation"
- "Search for geocoding API examples"
- "What documentation exists for custom layers?"
Resources
MCP resources expose reference data that AI assistants can read on demand:
| Resource URI | Contents |
|---|---|
resource://mapbox-api-reference | REST API reference docs (endpoints, parameters, rate limits) |
resource://mapbox-sdk-docs | SDK and client library docs (iOS, Android, Flutter, web) |
resource://mapbox-guides | Tutorials, how-tos, and guides |
resource://mapbox-examples | Code examples, API playgrounds, and interactive demos |
resource://mapbox-reference | Tilesets, data products, accounts, and pricing reference |
resource://mapbox-style-layers | Style layer reference (paint/layout properties for all layer types) |
resource://mapbox-streets-v8-fields | Mapbox Streets v8 tileset field reference |
resource://mapbox-token-scopes | All available Mapbox token scopes with descriptions |
resource://mapbox-layer-type-mapping | Mapping of Mapbox layer types to their properties |
Development
Prerequisites
- Node.js >= 22
- npm
Setup
git clone https://github.com/mapbox/mcp-docs-server.git
cd mcp-docs-server
npm install
Commands
npm run build # Compile TypeScript (ESM + CJS)
npm test # Run test suite (vitest)
npm run lint # ESLint
npm run format # Prettier check
npm run format:fix # Prettier auto-fix
npm run inspect:build # Launch MCP Inspector against built server
npm run inspect:dev # Launch MCP Inspector against source (tsx)
Architecture
The server is a TypeScript MCP server using @modelcontextprotocol/sdk with a dual ESM/CJS build via tshy.
- Tools extend
BaseTool<InputSchema, OutputSchema>insrc/tools/ - Resources extend
BaseResourceinsrc/resources/ - No Mapbox access token required for documentation tools
- HTTP requests use a shared
httpPipelinewith 1-hour caching
Creating a New Tool
- Create a directory
src/tools/my-tool/ - Add
MyTool.input.schema.ts(Zod schema),MyTool.output.schema.ts, andMyTool.ts(extendsBaseTool) - Register in
src/tools/toolRegistry.ts - Add tests in
test/tools/my-tool/
Contributing
Please read CONTRIBUTING.md and VISION.md before submitting a pull request. Contributors using AI coding assistants should also review:
- CLAUDE.md — for Claude Code
- AGENTS.md — for other AI coding assistants (Cursor, Copilot, Aider, etc.)
License
MIT — see LICENSE
Comments
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An open protocol that defines how AI applications connect to external tools and data in a uniform way. Clients talk to the model; MCP servers provide tools, resources and prompt templates. They exchange standard messages, so one server can be reused by many clients.