The Strapi MCP Server provides a Model Context Protocol interface for interacting with Strapi CMS instances. It allows AI assistants to communicate with your Strapi content through a standardized interface, supporting content types and various REST API operations.
You can use this server directly with npx in your Claude Desktop configuration:
{
"mcpServers": {
"strapi": {
"command": "npx",
"args": ["-y", "@bschauer/[email protected]"]
}
}
}
Create a configuration file at ~/.mcp/strapi-mcp-server.config.json:
{
"myserver": {
"api_url": "http://localhost:1337",
"api_key": "your-jwt-token-from-strapi-admin",
"version": "5.*"
}
}
You can configure multiple Strapi instances by adding them to this file.
The server supports various version formats:
This helps the server provide version-specific guidance and handle API differences.
strapi_list_servers();
// Shows version information and differences between v4 and v5
// Get all content types from a specific server
strapi_get_content_types({
server: "myserver",
});
// Get components with pagination
strapi_get_components({
server: "myserver",
page: 1,
pageSize: 25,
});
The REST API provides comprehensive CRUD operations with built-in validation:
// Query content with filters
strapi_rest({
server: "myserver",
endpoint: "api/articles",
method: "GET",
params: {
filters: {
title: {
$contains: "search term",
},
},
},
});
// Create new content
strapi_rest({
server: "myserver",
endpoint: "api/articles",
method: "POST",
body: {
data: {
title: "New Article",
content: "Article content",
category: "news",
},
},
});
// Update content
strapi_rest({
server: "myserver",
endpoint: "api/articles/123",
method: "PUT",
body: {
data: {
title: "Updated Title",
content: "Updated content",
},
},
});
// Delete content
strapi_rest({
server: "myserver",
endpoint: "api/articles/123",
method: "DELETE",
});
// Upload image with automatic optimization
strapi_upload_media({
server: "myserver",
url: "https://example.com/image.jpg",
format: "webp",
quality: 80,
metadata: {
name: "My Image",
caption: "Image Caption",
alternativeText: "Alt Text",
},
});
Key differences between Strapi versions that the server handles automatically:
The server implements a strict write protection policy:
strapi_get_content_types// Filter by field value
params: {
filters: {
title: "Exact Match";
}
}
// Contains filter
params: {
filters: {
title: {
$contains: "partial";
}
}
}
// Multiple conditions
params: {
filters: {
$and: [{ category: "news" }, { published: true }];
}
}
params: {
sort: ["createdAt:desc"];
}
params: {
pagination: {
page: 1,
pageSize: 25
}
}
// Basic request without population
params: {
}
// Selective population when needed
params: {
populate: ["category"];
}
// Detailed population with field selection
params: {
populate: {
category: {
fields: ["name", "slug"];
}
}
}
Common issues and solutions:
404 Errors
Authentication Issues
Version-Related Issues
Write Protection Errors
There are two ways to add an MCP server to Cursor. The most common way is to add the server globally in the ~/.cursor/mcp.json file so that it is available in all of your projects.
If you only need the server in a single project, you can add it to the project instead by creating or adding it to the .cursor/mcp.json file.
To add a global MCP server go to Cursor Settings > MCP and click "Add new global MCP server".
When you click that button the ~/.cursor/mcp.json file will be opened and you can add your server like this:
{
"mcpServers": {
"cursor-rules-mcp": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"cursor-rules-mcp"
]
}
}
}
To add an MCP server to a project you can create a new .cursor/mcp.json file or add it to the existing one. This will look exactly the same as the global MCP server example above.
Once the server is installed, you might need to head back to Settings > MCP and click the refresh button.
The Cursor agent will then be able to see the available tools the added MCP server has available and will call them when it needs to.
You can also explictly ask the agent to use the tool by mentioning the tool name and describing what the function does.