MarkItDown MCP server

MarkItDown MCP Server is a tool that converts various file formats to Markdown through the Model Context Protocol (MCP). It enables seamless integration with any MCP-compatible client, allowing you to transform documents, presentations, spreadsheets, and more into clean Markdown format.

Supported Formats

• PDF
• PowerPoint
• Word
• Excel
• Images (EXIF metadata and OCR)
• Audio (EXIF metadata and speech transcription)
• HTML
• Text-based formats (CSV, JSON, XML)
• ZIP files (iterates over contents)

Installation

Via Smithery

The easiest way to install MarkItDown MCP Server for Claude Desktop is through Smithery:

npx -y @smithery/cli install @KorigamiK/markitdown_mcp_server --client claude

Manual Installation

If you prefer to install manually:

1. Clone the repository
2. Install dependencies:

uv install

Usage

Integration with MCP Clients

The server works with any MCP-compliant client. Here's how to set it up with different tools:

Zed Editor Configuration

Add this to your settings.json:

"context_servers": {
  "markitdown_mcp": {
    "settings": {},
    "command": {
      "path": "uv",
      "args": [
        "--directory",
        "/path/to/markitdown_mcp_server",
        "run",
        "markitdown"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Available Commands

The server responds to this MCP command:

• /md <file> - Convert the specified file to Markdown

For example:

/md document.pdf

Compatible Clients

MarkItDown MCP Server works with any MCP-compliant client, including:

• Zed Editor
• Other MCP-compatible editors and tools

You can find a complete list of compatible clients at modelcontextprotocol.io/clients.

How to add this MCP server to 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 > 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"
            ]
        }
    }
}

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