Control Android devices and emulators via ADB — screenshots, UI automation, and logcat.
Android MCP Server (io.github.martingeidobler/android)
The Android MCP Server provides control for Android devices and emulators via ADB. It supports taking screenshots, running UI automation, and accessing logcat output. The server package is published as android-mcp-server, and the project readme excerpt indicates an MIT license.
🛠️ Key Features
Connect to Android devices and emulators via ADB
Screenshot capture
UI automation
Logcat access
🚀 Use Cases
Automating Android UI workflows on real devices or emulators
Capturing screenshots during device testing
Debugging Android apps using logcat output
⚡ Developer Benefits
ADB-based device control for repeatable automation
Tooling for observability via logcat and screenshots
⚠️ Limitations
Scope is limited to Android devices and emulators controlled through ADB
MCP server for controlling Android emulators and devices via ADB. Gives AI assistants the ability to see, interact with, and debug Android apps — taking screenshots, tapping elements, reading logs, and documenting bugs.
Element targeting — find and tap elements by resource-id, text, or content-desc
App lifecycle — install APKs, launch apps, inspect current activity
Logcat integration — filter by package, log level, or timestamp
Device management — list devices, start emulators, get device info
Compound actions — tap_and_wait combines tap + settle + UI tree in one round trip
Persistent ADB shell — reuses a single shell session for faster command execution
Device info caching — queries device properties once per session
Multi-device support — target specific devices by ID
Zero app modifications — works with any Android app via ADB, no SDK integration needed
Prerequisites
Node.js 18+
Android SDK with platform-tools (ADB) and emulator
A running Android emulator or connected device
Finding your ANDROID_HOME
The server auto-discovers the SDK at ~/Library/Android/sdk (macOS) or via ANDROID_HOME. If your SDK is elsewhere, set ANDROID_HOME in the MCP config (see below).
To check:
bash
# macOSls ~/Library/Android/sdk/platform-tools/adb
# Or find it via Android Studio: Settings > Languages & Frameworks > Android SDK
Setup
Claude Code
bash
claude mcp add --scope user android -- npx -y android-mcp-server
This registers the server globally so it's available in all projects. Use --scope project instead to limit it to the current project.
If your SDK is not in the default location:
bash
claude mcp add --scope user --env ANDROID_HOME=/path/to/sdk android -- npx -y android-mcp-server
git clone https://github.com/martingeidobler/android-mcp-server.git
cd android-mcp-server
npm install
npm run build
claude mcp add --scope user android -- node /path/to/android-mcp-server/dist/index.js
Available Tools
Device Management
Tool
Description
list_devices
List connected Android devices and emulators
list_avds
List available Android Virtual Devices
start_emulator
Start an AVD by name (waits up to 60s)
Screenshot & UI Analysis
Tool
Description
screenshot
Take screenshot for visual analysis. Optional save_path to save to disk
get_ui_tree
Get UI element hierarchy with bounds, text, resource IDs, and state
Interaction
Tool
Description
tap
Tap at screen coordinates
tap_element
Tap element by resource-id, text, or content-desc
tap_and_wait
Tap element, wait for UI to settle, return new UI tree — single round trip
long_press
Long press at coordinates (context menus, drag handles)
double_tap
Double tap at coordinates
multi_tap
Tap the same coordinates N times with a fixed interval (spam tapping)
tap_sequence
Multi-step action chain: taps, waits, text input, key presses, swipes in any order
"Navigate through the login flow and verify each screen matches the designs"
Claude will use screenshot + get_ui_tree to see and understand each screen, tap_element/type_text to interact, and its vision capabilities to compare against mockups or descriptions.
Smoke testing
"Install the APK, launch the app, and tap through the main screens to check nothing crashes"
Claude will: install_apk → launch_app → navigate with tap_element → get_logs(level="E") to check for errors after each screen.
Element interaction
"Open Settings, search for 'display', tap the first result, then go back"
DEMOS.md — copy-paste prompt scenarios you can try right now
PROMPTING.md — best practices, performance tips, and common pitfalls
How It Works
The server communicates over stdio using the Model Context Protocol. All device interaction goes through ADB — no modifications to your app are required. Screenshots are captured in memory, compressed, and returned as base64 images that the AI can see and analyze visually.
Contributing
Contributions are welcome! Please see CONTRIBUTING.md for guidelines.