Unsplash MCP server

The Unsplash MCP Server allows you to easily search for images from Unsplash directly through the Model Context Protocol (MCP). This server integrates with Unsplash's API to provide relevant images based on your search criteria and can be used with compatible MCP clients.

Installation

Prerequisites

• Java Development Kit (JDK)
• Maven
• Unsplash API access key

Step 1: Clone the Repository

git clone https://github.com/JavaProgrammerLB/unsplash-mcp-server.git

Step 2: Build the Project

cd unsplash-mcp-server
mvn clean package

Step 3: Get Unsplash Access Key

1. Visit Unsplash Developers
2. Create a new Unsplash application
3. Find your access key in the application details page

Configuration

Setting Up the MCP Server

Create a configuration file for your MCP server with the following JSON structure:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "unsplash": {
      "command": "java",
      "args": [
        "-Dspring.ai.mcp.server.stdio=true",
        "-Dspring.main.web-application-type=none",
        "-Dlogging.pattern.console=",
        "-jar",
        "/ABSOLUTE/PATH/target/unsplash-mcp-server-1.0.jar"
      ],
      "env": {
        "UNSPLASH_ACCESS_KEY": "${YOUR UNSPLASH ACCESS KEY}"
      }
    }
  }
}

Important: Replace /ABSOLUTE/PATH/ with the actual path to your jar file and ${YOUR UNSPLASH ACCESS KEY} with the access key you obtained from Unsplash.

Usage

Basic Search

Once the MCP server is configured, you can use it to search for images from Unsplash. For example, to search for pictures of houses:

search two house picture from unsplash

The server will process this request and return relevant house images from Unsplash.

Integration with MCP Clients

This server can be used with any MCP-compatible client. The client will need to be configured to use the Unsplash MCP server endpoint as defined in your configuration file.

Example Queries

• search beach sunset pictures from unsplash
• find three cat photos from unsplash
• get landscape photography from unsplash

The server will interpret these natural language queries and return appropriate image results from Unsplash.

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 "unsplash" '{"command":"java","args":["-Dspring.ai.mcp.server.stdio=true","-Dspring.main.web-application-type=none","-Dlogging.pattern.console=","-jar","/ABSOLUTE/PATH/target/unsplash-mcp-server-1.0.jar"],"env":{"UNSPLASH_ACCESS_KEY":"${YOUR UNSPLASH ACCESS KEY}"}}'

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": {
        "unsplash": {
            "command": "java",
            "args": [
                "-Dspring.ai.mcp.server.stdio=true",
                "-Dspring.main.web-application-type=none",
                "-Dlogging.pattern.console=",
                "-jar",
                "/ABSOLUTE/PATH/target/unsplash-mcp-server-1.0.jar"
            ],
            "env": {
                "UNSPLASH_ACCESS_KEY": "${YOUR UNSPLASH ACCESS KEY}"
            }
        }
    }
}

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": {
        "unsplash": {
            "command": "java",
            "args": [
                "-Dspring.ai.mcp.server.stdio=true",
                "-Dspring.main.web-application-type=none",
                "-Dlogging.pattern.console=",
                "-jar",
                "/ABSOLUTE/PATH/target/unsplash-mcp-server-1.0.jar"
            ],
            "env": {
                "UNSPLASH_ACCESS_KEY": "${YOUR UNSPLASH ACCESS KEY}"
            }
        }
    }
}

3. Restart Claude Desktop for the changes to take effect