What is xcodebuildmcp?

getsentry/xcodebuildmcp — explained in plain English

Analysis updated 2026-06-26

★ 5,516TypeScriptAudience · developerComplexity · 2/5LicenseSetup · moderate

Mindmap

mindmap
  root((xcodebuildmcp))
    What it does
      AI-triggered Xcode builds
      Run tests from AI chat
      Simulator management
    How it works
      MCP server mode
      CLI tool mode
      npx on demand
    Supported clients
      Claude Code
      Cursor
      Codex
    Requirements
      macOS 14.5 or later
      Xcode 16 or later
      Node via npm or Homebrew

mindmap root((xcodebuildmcp)) What it does AI-triggered Xcode builds Run tests from AI chat Simulator management How it works MCP server mode CLI tool mode npx on demand Supported clients Claude Code Cursor Codex Requirements macOS 14.5 or later Xcode 16 or later Node via npm or Homebrew

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What do people build with it?

USE CASE 1

Let Claude Code or Cursor build and test your iOS app without you having to run terminal commands manually.

USE CASE 2

List available simulators and launch your app on a specific device from inside an AI coding conversation.

USE CASE 3

Integrate Xcode build feedback directly into your AI coding workflow so errors appear as structured tool results.

USE CASE 4

Install globally via Homebrew or npm to reuse across all your Xcode projects with any MCP-compatible AI client.

What is it built with?

TypeScriptNode.jsMCPXcode

How does it compare?

	getsentry/xcodebuildmcp	dushixiang/next-terminal	executeautomation/mcp-playwright
Stars	5,516	5,519	5,511
Language	TypeScript	TypeScript	TypeScript
Setup difficulty	moderate	hard	moderate
Complexity	2/5	4/5	3/5
Audience	developer	ops devops	developer

Figures from each repo's GitHub metadata at analysis time.

How do you get it running?

Difficulty · moderate Time to first run · 30min

Requires macOS 14.5 or later and Xcode 16 or later, won't run on older macOS or Xcode versions.

Use freely for any purpose including commercial use, just keep the MIT copyright notice.

So what is it?

XcodeBuildMCP is a tool that connects AI coding assistants, such as Claude Code or Cursor, to Xcode, Apple's development environment for building iOS and macOS apps. It does this through a standard called the Model Context Protocol, which lets AI agents call tools and receive structured results rather than just reading or writing text. The practical effect is that an AI assistant can trigger builds, run tests, launch apps in a simulator, and inspect build logs without you having to copy-paste terminal output back and forth. The package ships as both a command-line tool and an MCP server. You can use the command line directly from a terminal to build for a simulator, list available tools, or check for updates. You point the CLI at your Xcode project file and specify a build scheme, and it calls Xcode's underlying build system on your behalf. The MCP server mode is what AI coding agents connect to when you configure them to use it, which turns those same capabilities into callable functions the agent can invoke during a conversation. Installation requires macOS 14.5 or later and Xcode 16 or later. You can install the package globally through Homebrew or npm. Clients that support MCP, including Cursor, Codex, and Claude Code, can also run it on demand without a global install using a single npx command. Configuration snippets for each supported AI client are linked from the documentation site. The project is maintained by Sentry, the error-monitoring company. It uses Sentry's own telemetry to collect internal runtime errors, with opt-out instructions in the privacy documentation. An optional "skills" feature lets you load instructions into an AI agent that explain how to use the CLI or the MCP server effectively. The project is released under the MIT license.

Copy-paste prompts

Prompt 1

I want Claude Code to be able to build my Xcode project for me. Show me exactly how to configure xcodebuildmcp in my Claude Code settings, including the npx command and where to point it at my .xcodeproj file.

Prompt 2

My iOS app has a build scheme called MyAppDev. Write the xcodebuildmcp CLI command to build it for the iPhone 15 simulator and explain what each flag does.

Prompt 3

Help me set up xcodebuildmcp with Cursor so I can run my XCTest unit tests from inside the AI chat without switching to Xcode's test navigator.

Prompt 4

XcodeBuildMCP has an optional skills feature. Explain what it does and show me how to enable it so the AI gets instructions on how to use the build tools effectively.

Prompt 5

Explain what the Model Context Protocol is and how xcodebuildmcp uses it to turn Xcode build actions into functions an AI agent can call during a conversation.

Frequently asked questions