Markitdown MCP Server ⚡

Convert any document to AI-ready Markdown in seconds Cloud-hosted Model Context Protocol server powered by Microsoft's Markitdown

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🎯 What is This?

Markitdown MCP Server is a cloud-hosted service that converts documents into clean, AI-optimized Markdown. Built on Microsoft's Markitdown library (82k+ ⭐), it eliminates the need for local Python installations and provides instant, scalable document conversion through the Model Context Protocol.

Perfect for RAG pipelines, knowledge bases, AI agents, and document processing workflows.

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✨ Key Features

🚀 Universal Format Support

Convert 29+ file formats to clean Markdown:

• Documents: PDF, DOCX, PPTX, XLSX
• Images: PNG, JPG, GIF (with OCR)
• Web: HTML, XML
• Audio: MP3, WAV (with transcription)
• Archives: ZIP (extract and convert contents)
• And many more!

☁️ Zero Setup Required

• No Python installation needed
• No dependency management
• No local configuration
• Just call the API and get Markdown

🎭 MCP Native

• First-class Model Context Protocol support
• Works seamlessly with Claude Desktop, Cursor, Aider
• AI agents can discover and use it automatically

⚡ Lightning Fast

• Direct Python library integration (no subprocess overhead)
• Typical conversion: < 3 seconds
• Cloud-scale infrastructure via Apify

💰 Pay-Per-Use

• $0.01 per Actor start
• $0.02 per document conversion
• No subscriptions, no minimums

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🎬 Quick Start

For AI Users (Claude Desktop)

1. Add to MCP Configuration

Create or edit ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "markitdown": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "mcp-remote",
        "https://rector-labs--markitdown-mcp-server.apify.actor/mcp",
        "--header",
        "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN"
      ]
    }
  }
}

2. Restart Claude Desktop

3. Convert Documents

Simply ask Claude:

"Convert this PDF to markdown: https://example.com/document.pdf"

Claude will automatically use the Markitdown tool!

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For Developers (API)

Direct HTTP Request

curl -X POST https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/rector_labs~markitdown-mcp-server/runs \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "fileUrl": "https://example.com/document.pdf"
  }'

Python Example

from apify_client import ApifyClient

client = ApifyClient('YOUR_API_TOKEN')
run = client.actor('rector_labs/markitdown-mcp-server').call(
    run_input={
        'fileUrl': 'https://example.com/document.pdf'
    }
)

# Get markdown output
for item in client.dataset(run['defaultDatasetId']).iterate_items():
    print(item['markdown'])

JavaScript/TypeScript Example

import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

const client = new ApifyClient({ token: 'YOUR_API_TOKEN' });

const run = await client.actor('rector_labs/markitdown-mcp-server').call({
  fileUrl: 'https://example.com/document.pdf'
});

// Get markdown output
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
console.log(items[0].markdown);

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📚 Supported Formats

Documents & Spreadsheets

Format	Extension	Notes
PDF	.pdf	Text extraction, OCR support
Word	.docx, .doc	Preserves formatting
PowerPoint	.pptx, .ppt	Slide text extraction
Excel	.xlsx, .xls	Table to Markdown
CSV	.csv	Table formatting
TSV	.tsv	Table formatting

Images

Format	Extension	Notes
PNG	.png	OCR text extraction
JPEG	.jpg, .jpeg	OCR text extraction
GIF	.gif	OCR text extraction
BMP	.bmp	OCR text extraction

Web & Markup

Format	Extension	Notes
HTML	.html, .htm	Clean conversion
XML	.xml	Structured data
Markdown	.md	Pass-through

Audio & Video

Format	Extension	Notes
MP3	.mp3	Speech-to-text transcription
WAV	.wav	Speech-to-text transcription
YouTube	URLs	Transcript extraction

Archives

Format	Extension	Notes
ZIP	.zip	Extract and convert contents

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💡 Use Cases

🤖 RAG Pipelines

PDF Documents → Markitdown → Clean Markdown → Vector DB → LLM

Perfect for preparing documents for semantic search and retrieval.

📖 Knowledge Base Migration

Convert legacy documentation (PDFs, Word docs) to modern Markdown format for wikis, documentation sites, or content management systems.

🎓 Research & Academia

Extract text from research papers, presentations, and datasets for analysis and processing.

📊 Data Extraction

Convert invoices, reports, and spreadsheets into structured Markdown for further processing.

🔄 Batch Processing

Process hundreds of documents in parallel using Apify's infrastructure.

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🔌 Integrations

Claude Desktop

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "markitdown": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "mcp-remote",
        "https://rector-labs--markitdown-mcp-server.apify.actor/mcp",
        "--header",
        "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN"
      ]
    }
  }
}

n8n Workflow

1. Add Apify node
2. Select Markitdown MCP Server actor
3. Configure file URL input
4. Connect to downstream nodes

Make.com (Integromat)

1. Add Apify module
2. Select actor: rector_labs/markitdown-mcp-server
3. Map file URL from trigger
4. Use output in next steps

Zapier

1. Choose Apify app
2. Action: Run Actor
3. Actor: markitdown-mcp-server
4. Map data from previous steps

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⚙️ Configuration

Input Parameters

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
fileUrl	string	✅ (or base64)	URL of the document to convert
fileBase64	string	✅ (or URL)	Base64-encoded file content

Note: Provide either fileUrl or fileBase64, not both.

Example Inputs

URL-based:

{
  "fileUrl": "https://example.com/document.pdf"
}

Base64-based:

{
  "fileBase64": "JVBERi0xLjQKJeLjz9MKMyAwIG9iago8PC..."
}

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📊 Output Format

The actor outputs clean Markdown text with metadata:

{
  "event": "conversion_success",
  "file_size": 153600,
  "markdown_length": 5234,
  "file_type": ".pdf"
}

The Markdown content is returned as the tool response.

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💲 Pricing

Pay-Per-Event Model

Event	Price	Description
Actor Start	$0.01	One-time fee per Actor run
Document Conversion	$0.02	Per successful conversion

Example Costs

• Single document: $0.03 total ($0.01 start + $0.02 conversion)
• 100 documents: ~$2.10 ($0.01 start + $2.00 conversions)
• 1,000 documents: ~$20.10 ($0.01 start + $20.00 conversions)

No subscriptions. No minimums. Pay only for what you use.

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🚀 Performance

Metric	Value
Average conversion time	< 3 seconds
Small files (< 1MB)	< 2 seconds
Large files (10MB+)	< 10 seconds
Concurrent processing	Unlimited (cloud-scaled)
Uptime	99.95% (Apify SLA)

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🛠️ Advanced Features

Error Handling

The actor gracefully handles:

• Invalid file URLs (404, network errors)
• Unsupported file formats (clear error messages)
• Corrupted files (validation before processing)
• Large files (automatic timeout handling)

Logging & Debugging

All conversions are logged with:

• File type and size
• Conversion duration
• Success/failure status
• Error details (if any)

Custom Options

Coming soon:

• Azure Document Intelligence integration
• OpenAI image description
• Custom OCR settings
• Batch processing mode

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🔒 Security & Privacy

• No data retention: Files are processed and immediately deleted
• Encrypted transport: All transfers use HTTPS
• Isolated execution: Each conversion runs in a sandboxed container
• No logging of content: Only metadata is logged
• GDPR compliant: Hosted on Apify's secure infrastructure

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❓ FAQ

Q: What's the difference between this and running Markitdown locally?

A: This is a cloud-hosted service with:

• ✅ No Python installation required
• ✅ No dependency management
• ✅ Automatic scaling for batch processing
• ✅ MCP integration for AI agents
• ✅ 99.95% uptime guarantee
• ✅ Pay-per-use (no server costs)

Q: Can I convert password-protected PDFs?

A: Not currently. Password-protected documents will return an error. Remove protection before conversion.

Q: What's the maximum file size?

A: 100 MB hard limit. Files over 50 MB may take longer to process. For larger files, consider splitting them first.

Q: Does it work with scanned PDFs (images)?

A: Yes! OCR (Optical Character Recognition) is supported for image-based PDFs and image files.

Q: Can I use this in production?

A: Absolutely! The actor runs on Apify's production infrastructure with 99.95% uptime SLA.

Q: How accurate is the Markdown output?

A: Markitdown preserves:

• ✅ Headings and structure
• ✅ Bold and italic formatting
• ✅ Lists (ordered and unordered)
• ✅ Tables
• ✅ Links
• ✅ Code blocks

Complex layouts may need manual review.

Q: Can I convert multiple files at once?

A: Yes! Run multiple Actor instances in parallel, or use batch mode (contact for enterprise pricing).

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🐛 Troubleshooting

"File download failed: HTTP 404"

Cause: The URL is invalid or the file doesn't exist.

Solution:

• Verify the URL is correct and publicly accessible
• Ensure the file hasn't been deleted or moved
• Check for authentication requirements

"Unsupported file format"

Cause: The file extension is not in the supported formats list.

Solution:

• Check the Supported Formats section
• Convert the file to a supported format first
• Contact support if you need a specific format added

"Conversion timeout"

Cause: The file is too large or complex.

Solution:

• Split large files into smaller chunks
• Simplify complex documents
• Increase timeout (contact support for enterprise plans)

"Invalid base64 content"

Cause: The base64 string is malformed or incomplete.

Solution:

• Verify base64 encoding is correct
• Ensure no truncation occurred during transfer
• Use fileUrl instead if possible

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📖 Documentation

• MCP Protocol: modelcontextprotocol.io
• Microsoft Markitdown: github.com/microsoft/markitdown
• Apify Platform: docs.apify.com
• Python SDK: docs.apify.com/sdk/python

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🤝 Support

Need Help?

• 📧 Email: support@apify.com
• 💬 Discord: apify.com/discord
• 📚 Documentation: docs.apify.com
• 🐛 Bug Reports: GitHub Issues

Community

• ⭐ Star on GitHub: RECTOR-LABS/markitdown-mcp-server
• 🐦 Follow Updates: @apify
• 💡 Feature Requests: Open a GitHub issue

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🚀 Get Started Now

Deploy to Apify

1. Log in to Apify

apify login

2. Deploy the Actor

apify push

3. Enable Standby Mode

Go to Actor settings and enable standby mode.

4. Get Your Actor URL

Your MCP endpoint will be: https://rector-labs--markitdown-mcp-server.apify.actor/mcp

5. Connect AI Agents

Add the endpoint to Claude Desktop, Cursor, or your favorite MCP client!

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📜 License

This project is built on:

• Microsoft Markitdown: MIT License
• Apify SDK: Apache 2.0 License
• MCP SDK: MIT License

Actor code: MIT License

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🙏 Credits

Built with:

• Microsoft Markitdown - Document conversion library (82k+ ⭐)
• Apify Platform - Serverless cloud infrastructure
• MCP Protocol - AI agent integration standard

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Made with ❤️ for the AI developer community

Powered by Apify • MCP Protocol • Microsoft Markitdown