NPMLens MCP

NPMLens MCP is an MCP server that connects coding assistants directly to the npm registry and GitHub repository metadata. Designed for software engineers, vibe coders, and autonomous programming agents using tools like Claude, Cursor, Copilot, or Gemini, this server enables models to research JavaScript and TypeScript dependencies in real time. Rather than relying on static training data or manual browser lookups, agents can use NPMLens MCP to query the registry with weighted relevance scoring, inspect documentation, review dependency trees, and extract working code snippets straight from package READMEs. It also surfaces metrics such as download counts, GitHub stars, forks, and licensing terms, which allows agents to make well-informed recommendations when selecting third-party libraries. By providing nine dedicated tools over standard input and output (stdio), NPMLens MCP ensures coding agents evaluate package freshness, monitor release dates across versions, and inspect peer or development dependencies before introducing new software modules into a project codebase.

Category: Developer Tools & Code Intelligence

Tags: dependencies, javascript, node, npm, package-manager

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How to install and configure NPMLens MCP

1. Ensure you have Node.js version 18.17 or newer installed along with npm. 2. Open your client's MCP configuration settings, such as Claude Desktop or Cursor. 3. Add the server entry to your client's configuration file under the mcpServers object: json { "mcpServers": { "npmlens": { "command": "npx", "args": ["-y", "npmlens-mcp@latest"] } } } 4. Alternatively, register via CLI for supported tools like Claude Code by running claude mcp add npmlens npx npmlens-mcp@latest or Amp using amp mcp add npmlens -- npx npmlens-mcp@latest. 5. Restart your client to start querying npm packages.

What you can do with NPMLens MCP

• Search the npm registry by keywords, tags, and weighted ranking factors like quality, popularity, and maintenance. - Compare competing packages side by side using GitHub stars, weekly download numbers, licenses, and maintainer details. - Inspect package dependency trees up to three levels deep, including production dependencies and development dependencies. - Extract functional code usage snippets and installation guides directly from specific package README versions. - Audit version history and publish dates across specific time frames to verify active package maintenance.

Key facts

• Open Source
• https://github.com/rakeshmenon/npmlens-mcp
• Developer Tools & Code Intelligence, Web Search & Research
• dependencies, javascript, node, npm, package-manager

Part of MCP Servers

How do I install NPMLens MCP?

You can configure your MCP client to launch NPMLens MCP automatically using npx. Add an entry named npmlens to your MCP configuration with the command npx and arguments -y and npmlens-mcp@latest. Some CLIs like Claude Code and Amp allow you to add it directly using their respective mcp add commands.

What can NPMLens MCP do?

NPMLens MCP provides nine core tools for inspecting the npm ecosystem. It searches the registry, fetches and truncates README files, extracts code snippets, retrieves download metrics, checks dependency trees, analyzes release version history, and performs side-by-side package comparisons.

Which MCP clients work with NPMLens MCP?

NPMLens MCP operates over standard input and output (stdio) and works with any MCP-compatible environment. Supported clients include Claude Code, Cursor, Copilot CLI, VS Code Copilot, Gemini CLI, Gemini Code Assist, Amp, Codex, JetBrains AI Assistant, Junie, and Warp.

Does NPMLens MCP require a GitHub token?

NPMLens MCP does not require authentication to search npm or fetch standard package data. However, you can optionally configure a GITHUB_TOKEN environment variable to avoid hitting rate limits when requesting GitHub repository details like stars and forks.

Is NPMLens MCP open source?

Yes, NPMLens MCP is open source software released under the MIT license. You can inspect the source code, review tool schemas, or submit contributions via its official GitHub repository.