MCP Obsidian Cli

Name: MCP Obsidian Cli
Author: stonematt

by stonemattversion 2.1.0i★ –iRuns on your computer

Registry nameio.github.stonematt/mcp-obsidian-cli

Install

Overview

Description from the maker (original English)

Save chat notes from Claude Desktop to your vault — MCP on Obsidian CLI. Keep what matters.

PopNx MCP’s three pillars

These three are never merged into one score: opinions, measurements and popularity are different things.

User voiceiNo reviews yetReviews open together with accounts in a later step
Our basic checksi1 of 1 passedChecked from public information; code not scanned yet
UsageiNot measured yet★ –

What you can do with it

We have not written a plain-language summary for this one yet. Below are the facts we read from the registry.

Connection: Runs on your computer
Transport: stdio
Category: Docs, sheets & office work

Install

Pick the AI app you use, then copy the settings.

Before you install

Basic checks: 1 of 1 passed
Runs on your computer with your user’s permissions (files, network, apps).
You fill in yourself: OBSIDIAN_VAULT, OBSIDIAN_CLI_PATH, OBSIDIAN_TIMEOUT_MS

You need

npmNode.js installed (for the npx command)

Which app do you use?

ClaudeClaude CodeCursorVS CodeChatGPT

Pick your app above. We remember it, so next time the button says “Install in …”.

Open Claude Desktop → Settings → Developer → Edit Config, and paste this into claude_desktop_config.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "obsidian-cli": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "mcp-obsidian-cli"
      ],
      "env": {
        "OBSIDIAN_VAULT": "your-value",
        "OBSIDIAN_CLI_PATH": "your-value",
        "OBSIDIAN_TIMEOUT_MS": "your-value"
      }
    }
  }
}

Run this in your terminal

claude mcp add obsidian-cli --env OBSIDIAN_VAULT=your-value --env OBSIDIAN_CLI_PATH=your-value --env OBSIDIAN_TIMEOUT_MS=your-value -- npx -y mcp-obsidian-cli

Fill in the empty values before running it.

Open in Cursor

Or copy the settings yourself

Paste into .cursor/mcp.json in your project, or ~/.cursor/mcp.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "obsidian-cli": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "mcp-obsidian-cli"
      ],
      "env": {
        "OBSIDIAN_VAULT": "your-value",
        "OBSIDIAN_CLI_PATH": "your-value",
        "OBSIDIAN_TIMEOUT_MS": "your-value"
      }
    }
  }
}

Your browser asks to open the app, then the app shows the settings and asks you to confirm. Key values are left empty for you to fill in.

Open in VS Code

Or copy the settings yourself

Paste into .vscode/mcp.json in your project

{
  "servers": {
    "obsidian-cli": {
      "type": "stdio",
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "mcp-obsidian-cli"
      ],
      "env": {
        "OBSIDIAN_VAULT": "your-value",
        "OBSIDIAN_CLI_PATH": "your-value",
        "OBSIDIAN_TIMEOUT_MS": "your-value"
      }
    }
  }
}

Your browser asks to open the app, then the app shows the settings and asks you to confirm. Key values are left empty for you to fill in.

This one runs on your computer, and ChatGPT can only connect to servers on the internet. Pick another app.

Your choice stays on this device in a cookie; no account needed.

Values you fill in

OBSIDIAN_VAULT env
Target vault name. If unset or unknown, the server prompts the caller on first tool use, listing the vaults Obsidian knows about.
OBSIDIAN_CLI_PATH env
Path to the obsidian-cli binary. Auto-discovered on macOS; set explicitly on Linux/Windows or if the binary is non-standard.
OBSIDIAN_TIMEOUT_MS env
Per-command timeout in milliseconds.

These settings are generated from the maker’s registry entry. If the README says otherwise, follow the README.

What it can do

Runs on your computer; the tool list appears in your AI app after you install it.

Basic checksi

We check information anyone can see; we have not read the code. Checks that do not apply are left out of the count. · Checked Nov 7, 2026

✓ Pass
Maker matches the repo
The registry name was verified with the GitHub account stonematt, which owns the repo
… Not checked yet
Still maintained
We have not read this repo from GitHub yet
… Not checked yet
Has a licence
We have not read this repo from GitHub yet
– Not applicable
Endpoint responds
This one runs on your computer; there is no internet endpoint
– Not applicable
Sign-in with OAuth
Runs on your computer and uses local settings instead
… Not checked yet
No hidden instructions in tool descriptions
Runs on your computer; we can only read tool lists from internet endpoints

Compared with others in Docs, sheets & office worki

More stars than 0% of the other 2191 servers in this category
Published to the registry more recently than 35% of the other 2191 servers in this category
Basic checks equal to or better than 100% of the other 2191 servers in this category

Compared with every active server in this category in the registry. Stars count only when the publisher owns the repo.

Common questions

Is MCP Obsidian Cli safe?

It passed 1 of 1 applicable basic checks. We have not read the code. Before adding a key or token, see what access the server asks for and use a key with only the permissions you need.

What keys or codes does it need?

The registry does not list a required key, though some servers ask you to sign in on first use.

Does it run on my computer or in the cloud?

It runs on your computer. Your AI app starts it when needed, and data does not pass through the maker’s servers (unless it calls an online service itself).

Is it still maintained?

The GitHub repo last changed –, and the latest version (2.1.0) reached the registry 2 months ago.

Which apps can use it?

Apps that support MCP, such as Claude Desktop, Claude Code, Cursor and VS Code. You also need Node.js on your computer.

What can I use instead?

In the same category: Agent-Native Calendar, Excel MCP Server, MCP Server for Excel

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Install

README from the maker

Open the README

Copied from the maker’s repo as written. PopNx MCP has not reviewed or endorsed it. HTML, images and scripts are removed. Links lead off this site.

mcp-obsidian-cli

Your thinking starts in Claude Desktop, not in Obsidian. You research, draft, argue with the model, and when something's worth keeping you say "save this to my vault." It lands in the right place: your template, your properties, today's daily note, wired into your link graph. No tab-switch, no copy-paste.

Installing this? Start at Install. One prompt in Claude Code handles the whole setup.

Two halves:

Capture — turn a conversation into a real note, filed where it belongs.
Augment — pull what's already in the vault (backlinks, full-text search) back into the chat to inform or update a note.

Needs Obsidian running. It can sit minimized, so you never switch to it.

Using this from Claude Code? The native obsidian-cli skill fits better there: direct CLI, no MCP layer. Installing is separate. The prompt below runs in Claude Code.

Install

Run the prompt below in Claude Code. It checks Node, enables the Obsidian CLI, writes your Claude Desktop config, and verifies the connection. Only hand-edit the config if that path fails.

Fetch https://raw.githubusercontent.com/stonematt/mcp-obsidian-cli/master/docs/INSTALL.md

and follow it end to end to install the mcp-obsidian-cli MCP server for my Claude Desktop. Ask me for my Obsidian vault name and folder path, then handle everything else — check Node, enable the Obsidian CLI, edit my Claude Desktop config, and verify it works.

Full walkthrough, including failure modes: [docs/INSTALL.md](https://github.com/stonematt/mcp-obsidian-cli/blob/master/docs/INSTALL.md).

Run the server directly. This starts the server in your terminal and installs nothing:

npx mcp-obsidian-cli

Requirements

The install prompt checks each of these. Listed here for reference:

Obsidian running with its command line interface enabled (Settings → General → Advanced → Command line interface). The CLI ships built into Obsidian — nothing extra to install.
obsidian-cli reachable. macOS auto-detects it inside the Obsidian app bundle, so there is nothing to configure. Linux and Windows have no auto-detection: point OBSIDIAN_CLI_PATH at the binary yourself.
Node.js >= 18

How it works

The server exposes Obsidian CLI commands as MCP tools. A generic pass-through tool handles the full CLI surface (80+ commands), plus typed convenience tools for common operations:

Tool	Description
`obsidian`	Generic pass-through — run any CLI command (ships intent→verb cheatsheet, pre-call manifest validation, reload detection)
`obsidian_help`	Manifest-backed help — list verbs by category, or look up a single verb / doc topic
`obsidian_daily_read`	Read today's daily note
`obsidian_daily_append`	Append to daily note
`obsidian_read`	Read a note by name or path
`obsidian_search`	Full-text search with context
`obsidian_tags`	List tags with counts
`obsidian_tasks`	Query tasks (daily, todo, done)
`obsidian_properties`	Read frontmatter properties
`obsidian_create`	Create a new plain note (no Templater expansion)
`obsidian_create_from_template`	Create a note from a Templater template (expands `<% ... %>` placeholders)
`obsidian_property_set`	Set a frontmatter property
`obsidian_backlinks`	List backlinks to a note
`obsidian_files`	List vault files
`obsidian_recents`	Recently opened files

The generic obsidian tool means the MCP server never falls behind the CLI — new CLI commands work immediately without a server update.

What it can do

It talks to the running Obsidian instance, so it works with your vault the way Obsidian sees it:

Backlinks and full-text search across your resolved link graph and search index (the augment half).
Templater templates and typed frontmatter properties when creating or updating notes.
Daily notes, task queries, and tag counts.
80+ commands through the generic pass-through. No API keys, no REST plugin. Just the official Obsidian CLI.

Manual config (if you're not using Claude Code)

Automated installers should use the prompt under Install, which handles vault name, CLI path, and verification. This block is the hand-edit fallback.

Add to ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json:

"mcpServers": { "obsidian": { "command": "npx", "args": ["-y", "mcp-obsidian-cli"], "env": { "OBSIDIAN_VAULT": "my-vault" } } } }

Environment variables

Variable	Default	Description
`OBSIDIAN_VAULT`	_(none)_	Target vault by name
`OBSIDIAN_CLI_PATH`	`obsidian-cli`	Path to CLI binary
`OBSIDIAN_TIMEOUT_MS`	`15000`	Command timeout
`XDG_CONFIG_HOME`	`~/.config`	Base path for config file

Config file

The server can read settings from a YAML config file:

Default: ~/.config/mcp-obsidian-cli/config.yaml
With XDG_CONFIG_HOME: $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/mcp-obsidian-cli/config.yaml

Config file format:

vault: "my-vault"

cliPath: "obsidian-cli" timeoutMs: 15000

Config precedence: env vars > config file > hardcoded defaults

Bugs / requests

File an issue: https://github.com/stonematt/mcp-obsidian-cli/issues/new/choose. Bug template asks for version, MCP client, tool call, and response — quick to fill, fast to act on.

License

MIT

Maintained by @stonematt Licensed under the MIT License

Trademark Notice: "Obsidian" is a trademark of Obsidian Publishing, Inc. This project is not affiliated with or endorsed by Obsidian Publishing.

MCP Obsidian Cli

Overview

PopNx MCP’s three pillars

What you can do with it

Install

Before you install

Values you fill in

What it can do

Basic checksi

Maker matches the repo

Still maintained

Has a licence

Endpoint responds

Sign-in with OAuth

No hidden instructions in tool descriptions

Compared with others in Docs, sheets & office worki

Common questions

Alternatives

Agent-Native Calendar

Excel MCP Server

MCP Server for Excel

README from the maker

mcp-obsidian-cli

Install

Requirements

How it works

What it can do

Environment variables

Config file

Bugs / requests

License