GuruPDF MCP — convert PDFs & 100+ file formats from your AI agent

A free Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that lets Claude, Cursor, VS Code, Windsurf and other AI agents convert, compress, merge, split and edit PDFs — and convert between 100+ file formats (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, JPG, PNG, HEIC, ebooks, and more), right on your own machine. Powered by GuruPDF.

Languages: English · Español · Français · Deutsch · 中文 · Русский · Українська · Polski · Nederlands · Türkçe · Čeština · Ελληνικά · العربية

Ask your assistant: "compress this PDF", "turn invoice.docx into a PDF", or "merge these three files" — and it converts the files right on your machine.

• 🗂️ 126 tools — PDF ⇄ Word/Excel/PowerPoint, images, ebooks, OCR, compress, merge, split, rotate, protect, watermark, and more.
• 💻 Works on your local files — reads and writes files on disk, no manual upload/download.
• 🆓 Free to start — every account gets daily credits. No credit card required.

Install

You need Node.js 18+ and a free GuruPDF API key:

1. Sign up at gurupdf.com.
2. Open Profile → API tokens and create a token.
3. Add the server to your agent with that key (configs below). No install step — npx fetches it on first run.

Claude Desktop

claude_desktop_config.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "gurupdf": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "gurupdf-mcp"],
      "env": { "GURUPDF_API_KEY": "your_token_here" }
    }
  }
}

Cursor

~/.cursor/mcp.json (or .cursor/mcp.json in a project):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "gurupdf": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "gurupdf-mcp"],
      "env": { "GURUPDF_API_KEY": "your_token_here" }
    }
  }
}

VS Code

.vscode/mcp.json:

{
  "servers": {
    "gurupdf": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "gurupdf-mcp"],
      "env": { "GURUPDF_API_KEY": "your_token_here" }
    }
  }
}

Windsurf

~/.codeium/windsurf/mcp_config.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "gurupdf": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "gurupdf-mcp"],
      "env": { "GURUPDF_API_KEY": "your_token_here" }
    }
  }
}

Tools

Tool	What it does
convert_file	Convert/process a local file (or URL). Give it an input and a target format (pdf, png, docx…) or a tool slug (compress-pdf, merge-pdf…). Saves the result to disk.
get_status	Check a conversion job by id and download the result when ready (for long jobs like video).
list_conversions	List supported conversions/tools, optionally filtered by an input format.
check_credits	Show remaining credits and how to get more.

Examples

"Compress ~/Documents/report.pdf." → convert_file(input: "~/Documents/report.pdf", to: "compress-pdf")

"Convert invoice.docx to PDF." → convert_file(input: "invoice.docx", to: "pdf")

"Merge a.pdf and b.pdf into one." → convert_file(input: ["a.pdf", "b.pdf"], to: "merge-pdf")

"Password-protect this PDF with hunter2." → convert_file(input: "secret.pdf", to: "protect-pdf", options: { password: "hunter2" })

"Save this web page as a PDF: https://example.com" → convert_file(input: "https://example.com", to: "url-to-pdf")

Free tier & credits

Each tool costs a few credits. Free accounts get daily credits (refreshed every day) and 2 conversions/minute, 10/day. When you run out, the assistant will tell you — you can wait for the daily refresh or top up / upgrade. Conversions run on GuruPDF's servers; files are deleted automatically within an hour.

Configuration

Env var	Default	Notes
GURUPDF_API_KEY	—	Required. Your API token from Profile → API tokens.
GURUPDF_API_URL	https://gurupdf.com/api/v1	Override only for self-hosted / staging.

Links

• Landing page: gurupdf.com/mcp
• Guide: Convert files in Claude & Cursor with the GuruPDF MCP
• Website: gurupdf.com
• API docs: gurupdf.com/api/docs
• Pricing: gurupdf.com/pricing

License

MIT