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Unpaywall MCP server

by SMABoundless·io.github.SMABoundless/unpaywall·v1.0.1
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Open-access availability for 120M+ scholarly articles via the Unpaywall API

A85/100grade A
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Safety scan
A85/100

full report

Adoption
New

0 stars22 downloads/wk

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If you have run it, two minutes of your experience saves the next person an afternoon.

Unpaywall tools (4)

write = sends, deletes, buys or posts

Read from the package source without running it. The installed server may list more.

  • unpaywall_export_bibtex

    Export the most recent unpaywall_lookup or unpaywall_search results as BibTeX format.

  • unpaywall_export_ris

    Export the most recent unpaywall_lookup or unpaywall_search results as RIS format. Save output as a .ris file and import into Zotero: File -> Import.

  • unpaywall_lookup

    Look up open-access availability for a scholarly article by DOI.

  • unpaywall_search

    Search Unpaywall for scholarly articles by title.

Public scan report

scanner v0.1.9 · 2026-09-26 · same rubric, same numbers if you re-run it

no findings
  • Code scan5 source files scanned25/25
  • –Live reliabilityno gateway calls yet and no remote to proben/a
  • –Tool poisoningtools not inspected (local package is not executed); not countedn/a
  • Auth qualitylocal package, no credentials required12/15
  • Maintenancelast push 84 days ago12/15
  • Maintainer identityregistry namespace matches repository owner6/10
Overall 85/100. Components that don't apply are left out of the denominator. Any critical finding is an F.RubricAppeal a findingJSON

How Unpaywall compares

Against every graded MCP server, from our own scans and uptime checks. Updated after each scan run.

Safety score
85/100
higher than 70% of 48,255 servers
Tools
4
the typical server has 7
Tools that change things
0%
typical: 0%. Fewer write tools means less an agent can break
Downloads a week
22
more than 8% of 12,191 servers with a package

What its tools let an agent do: 4 read

Install Unpaywall in Claude Code, Cursor or VS Code

claude mcp add unpaywall -- uvx unpaywall-mcp-server
Add to Cursor

What the publisher says

From the Unpaywall repository's README, as published. We do not edit it. Read it on GitHub

Unpaywall MCP Server

An MCP (Model Context Protocol) server for the Unpaywall API — open-access availability for 120M+ scholarly articles.

Built with FastMCP.

Tools

What you get

  • Open-access status and OA type (gold, green, hybrid, bronze)
  • Best OA location with direct PDF link
  • All OA locations across repositories and publishers
  • Journal OA status, ISSN, publisher info
  • Author lists, publication dates, DOIs
  • License information per location

Setup

1. Get your email ready

Unpaywall requires an email address as your API identifier (no API key needed). See the Unpaywall API docs.

2. Install

pip install unpaywall-mcp-server

Or install from source:

cd unpaywall-mcp-server
python3 -m venv venv
source venv/bin/activate
pip install -r requirements.txt

3. Add to Claude Desktop

Add this to your claudedesktopconfig.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "unpaywall": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": ["unpaywall-mcp-server"],
      "env": {
        "UNPAYWALL_EMAIL": "your-email@example.com"
      }
    }
  }
}

Or if using Claude Code CLI:

claude mcp add unpaywall \
  uvx unpaywall-mcp-server \
  -e UNPAYWALL_EMAIL=your-email@example.com

Usage examples

  • "Is there an open-access version of DOI 10.1038/nature12373?"
  • "Search Unpaywall for open-access papers on CRISPR gene editing"
  • "Export these results as RIS for Zotero"
  • "Find OA articles about climate change mitigation"

License

MIT

<!-- mcp-name: io.github.SMABoundless/unpaywall -->

Nothing above is checked by us. What we check is on the safety report.

Unpaywall: common questions

Is Unpaywall MCP server safe?
Yes, by our scan: it is graded A (85/100). Read the Unpaywall safety report
How do I install Unpaywall?
It runs on your machine. Copy the Claude Code, Cursor, VS Code or Claude Desktop config from the install section.
Does Unpaywall need an API key?
No secret keys are declared. It reads 1 setting from the environment.
Is Unpaywall maintained?
The last commit was 123 days ago (2026-07-04). The latest release is v1.0.1.
How does Unpaywall compare with other MCP servers?
safety score 85/100 (higher than 70% of 48,255 servers); tools 4 (the typical server has 7); tools that change things 0% (typical: 0%. Fewer write tools means less an agent can break). Full comparison.

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