Pdf Reader MCP Server

Citra — PDF evidence for agents (Sylphx). Local-first structured text, tables, OCR, visual evidence, citations via MCP/CLI/SDK. Package id

Local serverstdioTypeScript

What is the Pdf Reader MCP MCP server?

Pdf reader mcp mcp server lets Claude, Cursor and other MCP clients work with Pdf Reader MCP directly. Citra — PDF evidence for agents (Sylphx). Local-first structured text, tables, OCR, visual evidence, citations via MCP/CLI/SDK. Package id transitional: @sylphx/pdf-reader-mcp.

What Pdf Reader MCP does

Turn PDFs into structured text, tables, OCR, visual evidence, and page-level citations — locally — via SDK, CLI, or MCP.

Tools it exposes

Once connected, the assistant can call these 10 tools directly:

  • Export — @sylphx/pdf-reader-mcp/sdk → Citra (read / search / evidence)
  • Roadmap — ** idiomatic high-level @sylphx/citra package name + richer typed SDK; semantics stay isomorphic with CLI/MCP
  • Doc — Purpose
  • Platform — Native package (auto optionalDependency)
  • read_pdf — Smart default: markdown, tables, structure, OCR, citations
  • search_pdf — Find page + snippet matches before deep reading
  • pdf_evidence — Crops, renders, inspect, focused evidence ops
  • Mode — What it measures
  • persistent_warm — long-lived server, repeated identical local read_pdf after warm-up
  • startup_inclusive — spawn + initialize + one task

Installing the pdf reader mcp mcp server

The server is distributed via npm as @sylphx/pdf-reader-mcp, so most clients can run it without a manual build step. Add it to your MCP client's configuration and restart the client to pick it up — the copy-paste configs for Claude Desktop, Claude Code and Cursor are on this page.

Where it fits

Developer-tool servers are usually the first ones people connect, because they turn "help me with this code" into an assistant that can actually read the repo and act on it. Pdf Reader MCP sits in that group, and the shape of its toolset — Export, Roadmap, Doc among others — tells you what it is really for. Worth comparing against the other developer tools servers in this directory before you commit to one, since several overlap in scope but differ sharply in setup cost and permissions.

Practical notes

  • This server runs locally, so it operates with whatever access your machine and its credentials already have. Scope that deliberately rather than by default.
  • With 10 tools exposed, expect a noticeable bump in prompt size — disable it in projects that never use Pdf Reader MCP.
  • Maintained by sylphxltd, written in TypeScript.
  • MCP clients ask for confirmation before each tool call by default. Keep that on while you learn what the pdf reader mcp mcp server actually does with your data.
  • Every entry in this directory is reviewed by hand before it goes live, and details are checked against the project's own documentation.

Available tools

ToolWhat it does
Export@sylphx/pdf-reader-mcp/sdk → Citra (read / search / evidence)
Roadmap** idiomatic high-level @sylphx/citra package name + richer typed SDK; semantics stay isomorphic with CLI/MCP
DocPurpose
PlatformNative package (auto optionalDependency)
read_pdfSmart default: markdown, tables, structure, OCR, citations
search_pdfFind page + snippet matches before deep reading
pdf_evidenceCrops, renders, inspect, focused evidence ops
ModeWhat it measures
persistent_warmlong-lived server, repeated identical local read_pdf after warm-up
startup_inclusivespawn + initialize + one task

How to install the Pdf Reader MCP MCP server

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "pdf-reader": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@sylphx/pdf-reader-mcp"]
    }
  }
}

Add to claude_desktop_config.json, then restart Claude Desktop.

Example prompts to try

  • Use Pdf Reader MCP to Export.
  • Use Pdf Reader MCP to Roadmap.
  • Use Pdf Reader MCP to Doc.

Frequently asked questions

It connects Pdf Reader MCP to MCP-compatible AI assistants such as Claude and Cursor, exposing 10 tools (Export, Roadmap, Doc, and more) that the assistant can call on your behalf. Instead of copying data back and forth by hand, the assistant works with Pdf Reader MCP directly.