---
slug: "mcp-inspector"
name: "MCP Inspector"
effect: "Tests and debugs MCP servers from a web UI, a scriptable CLI or a terminal UI"
category: "devtool"
url: "https://modelcontextprotocol.io/docs/tools/inspector"
github: "modelcontextprotocol/inspector"
pricing: "open-source"
license: "Apache-2.0 for new contributions, MIT for older ones not yet relicensed; docs CC-BY-4.0"
tags: ["mcp", "testing", "debugging", "cli", "typescript"]
platforms: ["docker"]
install_kind: "cli"
date_added: "2026-10-14"
drop_score: 60
stars: 11078
pushed_at: "2026-10-14T04:26:29Z"
signals_status: "ok"
signals_fetched_at: "2026-10-15T01:19:01.676Z"
page: "https://agenttooldrop.com/tools/mcp-inspector"
---

# MCP Inspector

Tests and debugs MCP servers from a web UI, a scriptable CLI or a terminal UI

Category: Devtools. Pricing: Open source. License: Apache-2.0 for new contributions, MIT for older ones not yet relicensed; docs CC-BY-4.0.

Platforms: docker.

## Why you would want it

The Inspector is the reference developer tool from the MCP project for testing and debugging servers. One npx package gives you a web client that shows the JSON-RPC exchange as you call tools, a CLI with JSON output for CI, shell pipelines and coding agents, and a terminal UI; all three share the same transports, config files and OAuth state. It also installs mcpdo, an experimental client that keeps one connection open across many commands.

## Best for

- MCP server authors
- Smoke-testing MCP servers in CI
- Letting a coding agent check its own MCP server from the shell

## Use it when

You are building or debugging an MCP server and want to list and call its tools directly, interactively or from a script.

## Skip it if

You only use MCP servers and never build one. It needs Node 22.19.0 or newer, and on machines without an OS keychain it stores secrets in an unencrypted file unless you supply a key.

## Editor note

This is the v2 line; v1 gets security fixes only and is published as @modelcontextprotocol/inspector@v1-latest.

## Install

Run with npx:

```sh
npx @modelcontextprotocol/inspector
```

Source: https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol/inspector#readme

## Live signals

Fetched 2026-10-15T01:19:01.676Z (status: ok).

- Repository: modelcontextprotocol/inspector
- Stars: 11,078
- Forks: 1,553
- Open issues and PRs: 30
- License (GitHub): NOASSERTION
- Last push: 2026-10-14
- Latest release: 2.11.0 (2026-10-14)

## Links

- Website: https://modelcontextprotocol.io/docs/tools/inspector
- GitHub: https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol/inspector
- Install instructions verified at: https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol/inspector#readme
- Source for this entry: https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol/inspector
- AgentToolDrop page: https://agenttooldrop.com/tools/mcp-inspector
- Full catalog (JSON): https://agenttooldrop.com/tools.json