arxiv-latex MCP Server

An MCP server that enables Claude Desktop, Claude Code, Cursor, or other MCP clients to directly access and process arXiv papers by fetching the LaTeX source. It uses arxiv-to-prompt under the hood to handle downloading and processing the LaTeX.

Why use the LaTeX source instead of uploading PDFs? Many PDF chat applications often struggle with mathematical content and equation-heavy papers. By utilizing the original LaTeX source code from arXiv papers, the LLM can accurately understand and handle equations and notations. This approach is particularly valuable for fields like computer science, mathematics, and engineering where precise interpretation of mathematical expressions is crucial.

Installation

If you are using Claude Desktop, you can utilize Desktop Extensions by double-clicking on the .mcpb file to install. Download the .mcpb file from here. Supported on macOS, Windows, and Linux.

Otherwise, you can run the server directly from PyPI with uvx:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "arxiv-latex-mcp": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": ["arxiv-latex-mcp"]
    }
  }
}

You can also install it with pip install arxiv-latex-mcp and run arxiv-latex-mcp, or use:

python -m arxiv_latex_mcp

If you prefer to run from a local checkout, add the following configuration to your config file:

{
  "mcpServers": {
      "arxiv-latex-mcp": {
          "command": "uv",
          "args": [
              "--directory",
              "/ABSOLUTE/PATH/TO/arxiv-latex-mcp",
              "run",
              "python",
              "-m",
              "arxiv_latex_mcp"
          ]
      }
  }
}

You may need to replace the command field with the full path of uv: check this by running which uv (MacOS/Linux) or where uv (Windows).

Restart the application after saving the above.

For Claude Desktop, click on the hammer icon, and you should see the following in the list of “Available MCP tools”:

• get_paper_prompt — Get the full flattened LaTeX of a paper
• get_paper_abstract — Get just the abstract
• list_paper_sections — List section headings of a paper
• get_paper_section — Get a specific section by path

Example

Try asking questions about a paper from arXiv, e.g., “Explain the first theorem in 2202.00395”