Back to Directory/Media & Images

Spotify

MCP server connecting LLMs to Spotify, with smart-batching and large-playlist tools

Media & ImagesPythonv0.7.0

Spotify MCP, Python local server

spotify-mcp

mcp-name: io.github.jamiew/spotify-mcp

A local Python MCP server for searching Spotify, controlling playback, and managing playlists and Liked Songs from your MCP client. Runs over stdio with your Spotify account. This is a supported fork of varunneal/spotify-mcp.

The TypeScript edition supports local and hosted use, with a different MCP surface.

Setup

Requires Python 3.12+, uv, and Spotify Premium for playback.

  1. Create an app in the Spotify developer dashboard.
  2. Register http://127.0.0.1:8888 as its redirect URI, exactly as written.
  3. Copy the app's Client ID and Client Secret into your MCP client's configuration:
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "spotify": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": ["spotify-mcp-jamiew"],
      "env": {
        "SPOTIFY_CLIENT_ID": "your_client_id",
        "SPOTIFY_CLIENT_SECRET": "your_client_secret",
        "SPOTIFY_REDIRECT_URI": "http://127.0.0.1:8888"
      }
    }
  }
}

Restart the client. On first use, a browser opens for Spotify authorization; the token is cached locally. Keep the client secret and token cache private. Playback needs an available Spotify Connect device, so open Spotify on the device you want to control.

Client-specific setup: Claude Desktop, Claude Code, and Codex. Use the same command and environment variables in each client's format.

Run from source

The package command above uses the published package, which may lag this README's source changes. To run the current checkout:

git clone https://github.com/jamiew/spotify-mcp.git
cd spotify-mcp
uv sync

In the config above, change command to uv and args to ["--directory", "/absolute/path/to/spotify-mcp", "run", "spotify-mcp"]. Keep the same environment variables. Without cloning, use uvx --from git+https://github.com/jamiew/spotify-mcp.git spotify-mcp.

Reauthorization: artist-follow checks need user-follow-read. Existing grants do not receive new scopes automatically. Restart and complete Spotify authorization when prompted; if access is still denied, review the app's grant in your Spotify account and reauthorize. Do not automatically delete the auth cache.

Features

28 tools, six resources (user, playback, track, playlist, artist, album), and five prompts. Tools provide typed outputs and behavior annotations; large playlist reads report progress. Playlist removal asks for confirmation where supported, reordering uses snapshot guards, and playback control attempts best-effort read-after-write confirmation, not guaranteed success.

Tools

ToolDoes
get_meRead your profile
search_musicSearch tracks, albums, artists, or playlists with filters and pagination
get_tracksRead up to 50 tracks; individual reads when batching is unavailable
get_artistRead up to 50 artists; top tracks for a single artist
get_albumRead up to 20 albums; track list for a single album
get_playback_stateRead current track, device, progress, shuffle, and repeat
control_playbackPlay, pause, skip, seek, volume, shuffle, and repeat
list_devicesList Spotify Connect devices
transfer_playbackMove playback to another device
get_queueRead now playing and upcoming tracks
add_to_queueQueue a track
list_playlistsList your playlists with pagination
get_playlistRead playlist metadata without tracks
get_playlist_tracksRead playlist tracks with pagination
create_playlistCreate a private playlist; set public=true to publish
update_playlist_detailsChange name, description, or visibility
add_tracks_to_playlistAdd up to 100 tracks
remove_tracks_from_playlistRemove tracks with confirmation where supported
reorder_playlistMove a block of tracks
unfollow_playlistUnfollow a playlist, including your own
get_saved_tracksRead Liked Songs with pagination
save_tracksLike tracks
remove_saved_tracksUnlike tracks
check_saved_tracksCheck up to 50 tracks against Liked Songs
check_saved_albumsCheck up to 20 saved albums
check_following_artistsCheck up to 50 followed artists
get_top_itemsRead top artists or tracks over a time range
get_recently_playedRead recently played tracks with timestamps

Behavior to know

  • New playlists default to private. Existing playlists are unchanged. Spotify can report unexpected visibility, so confirm sensitive playlists in the Spotify app.
  • Track saves/removals and track/artist membership checks accept 50 items, sent upstream in batches of 40. Album checks accept 20. Membership results preserve input alignment; incomplete chunks fail. Writes are not atomic across chunks: earlier changes may remain after an error. Check membership before retrying.
  • Restricted apps cap search pages at 10. Advance by the returned offset + limit, not the requested size. Individual-track fallback can make up to 50 Spotify requests.
  • Playlist pagination counts positions, including unresolved rows and local files with id: null. Local files also set is_local; positions remain valid for reordering.

Spotify access and policy

  • Permissions and app access mode determine available endpoints and playlist access. A 403 may mean missing permission, not a retired endpoint. Existing integrations' February restrictions were postponed; restricted apps use the February 2026 API routes.
  • Development Mode normally allows five allowlisted users and requires a Premium app owner; older larger allowlists may be grandfathered. Extended access is not routine hobby-project approval: criteria include an organization, a legal entity, a launched service, and 250,000 monthly active users. A public URL does not remove these limits.
  • All Development Mode apps on a developer account share one quota, even with the 25 permitted Client IDs. This server surfaces 429 errors without retries, including QUOTA_EXCEEDED and ordinary rate limits with Retry-After when provided. No guaranteed quota reset time is specified.
  • This server uses one local identity. Do not share its token cache or expose it as an unauthenticated public service. Other users should self-host and authorize their own accounts.
  • AI policy is a separate constraint. Spotify Developer Policy III.14 restricts training or otherwise ingesting Spotify Content into AI/ML models; "no training" or "metadata only" is not automatic clearance. III.13 restricts analysis and derived metrics; III.3 restricts voice-control assistants. Seek Spotify clarification or approval before public AI access. This is a risk notice, not legal advice or permission.

Moving between implementations

Shared versions and tool names do not imply drop-in compatibility with other implementations. Check arguments, limits, and result shapes before switching. Preserve any workflow that relies on this server's resources, five prompts, snapshot guards, removal confirmation, or playback confirmation; those behaviors are not universal.

Credits

MIT license, copyright 2025 Varun Neal Srivastava. Thanks to @varunneal for the original project, @jamiew, @jonico, @tedeuxx, and @karimStekelenburg.

Banner made with Glif.

Installation

Source-derived launch command. Check the maintainer’s required arguments and credentials before running:

bash
uvx spotify-mcp-jamiew

Set up in your AI client

Merge this template into ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json. Keep existing servers. Add any arguments, credentials, and permissions required by the maintainer; this template has not been install-tested.

json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "io-github-jamiew-spotify-mcp": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": [
        "spotify-mcp-jamiew"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Restart Claude Desktop completely for changes to take effect. Confirm the server appears connected in the client’s tool list, then try a read-only example from its documentation.

Claude Desktop setup reference

Package

spotify-mcp-jamiewpypi

Compatible MCP Clients

Spotify works with any MCP-compatible client. Copy the config snippet from the Configuration section above and add it to the file shown for your client, then restart the application.

  • Claude Desktop~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.jsonRestart Claude Desktop completely for changes to take effect.
  • Cursor~/.cursor/mcp.jsonRestart Cursor for changes to take effect.
  • VS Code.vscode/mcp.jsonReload VS Code window for changes to take effect.
  • Windsurf~/.codeium/windsurf/mcp_config.jsonRestart Windsurf for changes to take effect.
  • Claude Code.mcp.jsonSave at the project root, then start Claude Code in that project and review the MCP server approval prompt. Keep real credentials out of shared files.

Learn More