sketchfab-mcp-server

A Model Context Protocol server for Sketchfab. Search, browse, inspect, and download 3D models from Cursor, Claude Desktop, and other MCP clients.

API key required: All tools need a valid Sketchfab API token. Create one at sketchfab.com/settings/password (API token section). Pass it via --api-key, the SKETCHFAB_API_KEY environment variable, or in your MCP client config.

Quick Start

Prerequisites

• Node.js 18+ — Runtime for the MCP server
• Yarn — Package manager (or use npm / pnpm equivalently)
• Sketchfab API token — Required for search, model details, categories, licenses, and downloads
• Git — For cloning the repository

Build from Source

Clone the repository:

git clone https://github.com/AliRezaBeigy/sketchfab-mcp-server.git
cd sketchfab-mcp-server

Install dependencies and build:

yarn install
yarn build

Run locally (stdio transport):

# Option A: environment variable
export SKETCHFAB_API_KEY="your-api-token-here"
yarn start

# Option B: CLI flag
node build/index.js --api-key "your-api-token-here"

Development (no build step):

export SKETCHFAB_API_KEY="your-api-token-here"
yarn dev

Configure an MCP Client

Add the server to your MCP client settings. Use the absolute path to build/index.js on your machine.

Cursor — edit ~/.cursor/mcp.json (or project-level .cursor/mcp.json):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "sketchfab": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": [
        "/absolute/path/to/sketchfab-mcp-server/build/index.js"
      ],
      "env": {
        "SKETCHFAB_API_KEY": "your-api-token-here"
      }
    }
  }
}

Claude Desktop — edit claude_desktop_config.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "sketchfab": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": [
        "/absolute/path/to/sketchfab-mcp-server/build/index.js"
      ],
      "env": {
        "SKETCHFAB_API_KEY": "your-api-token-here"
      }
    }
  }
}

Alternatively, pass the API key as a CLI argument instead of env:

"args": [
  "/absolute/path/to/sketchfab-mcp-server/build/index.js",
  "--api-key",
  "your-api-token-here"
]

Restart the MCP client after saving. The server communicates over stdio; diagnostics are written to stderr only.

Windows

On Windows, use backslashes or forward slashes in paths inside mcp.json. PowerShell example for a one-off run:

$env:SKETCHFAB_API_KEY = "your-api-token-here"
node build\index.js

MCP Tools

Tool	Description
sketchfab-search	Search models by keywords, tags, categories, license, user, and more
sketchfab-model-details	Full metadata for a model (stats, license, tags, downloadability)
sketchfab-download	Download a model as glTF, GLB, USDZ, or source (ZIP auto-extracts)
sketchfab-list-categories	List category slugs for use in search filters
sketchfab-list-licenses	List license slugs for use in search filters

Search filters include downloadable-only, animated, rigged, staff-picked, sort order, date range (1/7/31 days), and cursor-based pagination (up to 24 results per page).

Download formats: gltf (default), glb, usdz, source. If the requested format is unavailable, the server falls back to the first available format. ZIP archives (common for glTF/source) are saved and extracted automatically.

Features

• Sketchfab API v3 — Search, browse, and download via the official REST API
• Rich search — Tags, categories, licenses, sort, pagination, and creator filters
• Model downloads — glTF/GLB/USDZ/source with automatic ZIP extraction
• MCP-native — Works with Cursor, Claude Desktop, and any stdio MCP host
• TypeScript — Typed tools with Zod parameter validation

License

See the project license file when available.

Acknowledgments

• Sketchfab — 3D model platform and API
• Model Context Protocol — Open standard for AI tool integration
• @modelcontextprotocol/sdk — Official TypeScript MCP SDK

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