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mac-use-mcp

Zero-native-dependency macOS desktop automation via MCP.

Give AI agents eyes and hands on macOS — click, type, screenshot, and inspect any application.

Use Cases

• Automated UI testing — click buttons, verify element states with get_ui_elements, validate screen content via screenshot
• Desktop workflow automation — launch apps with open_application, fill forms with type_text, navigate menus via click_menu
• Screenshot-based monitoring — capture screen regions periodically with screenshot for visual diffing or alerting
• Accessibility inspection — query UI element trees with get_ui_elements for QA and compliance checks
• AI agent computer use — give LLMs eyes and hands on macOS via screenshot, click, type_text, and more

Why mac-use-mcp?

• Just works — npx mac-use-mcp and grant two macOS permissions. No node-gyp, no Xcode tools, no build step.
• 18 tools, one server — screenshots, clicks, keystrokes, window management, accessibility inspection, and clipboard.
• macOS 13+ on Intel and Apple Silicon — no native addons, no architecture headaches.

Install

Requirements: macOS 13+ and Node.js 22+. The server communicates over stdio transport.

This package only works on macOS. It will refuse to install on other operating systems.

No build steps. No native dependencies. Just run:

npx mac-use-mcp

npx will prompt to install the package on first run. Use npx -y mac-use-mcp to skip the confirmation.

Permission Setup

mac-use-mcp requires two macOS permissions to function. Grant them once and you're set.

Accessibility

Required for mouse and keyboard control.

1. Open System Settings > Privacy & Security > Accessibility
2. Click the + button
3. Add your MCP client application (e.g., Claude Desktop, your terminal emulator)
4. Ensure the toggle is enabled

Screen Recording

Required for screenshots.

1. Open System Settings > Privacy & Security > Screen Recording
2. Click the + button
3. Add your MCP client application
4. Ensure the toggle is enabled
5. Restart the application if prompted

Verify permissions

After granting both permissions and configuring your MCP client (see next section), use the check_permissions tool to confirm everything is working:

> check_permissions
✓ Accessibility: granted
✓ Screen Recording: granted

MCP Client Configuration

claude mcp add mac-use-mcp -- npx mac-use-mcp

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "mac-use-mcp": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["mac-use-mcp"]
    }
  }
}

[mcp_servers.mac-use]
command = "npx"
args = ["-y", "mac-use-mcp"]

codex mcp add mac-use -- npx -y mac-use-mcp

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "mac-use-mcp": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["mac-use-mcp"]
    }
  }
}

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "mac-use-mcp": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["mac-use-mcp"]
    }
  }
}

{
  "servers": {
    "mac-use-mcp": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["mac-use-mcp"]
    }
  }
}

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "mac-use-mcp": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["mac-use-mcp"]
    }
  }
}

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "mac-use-mcp": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["mac-use-mcp"]
    }
  }
}

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "mac-use-mcp": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["mac-use-mcp"]
    }
  }
}

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "mac-use-mcp": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["mac-use-mcp"]
    }
  }
}

Tools

This Node.js MCP server exposes 18 tools for mouse, keyboard, and screen control to any MCP-compatible client.

Screen

Input

Window & App

App names support fuzzy matching — "chrome" resolves to "Google Chrome", "code" to "Code", etc.

Accessibility

Clipboard

Utility

Examples

Common workflow patterns using mac-use-mcp tools:

Screenshot a specific window

1. focus_window({ app: "Safari" })
2. screenshot({ mode: "window", window_title: "Safari" })

Click a button in a dialog

1. get_ui_elements({ app: "Finder", role: "AXButton" })
   → finds "OK" button at position (500, 300)
2. click({ x: 500, y: 300 })

Automate a menu action

1. open_application({ name: "TextEdit" })
2. click_menu({ app: "TextEdit", path: "Format > Make Plain Text" })

Copy text between apps

1. focus_window({ app: "Safari" })
2. press_key({ key: "cmd+a" })       # select all
3. press_key({ key: "cmd+c" })       # copy
4. focus_window({ app: "Notes" })
5. press_key({ key: "cmd+v" })       # paste

How It Works

• Swift binary handles mouse input (CGEvent), screen capture (CGWindowListCreateImage), window enumeration (CGWindowListCopyWindowInfo), and UI element queries (Accessibility API)
• AppleScript handles keyboard input (System Events key code), window focus, and menu clicks
• Node.js MCP server orchestrates everything over stdio, translating MCP tool calls into system operations
• No native Node.js addons — the Swift binary is pre-compiled and ships with the npm package
• Serial execution queue prevents race conditions between system operations

Known Limitations

• Screen Recording prompt on Sequoia: macOS 15 shows a monthly system prompt asking to reconfirm Screen Recording access. This is an OS-level behavior and cannot be suppressed.
• Secure input fields: Password fields and other secure text inputs block synthetic keyboard events. This is a macOS security feature.
• Keyboard input on macOS 26+: CGEvent keyboard synthesis is silently blocked. Keyboard input uses AppleScript (System Events key code) as a workaround, which may behave differently in some edge cases.
• System dialogs: Some system-level dialogs (e.g., FileVault unlock, Login Window) cannot be interacted with programmatically due to macOS security restrictions.
• Headless / CI: Requires a graphical session. Headless macOS environments (e.g., standard GitHub Actions runners) are not supported.

Troubleshooting

Related Projects

• Playwright MCP — Browser automation via accessibility tree. Complements mac-use-mcp for web-only tasks.
• Peekaboo — macOS screen automation with ScreenCaptureKit. Requires macOS 15+ and a Swift build.
• awesome-mcp-servers — Curated list of MCP servers across the ecosystem.

Contributing

See CONTRIBUTING.md for development setup and guidelines.

Changelog

Security

To report a vulnerability, see SECURITY.md.

Support

• Found a bug? Open an issue
• Have a feature idea? Open an issue
• Like the project? Give it a star — it helps others discover mac-use-mcp.

License

MIT © 2026 antbotlab

macOS is a trademark of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries and regions.