Obsidian MCP Server

Give AI agents access to your Obsidian vault via local files or Self-hosted LiveSync.

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What is the Obsidian MCP server?

Obsidian MCP server is a hosted integration for AI assistants that speak the Model Context Protocol. Give AI agents access to your Obsidian vault via local files or Self-hosted LiveSync.

What you get

Give any AI agent access to your Obsidian vault over MCP. Run it locally against your vault files, or pair it with Self-hosted LiveSync and deploy to the cloud so it works even when your machine is off.

Setting it up

Being a remote server, there is no local install. You register the endpoint with your client, authorise it once, and the tools appear.

What the assistant can call

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

  • read_note — Read a note's markdown content by path
  • write_note — Create or overwrite a note (replaces entire content)
  • edit_note — Edit a note without rewriting it — append, prepend (after frontmatter), or replace exact text
  • list_folders — List all folders in the vault with note counts — use to discover folder names
  • list_tags — List all tags in the vault with counts — use to discover tags before filtering
  • list_notes — List notes with timestamps. Filter by folder, name, tag, or date. Sort by name or modified
  • delete_note — Delete a note
  • move_note — Move or rename a note — works across folders, creates destination folders automatically
  • get_note_metadata — Get frontmatter, tags, outgoing links, backlinks, size, and timestamps — navigate the knowledge graph

Configuration and credentials

You will need 4 environment variables: COUCHDB_URL, MCP_AUTH_TOKEN, BASE_URL, VAULT_PATH. The server will not start without them, which is usually why the tools fail to appear on a first run. Keep credentials in your client's env block or a secrets manager rather than in a file you might commit.

Before you rely on it

  • Your data travels to the provider's service, so the usual questions apply about what you send and what they retain.
  • With 9 tools registered it takes up a noticeable share of the context window; turn it off in projects that never touch Obsidian.
  • Missing credentials fail quietly in some clients — if no tools show up, check the environment block first.
  • MCP clients confirm each tool call by default. Leave that on until you have watched what the obsidian mcp server does with a few real requests.

Choosing this one

Plenty of planning and project tracking servers cover similar ground. The differences that matter in practice are scope of access and how much setup stands between you and a working tool call. Obsidian's toolset — read_note, write_note, edit_note and 6 more — is a fair guide to whether it matches your workflow. It is maintained by es617; worth a glance at recent repository activity before you build anything load-bearing on it.

We check each listing at SyncDev against the project's documentation before it goes live — if something here drifts out of date, it is a bug worth reporting.

Available tools

ToolWhat it does
read_noteRead a note's markdown content by path
write_noteCreate or overwrite a note (replaces entire content)
edit_noteEdit a note without rewriting it — append, prepend (after frontmatter), or replace exact text
list_foldersList all folders in the vault with note counts — use to discover folder names
list_tagsList all tags in the vault with counts — use to discover tags before filtering
list_notesList notes with timestamps. Filter by folder, name, tag, or date. Sort by name or modified.
delete_noteDelete a note
move_noteMove or rename a note — works across folders, creates destination folders automatically
get_note_metadataGet frontmatter, tags, outgoing links, backlinks, size, and timestamps — navigate the knowledge graph

How to install the Obsidian MCP server

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "obsidian-sync": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "obsidian-sync-mcp"],
      "env": {
        "COUCHDB_URL": "your-value",
        "MCP_AUTH_TOKEN": "your-value",
        "BASE_URL": "your-value",
        "VAULT_PATH": "your-value"
      }
    }
  }
}

Add to claude_desktop_config.json, then restart Claude Desktop.

Configuration

VariableDescriptionRequired
COUCHDB_URLEndpoint or connection string the server talks to.Yes
MCP_AUTH_TOKENCredential the server authenticates with.Yes
BASE_URLEndpoint or connection string the server talks to.Yes
VAULT_PATHFilesystem location the server is allowed to use.Optional

Example prompts to try

  • Use Obsidian to read note.
  • Use Obsidian to write note.
  • Use Obsidian to edit note.

Frequently asked questions

It connects Obsidian to MCP-compatible AI assistants such as Claude and Cursor, exposing 9 tools (read_note, write_note, edit_note, and more) that the assistant can call on your behalf. Instead of copying data back and forth by hand, the assistant works with Obsidian directly.