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Docling MCP

An MCP server built on Docling: converts PDFs into structured documents, builds new ones and feeds them to RAG

MCP serverMedium risk

docling-project/docling-mcpAuthor: Docling Project

Install

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "docling": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": [
        "--from=docling-mcp",
        "docling-mcp-server"
      ]
    }
  }
}

For Claude Desktop, LM Studio and other clients. Set mode and service URL in the env block.

This is third-party code. Review the repository files before installing.

What it does

The server exposes Docling library tools to an agent. It converts a PDF from a local file or URL into a structured DoclingDocument with tables and OCR, and caches the result. The agent can build a new document step by step with headings, paragraphs and nested lists, then export it to Markdown. Separate tool groups push documents into Milvus, LlamaIndex or LlamaStack for RAG and extraction. Conversion runs locally or through a Docling Serve service.

Who it is for. For analysts and developers whose agent needs to read PDFs and other documents in structured form.

Good fit when

  • You need text, headings and tables out of a PDF without losing structure
  • You need to assemble a report and save it as Markdown
  • You need to load documents into a vector store for RAG

Not a fit when

  • The agent's built-in PDF reading is enough
  • You have neither a Docling Serve instance nor resources for local recognition models

Example request

Convert the PDF at ~/docs/report.pdf into a DoclingDocument and print its tables as Markdown

Limitations

By default the server runs in remote mode and needs a Docling Serve URL and key. Local conversion requires docling-mcp[local], which downloads models and uses noticeable resources. Versions 3.x need MCP SDK v2; older clients should pin docling-mcp<3.0.0. Local mode needs no external services.

How to disable. Remove the docling block from your MCP client config and, if needed, run pip uninstall docling-mcp.

MCP

Transport
stdio, sse, http
Authentication
not required
Environment variables
DOCLING_MCP_CONVERSION_MODE
remote (default) or local
DOCLING_MCP_SERVICE_URL
Docling Serve URL, required in remote mode
DOCLING_MCP_SERVICE_API_KEY
secret		Docling Serve API key
DOCLING_MCP_FALLBACK_TO_LOCAL
true enables local fallback when the service is unreachable

Security check

  • Reads local files and downloads documents from URLs
  • In remote mode sends documents to a Docling Serve service

README in short

The README describes three setups: remote Docling Serve, fully local and hybrid. All settings use DOCLING_MCP_ variables, with tables for conversion, Markdown export and RAG via LlamaIndex and LlamaStack. It runs through uvx with a transport flag and ships configs for Claude Desktop and LM Studio. Started at IBM Research, hosted by LF AI and Data, MIT licensed.

FAQ

How do remote and local modes differ?

In remote mode Docling Serve does the conversion and the install is light. In local mode everything runs on your machine and needs the local extra. Hybrid mode falls back to local when the service is down.

Which transports are supported?

stdio, sse and streamable-http, chosen with the --transport flag.

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