Crossref MCP Server

🔍 Enable AI assistants to search and access academic paper metadata through Crossref using a simple MCP interface.

Local serverstdioPython

What is the Crossref MCP server?

Crossref MCP server exists for a simple reason — assistants are far more useful when they can act on Crossref directly instead of describing what you should do. 🔍 Enable AI assistants to search and access academic paper metadata through Crossref using a simple MCP interface.

What the assistant can call

Once Crossref is connected, these are the calls the assistant has available:

Configuration and credentials

  • Python 3.10+ - FastMCP library

Setting it up

Setup follows the usual MCP pattern — install or clone the server, register it in your client's configuration file, restart the client. The configuration blocks on this page cover the common clients.

Choosing this one

Among the developer tooling options, the useful question is rarely "what can it do" but "what does it cost you to run" — permissions, credentials, and how much of your context its toolset consumes. Crossref's toolset — Prerequisites, Installation — is a fair guide to whether it matches your workflow. It is maintained by JackKuo666; worth a glance at recent repository activity before you build anything load-bearing on it.

SyncDev reviews every entry in this directory against the project's own documentation before publishing, and revisits them as servers change.

Before you rely on it

  • It runs with your machine's permissions. That is convenient and also the reason to think about what you point it at before you approve a tool call.
  • MCP clients confirm each tool call by default. Leave that on until you have watched what the crossref mcp server does with a few real requests.

Available tools

ToolWhat it does
PrerequisitesThe Prerequisites tool exposed by this server.
Installation1. Clone the repository: git clone https://github.com/JackKuo666/Crossref-MCP-Server.git cd Crossref-MCP-Server

How to install the Crossref MCP server

(Windows version):

```json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "crossref": {
      "command": "C:\\Users\\YOUR\\PATH\\miniconda3\\envs\\mcp_server\\python.exe",
      "args": [
        "D:\\code\\YOUR\\PATH\\Crossref-MCP-Server\\crossref_server.py"
      ],
      "env": {},
      "disabled": false,
      "autoApprove": []
    }
  }
}

Configuration as documented by the project. Restart the client after saving.

Configuration

  • Python 3.10+ - FastMCP library

Example prompts to try

  • Use Crossref to Prerequisites.
  • Use Crossref to Installation.

Frequently asked questions

It connects Crossref to MCP-compatible AI assistants such as Claude and Cursor, exposing 2 tools (Prerequisites, Installation) that the assistant can call on your behalf. Instead of copying data back and forth by hand, the assistant works with Crossref directly.