TypeScript SDK

Install the core MCP server and/or client packages from npm. Add optional middleware packages for your chosen web framework if you need HTTP transport.

npm install @modelcontextprotocol/sdk
# For HTTP middleware (optional):
npm install @modelcontextprotocol/express   # Express.js
npm install @modelcontextprotocol/hono       # Hono
npm install @modelcontextprotocol/node       # Node.js HTTP

Write a TypeScript file that creates an McpServer instance, registers tools using registerTool with a Zod input schema, and connects to a StdioServerTransport.

import { McpServer } from '@modelcontextprotocol/sdk/server/mcp.js';
import { StdioServerTransport } from '@modelcontextprotocol/sdk/server/stdio.js';
import { z } from 'zod';

const server = new McpServer({ name: 'my-server', version: '1.0.0' });

server.registerTool(
  'greet',
  { description: 'Greet someone by name', inputSchema: z.object({ name: z.string() }) },
  async ({ name }) => ({ content: [{ type: 'text', text: `Hello, ${name}!` }] })
);

const transport = new StdioServerTransport();
await server.connect(transport);

Beyond tools, you can register resources (static or dynamic data the AI can read) and prompts (reusable prompt templates) using registerResource and registerPrompt on the server object.

Compile the TypeScript server and verify it starts without errors. You can use MCP Inspector or connect it directly to Claude Desktop for testing.

npx tsc
node dist/index.js

Register your compiled server in claude_desktop_config.json to test it with Claude Desktop. Use the absolute path to the compiled entry point.

The SDK repository includes complete runnable examples for both servers and clients in the examples/ directory. Clone the repo and run them to see the full API in action.

git clone https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol/typescript-sdk.git
cd typescript-sdk && npm install
npm run build