XcodeBuild MCP server for AI agents

XcodeBuildMCP is a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that provides Xcode-related tools for integration with AI assistants. It enables programmatic interaction with Xcode projects, simulators, devices, and Swift packages through a standardized interface, making it easier for AI tools to help with iOS and macOS development tasks.

Installation

Prerequisites

macOS 14.5 or later
Xcode 16.x or later
Node 18.x or later

Setting Up the MCP Server

Quick Installation

For a quick install, you can use the following links:

Install in Cursor

Install in VS Code

Install in VS Code Insiders

Manual Configuration

Most MCP clients (Cursor, VS Code, Windsurf, Claude Desktop, etc.) support the following JSON configuration format:

"XcodeBuildMCP": {
  "command": "npx",
  "args": [
    "-y",
    "xcodebuildmcp@latest"
  ]
}

Client-Specific Installation

OpenAI Codex CLI

Add to your Codex CLI config file:

[mcp_servers.XcodeBuildMCP]
command = "npx"
args = ["-y", "xcodebuildmcp@latest"]
env = { "INCREMENTAL_BUILDS_ENABLED" = "false", "XCODEBUILDMCP_SENTRY_DISABLED" = "false" }

Claude Code CLI

Install via command line:

# Add XcodeBuildMCP server to Claude Code
claude mcp add XcodeBuildMCP npx xcodebuildmcp@latest

# Or with environment variables
claude mcp add XcodeBuildMCP npx xcodebuildmcp@latest -H INCREMENTAL_BUILDS_ENABLED=false -H XCODEBUILDMCP_SENTRY_DISABLED=false

Smithery

Install for Claude Desktop automatically:

npx -y @smithery/cli install @cameroncooke/XcodeBuildMCP --client claude

Usage

Available Tools and Features

XcodeBuildMCP provides tools for:

Xcode Project Management

Discover projects and workspaces
Build for macOS, iOS simulator, and iOS devices
List schemes and show build settings
Clean build products
Create new iOS and macOS projects from templates

Swift Package Manager

Build Swift packages
Run tests with filtering options
Execute package binaries
Manage processes
Clean artifacts

Simulator Management

List, boot, and open simulators
Install, launch, and stop apps
Capture logs from running apps
Interact with simulator UI elements
Take screenshots

Device Management

List connected physical Apple devices
Build, install, launch, and stop apps on devices
Run tests on physical devices
Capture console output
Support for wireless device connections

App Utilities

Extract bundle IDs from app bundles
Launch and stop apps across platforms
Monitor and control processes

Enabling Incremental Builds

To enable faster builds using incremental build support:

"XcodeBuildMCP": {
  "command": "npx",
  "args": ["-y", "xcodebuildmcp@latest"],
  "env": {
    "INCREMENTAL_BUILDS_ENABLED": "true"
  }
}

Using Dynamic Tools

Dynamic tool loading optimizes context window usage in AI assistants:

"XcodeBuildMCP": {
  "command": "npx",
  "args": ["-y", "xcodebuildmcp@latest"],
  "env": {
    "XCODEBUILDMCP_DYNAMIC_TOOLS": "true"
  }
}

Selective Workflow Loading

For reduced context window usage without dynamic tools:

"XcodeBuildMCP": {
  "command": "npx",
  "args": ["-y", "xcodebuildmcp@latest"],
  "env": {
    "XCODEBUILDMCP_ENABLED_WORKFLOWS": "simulator,device,project-discovery"
  }
}

Available workflows include:

device - iOS Device Development
simulator - iOS Simulator Development
simulator-management - Simulator Management
swift-package - Swift Package Manager
project-discovery - Project Discovery
macos - macOS Development
And more

Code Signing Setup

For device deployment features to work, code signing must be configured in Xcode:

Open your project in Xcode
Select your project target
Go to "Signing & Capabilities" tab
Configure "Automatically manage signing" and select your development team
Ensure a valid provisioning profile is selected

Troubleshooting

If you encounter issues, use the doctor tool:

npx --package xcodebuildmcp@latest xcodebuildmcp-doctor

This tool provides information about:

System and Node.js environment
Xcode installation and configuration
Required dependencies
Environment variables
Feature availability status

Privacy Settings

XcodeBuildMCP uses Sentry for error monitoring. To opt out:

"XcodeBuildMCP": {
  "command": "npx",
  "args": ["-y", "xcodebuildmcp@latest"],
  "env": {
    "XCODEBUILDMCP_SENTRY_DISABLED": "true"
  }
}

How to install this MCP server

For Claude Code

To add this MCP server to Claude Code, run this command in your terminal:

claude mcp add-json "XcodeBuildMCP" '{"command":"npx","args":["-y","xcodebuildmcp@latest"]}'

See the official Claude Code MCP documentation for more details.

For Cursor

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.

Adding an MCP server to Cursor globally

To add a global MCP server go to Cursor Settings > Tools & Integrations and click "New MCP Server".

When you click that button the ~/.cursor/mcp.json file will be opened and you can add your server like this:

{
    "mcpServers": {
        "XcodeBuildMCP": {
            "command": "npx",
            "args": [
                "-y",
                "xcodebuildmcp@latest"
            ]
        }
    }
}

Adding an MCP server to a project

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.

How to use the MCP server

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 explicitly ask the agent to use the tool by mentioning the tool name and describing what the function does.

For Claude Desktop

To add this MCP server to Claude Desktop:

1. Find your configuration file:

macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json
Linux: ~/.config/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

2. Add this to your configuration file:

{
    "mcpServers": {
        "XcodeBuildMCP": {
            "command": "npx",
            "args": [
                "-y",
                "xcodebuildmcp@latest"
            ]
        }
    }
}

3. Restart Claude Desktop for the changes to take effect