How to set up MCP servers on Cursor

Launch Cursor and navigate to File > Preferences > Settings or use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl+, (Windows/Linux) or Cmd+, (Mac). In the settings search bar, type MCP to filter MCP-related options.

Locate the MCP Server Configuration section. Click on Edit in settings.json to open the JSON configuration file. Add your MCP server configuration using this structure:

{
  "mcp.servers": {
    "your-server-name": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["path/to/your/server.js"],
      "env": {}
    }
  }
}

Open Cursor's integrated terminal by pressing Ctrl+` or going to View > Terminal. Install the MCP SDK and any required packages:

npm install @modelcontextprotocol/sdk

For Python-based servers, use:

pip install mcp

Create a new file for your MCP server (e.g., mcp-server.js) or configure an existing one. Ensure your server implements the MCP protocol correctly with proper request handlers and response formatting. Update the file path in your settings.json to point to this server file.

In your MCP server configuration, add any necessary environment variables under the env object:

"env": {
  "API_KEY": "your-api-key",
  "SERVER_PORT": "3000",
  "DEBUG": "true"
}

These variables will be available to your MCP server process.

Save your settings.json file and restart Cursor to apply the changes. Go to View > Command Palette (Ctrl+Shift+P) and search for MCP: Start Server. Select your configured server from the list to start it.

Verify your MCP server is working by opening the Output panel (View > Output) and selecting MCP from the dropdown. You should see connection logs and server status. Test functionality by using MCP-enabled features in Cursor's AI assistant or relevant extensions.

In Cursor settings, navigate to MCP > Permissions and configure what your MCP server can access. Enable permissions for file system access, network requests, or other resources your server needs. Click Apply to save permission changes.