KiCad

Provides fast, MCP-compatible access to KiCad symbol libraries for searching components and metadata.

python

0

GitHub Stars

python

Language

3 months ago

First Indexed

3 weeks ago

Catalog Refreshed

Documentation & install

Readme and setup notes from the catalogue, plus a client-ready config you can copy for your MCP host.

Installation

Add the following to your MCP client configuration file.

Configuration

View docs

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "skeptomai-kicad_mcp": {
      "command": "/path/to/kicad_mcp/.venv/bin/kicad-mcp",
      "args": []
    }
  }
}

You can search and retrieve KiCad symbol library metadata quickly by running a local MCP server that indexes your KiCad libraries and serves them to MCP clients with natural-language queries. This enables fast discovery of symbols, footprints, datasheets, and related information right from your workstation.

How to use

Set up a local MCP server and connect it with any MCP client to search KiCad components by name, description, or keywords. You will use the MCP client to send search queries like “Show me capacitors” or “Find a regulator with a certain footprint,” and you will receive structured results that include component name, library source, reference prefixes, values, descriptions, datasheets, and footprints. Use the tools to list component types, filter by reference type, and fetch full details for a chosen component.

How to install

Follow these steps to install and run the KiCad MCP server on your machine.

# Prerequisites
- Python 3.11+
- KiCad symbol libraries (.kicad_sym files)
- Git

# 1) Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/yourusername/kicad_mcp.git
cd kicad_mcp

# 2) Install in editable development mode
pip install -e .

# Optional development dependencies
pip install -e .[dev]

Additional notes

You can index your KiCad libraries to build a searchable database. The indexer reads KiCad symbol files and stores data in a SQLite database with full-text search. The MCP server serves queries from that pre-built database, allowing fast responses. By default, the KiCad symbol search looks in common KiCad locations, and you can customize paths if needed.

Usage pattern with the MCP client

Start the MCP server locally and ensure it is reachable by your MCP client. The server runs as a subprocess and communicates via stdio.
Use the client’s search feature to query for components by name, description, or keywords. For example, you can request a voltage regulator or a specific family, and you will receive results with names, libraries, reference prefixes, values, descriptions, datasheets, and footprints.

Available tools

search_components

Search by name, description, or keywords to find matching KiCad components, returning metadata such as library source, reference, value, description, datasheet, and footprint.

list_component_types

Return all reference designator types (R, C, U, etc.) used by components in the index.

get_components_by_type

Filter components by their reference type (e.g., R for resistors, C for capacitors) to narrow results.

get_component_details

Fetch complete metadata for a specific component, including datasheets and footprints.