Developer Guide - Context7

This guide covers how to set up the Context7 MCP server locally for development and testing.

Getting Started

Clone the project and install dependencies:

bash

git clone https://github.com/upstash/context7.git
cd context7
pnpm i

Build:

bash

pnpm run build

Run the server:

bash

node packages/mcp/dist/index.js

CLI Arguments

context7-mcp accepts the following CLI flags:

Flag	Description	Default
`--transport <stdio\|http>`	Transport to use. Use `http` for remote HTTP server or `stdio` for local integration.	`stdio`
`--port <number>`	Port to listen on when using `http` transport.	`3000`
`--api-key <key>`	API key for authentication (or set `CONTEXT7_API_KEY` env var).	-

<Note> Get your API key by creating an account at [context7.com/dashboard](https://context7.com/dashboard). </Note>

Examples

HTTP transport on port 8080:

bash

node packages/mcp/dist/index.js --transport http --port 8080

Stdio transport with API key:

bash

node packages/mcp/dist/index.js --transport stdio --api-key YOUR_API_KEY

Environment Variables

You can use the CONTEXT7_API_KEY environment variable instead of passing the --api-key flag. This is useful for:

Storing API keys securely in .env files
Integration with MCP server setups that use dotenv
Tools that prefer environment variable configuration

<Warning> The `--api-key` CLI flag takes precedence over the environment variable when both are provided. </Warning>

Using .env File

bash

# .env
CONTEXT7_API_KEY=your_api_key_here

MCP Configuration with Environment Variable

json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "context7": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@upstash/context7-mcp"],
      "env": {
        "CONTEXT7_API_KEY": "YOUR_API_KEY"
      }
    }
  }
}

Local Development Configuration

When developing locally, use this configuration to run from source:

json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "context7": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["tsx", "/path/to/folder/context7/src/index.ts", "--api-key", "YOUR_API_KEY"]
    }
  }
}

Testing with MCP Inspector

Test your setup using the MCP Inspector:

bash

npx -y @modelcontextprotocol/inspector npx @upstash/context7-mcp

This opens an interactive inspector to verify Context7 tools are working correctly.