Installation

Installation

Prerequisites

• Python 3.9+
• MATLAB 2020b+ installed locally
• MATLAB Engine API for Python — comes with MATLAB, needs separate install

Step 1: Install MATLAB Engine API

The MATLAB Engine API lets Python call MATLAB. Install it from your MATLAB installation:

macOS

cd /Applications/MATLAB_R2024a.app/extern/engines/python
pip install .

Adjust the path for your MATLAB version (e.g., R2023b, R2024b).

Windows

cd "C:\Program Files\MATLAB\R2024a\extern\engines\python"
pip install .

Verify Installation

import matlab.engine
eng = matlab.engine.start_matlab()
result = eng.eval("2 + 2", nargout=1)
print(result)  # Should print 4
eng.quit()

Step 2: Install the MCP Server

git clone https://github.com/HanSur94/matlab-mcp-server-python.git
cd matlab-mcp-server-python
pip install -e ".[dev]"

Step 3: Run

# Single user (stdio transport)
matlab-mcp

# Multi-user (SSE transport)
matlab-mcp --transport sse

# With custom config
matlab-mcp --config my_config.yaml

Step 4: Connect to Your AI Agent

Claude Desktop

Add to ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json (macOS) or %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json (Windows):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "matlab": {
      "command": "matlab-mcp"
    }
  }
}

Claude Code

claude mcp add matlab -- matlab-mcp

Cursor

Add to .cursor/mcp.json in your project:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "matlab": {
      "command": "matlab-mcp"
    }
  }
}

SSE Transport (Multi-User)

Start the server:

matlab-mcp --transport sse

Then point your client to http://localhost:8765/sse.

Virtual Environment (Recommended)

python -m venv .venv
source .venv/bin/activate  # macOS/Linux
# .venv\Scripts\activate   # Windows

# Install MATLAB Engine API into the venv
cd /Applications/MATLAB_R2024a.app/extern/engines/python
pip install .

# Install server
cd /path/to/matlab-mcp-server-python
pip install -e ".[dev]"