You run an MCP server that connects Claude Desktop and similar assistants to a Neo4j graph database. It lets you run Cypher queries, create and manipulate nodes and relationships, manage schema, and run graph algorithms all through natural language or direct Cypher. Everything operates on your local infrastructure for privacy and control, with Docker-based deployment making setup straightforward.

How to use

After you start the MCP server, connect Claude Desktop (or another MCP client) to the server to begin querying and manipulating your graph. You can use natural language prompts to generate Cypher queries, or issue direct Cypher through the query tool. Use the available tools to view the schema, add constraints and indexes, create nodes and relationships, run algorithms like PageRank or shortest path, and monitor the database with admin tools.

How to install

Prerequisites are Docker Desktop and Node.js 20+ for local development. You also benefit from basic knowledge of Neo4j and Cypher.

Using Docker Compose (recommended) follow these steps to set up and run the MCP server locally:

# 1. Clone the project and set up environment
# (replace with your actual repo URL)
git clone <your-repo-url>
cd neo4j-mcp
cp .env.example .env
# Edit .env if you want to change default password

# 2. Start the services

docker-compose up -d

# 3. Verify services are running

docker-compose ps

docker logs neo4j-mcp-server

4. Access the Neo4j Browser

http://localhost:7474

# 5. Configure Claude Desktop

Add to your claude_desktop_config.json the following

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "neo4j": {
      "command": "docker",
      "args": [
        "exec",
        "-i",
        "neo4j-mcp-server",
        "node",
        "/app/dist/index.js"
      ]
    }
  }
}

# 6. Restart Claude Desktop and start using Neo4j tools

Additional setup options

If you prefer not to use Docker, you can run the MCP server locally by installing dependencies, building, and starting the server directly. The steps below outline the manual setup.

# Manual setup (without Docker)

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Build the project
npm run build

# Set environment variables
export NEO4J_URI=bolt://localhost:7687
export NEO4J_USER=neo4j
export NEO4J_PASSWORD=your-password

# Run the server
npm start

Available tools

neo4j.query

Execute raw Cypher queries against the connected Neo4j database.

neo4j.natural_query

Convert natural language prompts into Cypher queries using a template-based approach.

neo4j.get_schema

Retrieve the current database schema including constraints and indexes.

neo4j.create_constraint

Create database constraints such as UNIQUE, EXISTS, or NODE_KEY constraints.

neo4j.create_index

Create indexes (BTREE, TEXT, RANGE, POINT) to optimize queries.

neo4j.create_node

Create nodes with labels and properties.

neo4j.create_relationship

Create relationships between nodes.

neo4j.page_rank

Compute PageRank scores for nodes in the graph.

neo4j.shortest_path

Find the shortest path between two nodes.

neo4j.get_stats

Retrieve database statistics and health information.