openalex-mcp-server

Openalex Resolve Name

openalex_resolve_name

Read-onlyIdempotent

Resolve a name or an identifier to an OpenAlex ID. ALWAYS use this before filtering by entity — names are ambiguous, IDs are not. A name returns up to 10 autocomplete matches with disambiguation hints. An identifier — OpenAlex ID, DOI, ORCID, ROR, PMID, or ISSN, bare or in URL form — resolves directly to the one record it addresses, and needs no entity_type. A PMCID is recognized as well, bare or as a PubMed Central URL, but OpenAlex indexes no PMCIDs, so it resolves nothing — pass the work's PMID or DOI instead.

Input Schema

TableJSON Schema

Name	Required	Description
`query`	Yes	Name or partial name to resolve. Also accepts an identifier, bare or in URL form — OpenAlex ID ("W2741809807", "F4320332161"), DOI ("10.1038/nature12373"), ORCID ("0000-0002-1825-0097"), ROR ("https://ror.org/00hx57361"), PMID ("12345678" or "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12345678"), ISSN ("1234-5678") — which resolves straight to that one record instead of running a name search. A keyword URL ("https://openalex.org/keywords/groundwater") resolves the same way; a bare keyword slug reads as a name and runs a name search, which finds it too. A PMCID ("PMC1234567" or a PubMed Central URL) is recognized but OpenAlex indexes no PMCIDs, so it resolves nothing — pass the work's PMID or DOI instead.
`filters`	No	Narrow autocomplete results with filters. Example: restrict to a specific country or publication year range. Applies to name queries only — an identifier already addresses a single record.
`entity_type`	No	Entity type to search. Omit for cross-entity search (useful when entity type is unknown). Not applied when `query` is an identifier — an identifier determines its own entity type.

Output Schema

TableJSON Schema

Name	Required	Description
`error`	No	Present when the call failed. Absent on success.
`budget`	No	What this call cost against the OpenAlex daily budget and what is left of it. Read `remainingUsd` here to size the search or traversal this resolution feeds. Absent when OpenAlex omitted the accounting headers.
`notice`	No	Guidance notice. Set when nothing matched (echoes the query and suggests corrections) or when an identifier query was passed name-search parameters that do not apply to it. Absent otherwise.
`results`	No	Autocomplete matches, up to 10.

Schema Changelog

Changes observed during successful MCP inspections.

Changed4 schema fields changedSep 24, 2026

changedOutput schema / properties / error / properties / data / properties / reason / description

Previous value: -"Machine-readable failure mode. Declared by this tool: `rate_limited`: OpenAlex throttled the autocomplete request for exceeding its per-second ceiling (HTTP 429). `upstream_budget_exhausted`: The OpenAlex daily usage budget is spent (HTTP 429). `upstream_timeout`: OpenAlex did not respond within the request deadline. `upstream_unavailable`: OpenAlex was unreachable or unusable — HTTP 503, a connection failure, or a body that was empty, HTML, or unparseable JSON. `upstream_unauthorized`: OpenAlex rejected the API key (HTTP 401). `upstream_forbidden`: OpenAlex denied access to autocomplete (HTTP 403). `comma_in_filter_value`: A `filters` value contains a comma, which collides with the OpenAlex filter separator. `upstream_invalid_params`: OpenAlex rejected an invalid filter field name on the autocomplete query (HTTP 400). `upstream_invalid_id_value`: A `filters` entry expecting an entity ID received a value that is not an OpenAlex ID — usually a name (HTTP 400). `upstream_invalid_params_other`: OpenAlex rejected the autocomplete request (HTTP 400) for a reason other than an invalid field name. `upstream_validation_failed`: OpenAlex rejected the autocomplete request as semantically invalid (HTTP 422). Other values are possible when a failure originates below the handler."New value: +"Machine-readable failure mode. Declared by this tool: `rate_limited`: OpenAlex throttled the autocomplete request for exceeding its per-second ceiling (HTTP 429). `upstream_budget_exhausted`: The OpenAlex daily usage budget is spent (HTTP 429). `upstream_timeout`: OpenAlex did not respond within the request deadline. `upstream_unavailable`: OpenAlex was unreachable or unusable — HTTP 503, a connection failure, or a body that was empty, HTML, or unparseable JSON. `upstream_unauthorized`: OpenAlex rejected the API key (HTTP 401). `upstream_forbidden`: OpenAlex denied access to autocomplete (HTTP 403). `comma_in_filter_value`: A `filters` value contains a comma, which collides with the OpenAlex filter separator. `upstream_invalid_params`: OpenAlex rejected an invalid filter field name on the autocomplete query (HTTP 400). `upstream_invalid_id_value`: A `filters` entry expecting an entity ID received a value that is not an OpenAlex ID — usually a name (HTTP 400). `query_too_long`: OpenAlex autocomplete failed (HTTP 500) on a `query` longer than the 1,000 characters it accepts when entity_type is set. `upstream_invalid_params_other`: OpenAlex rejected the autocomplete request (HTTP 400) for a reason other than an invalid field name. `upstream_validation_failed`: OpenAlex rejected the autocomplete request as semantically invalid (HTTP 422). Other values are possible when a failure originates below the handler."

changedOutput schema / properties / error / properties / data / properties / reason / examples

Previous value: -[
-  "rate_limited",
-  "upstream_budget_exhausted",
-  "upstream_timeout",
-  "upstream_unavailable",
-  "upstream_unauthorized",
-  "upstream_forbidden",
-  "comma_in_filter_value",
-  "upstream_invalid_params",
-  "upstream_invalid_id_value",
-  "upstream_invalid_params_other",
-  "upstream_validation_failed"
-]New value: +[
+  "rate_limited",
+  "upstream_budget_exhausted",
+  "upstream_timeout",
+  "upstream_unavailable",
+  "upstream_unauthorized",
+  "upstream_forbidden",
+  "comma_in_filter_value",
+  "upstream_invalid_params",
+  "upstream_invalid_id_value",
+  "query_too_long",
+  "upstream_invalid_params_other",
+  "upstream_validation_failed"
+]

changedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / display_name / description

Previous value: -"Human-readable name. null only for an identifier lookup that landed on a record OpenAlex holds no title for (paratext works and other untitled entries) — use `id` to identify it."New value: +"Human-readable name as plain text, with HTML entities decoded and markup removed. null only for an identifier lookup that landed on a record OpenAlex holds no title for (paratext works and other untitled entries) — use `id` to identify it."

changedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / hint / description

Previous value: -"Disambiguation context — last institution (authors), host organization (sources), place or country (institutions); author names (works) from a name search, publication year from an identifier lookup. null when the record carries none."New value: +"Disambiguation context as plain text — last institution (authors), host organization (sources), place or country (institutions); author names (works) from a name search, publication year from an identifier lookup. null when the record carries none."

Changed1 schema field changedSep 22, 2026

changedInput schema / properties / query / description

Previous value: -"Name or partial name to resolve. Also accepts an identifier, bare or in URL form — OpenAlex ID (\"W2741809807\", \"F4320332161\"), DOI (\"10.1038/nature12373\"), ORCID (\"0000-0002-1825-0097\"), ROR (\"https://ror.org/00hx57361\"), PMID (\"12345678\" or \"https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12345678\"), ISSN (\"1234-5678\") — which resolves straight to that one record instead of running a name search. A PMCID (\"PMC1234567\" or a PubMed Central URL) is recognized but OpenAlex indexes no PMCIDs, so it resolves nothing — pass the work's PMID or DOI instead."New value: +"Name or partial name to resolve. Also accepts an identifier, bare or in URL form — OpenAlex ID (\"W2741809807\", \"F4320332161\"), DOI (\"10.1038/nature12373\"), ORCID (\"0000-0002-1825-0097\"), ROR (\"https://ror.org/00hx57361\"), PMID (\"12345678\" or \"https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12345678\"), ISSN (\"1234-5678\") — which resolves straight to that one record instead of running a name search. A keyword URL (\"https://openalex.org/keywords/groundwater\") resolves the same way; a bare keyword slug reads as a name and runs a name search, which finds it too. A PMCID (\"PMC1234567\" or a PubMed Central URL) is recognized but OpenAlex indexes no PMCIDs, so it resolves nothing — pass the work's PMID or DOI instead."

Changed1 schema field changedSep 9, 2026

changedInput schema / properties / query / description

Previous value: -"Name or partial name to resolve. Also accepts an identifier, bare or in URL form — OpenAlex ID (\"W2741809807\", \"F4320332161\"), DOI (\"10.1038/nature12373\"), ORCID (\"0000-0002-1825-0097\"), ROR (\"https://ror.org/00hx57361\"), PMID (\"12345678\" or \"https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12345678\"), PMCID (\"PMC1234567\"), ISSN (\"1234-5678\") — which resolves straight to that one record instead of running a name search."New value: +"Name or partial name to resolve. Also accepts an identifier, bare or in URL form — OpenAlex ID (\"W2741809807\", \"F4320332161\"), DOI (\"10.1038/nature12373\"), ORCID (\"0000-0002-1825-0097\"), ROR (\"https://ror.org/00hx57361\"), PMID (\"12345678\" or \"https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12345678\"), ISSN (\"1234-5678\") — which resolves straight to that one record instead of running a name search. A PMCID (\"PMC1234567\" or a PubMed Central URL) is recognized but OpenAlex indexes no PMCIDs, so it resolves nothing — pass the work's PMID or DOI instead."

Changed1 schema field changedSep 9, 2026

changedInput schema / properties / query / description

Previous value: -"Name or partial name to resolve. Also accepts an identifier, bare or in URL form — OpenAlex ID (\"W2741809807\", \"F4320332161\"), DOI (\"10.1038/nature12373\"), ORCID (\"0000-0002-1825-0097\"), ROR (\"https://ror.org/00hx57361\"), PMID (\"12345678\"), PMCID (\"PMC1234567\"), ISSN (\"1234-5678\") — which resolves straight to that one record instead of running a name search."New value: +"Name or partial name to resolve. Also accepts an identifier, bare or in URL form — OpenAlex ID (\"W2741809807\", \"F4320332161\"), DOI (\"10.1038/nature12373\"), ORCID (\"0000-0002-1825-0097\"), ROR (\"https://ror.org/00hx57361\"), PMID (\"12345678\" or \"https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12345678\"), PMCID (\"PMC1234567\"), ISSN (\"1234-5678\") — which resolves straight to that one record instead of running a name search."

Changed8 schema fields changedSep 3, 2026
- removedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / display_name / anyOf
```
Removed value: -[
-  {
-    "type": "string"
-  },
-  {
-    "type": "null"
-  }
-]
```
- addedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / display_name / type
```
Added value: +[
+  "string",
+  "null"
+]
```
- removedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / external_id / anyOf
```
Removed value: -[
-  {
-    "type": "string"
-  },
-  {
-    "type": "null"
-  }
-]
```
- addedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / external_id / type
```
Added value: +[
+  "string",
+  "null"
+]
```
- removedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / hint / anyOf
```
Removed value: -[
-  {
-    "type": "string"
-  },
-  {
-    "type": "null"
-  }
-]
```
- addedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / hint / type
```
Added value: +[
+  "string",
+  "null"
+]
```
- removedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / works_count / anyOf
```
Removed value: -[
-  {
-    "type": "number"
-  },
-  {
-    "type": "null"
-  }
-]
```
- addedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / works_count / type
```
Added value: +[
+  "number",
+  "null"
+]
```

Changed6 schema fields changedAug 22, 2026

changedInput schema / $schema

Previous value: -"http://json-schema.org/draft-07/schema#"New value: +"https://json-schema.org/draft/2020-12/schema"

addedInput schema / additionalProperties
```
Added value: +false
```

changedOutput schema / $schema

Previous value: -"http://json-schema.org/draft-07/schema#"New value: +"https://json-schema.org/draft/2020-12/schema"

addedOutput schema / anyOf

Added value: +[
+  {
+    "not": {
+      "required": [
+        "error"
+      ]
+    },
+    "required": [
+      "results"
+    ]
+  },
+  {
+    "required": [
+      "error"
+    ]
+  }
+]

addedOutput schema / properties / error

Added value: +{
+  "additionalProperties": {},
+  "description": "Present when the call failed. Absent on success.",
+  "properties": {
+    "code": {
+      "description": "JSON-RPC error code for this failure.",
+      "maximum": 9007199254740991,
+      "minimum": -9007199254740991,
+      "type": "integer"
+    },
+    "data": {
+      "additionalProperties": {},
+      "properties": {
+        "reason": {
+          "description": "Machine-readable failure mode. Declared by this tool: `rate_limited`: OpenAlex throttled the autocomplete request for exceeding its per-second ceiling (HTTP 429). `upstream_budget_exhausted`: The OpenAlex daily usage budget is spent (HTTP 429). `upstream_timeout`: OpenAlex did not respond within the request deadline. `upstream_unavailable`: OpenAlex was unreachable or unusable — HTTP 503, a connection failure, or a body that was empty, HTML, or unparseable JSON. `upstream_unauthorized`: OpenAlex rejected the API key (HTTP 401). `upstream_forbidden`: OpenAlex denied access to autocomplete (HTTP 403). `comma_in_filter_value`: A `filters` value contains a comma, which collides with the OpenAlex filter separator. `upstream_invalid_params`: OpenAlex rejected an invalid filter field name on the autocomplete query (HTTP 400). `upstream_invalid_id_value`: A `filters` entry expecting an entity ID received a value that is not an OpenAlex ID — usually a name (HTTP 400). `upstream_invalid_params_other`: OpenAlex rejected the autocomplete request (HTTP 400) for a reason other than an invalid field name. `upstream_validation_failed`: OpenAlex rejected the autocomplete request as semantically invalid (HTTP 422). Other values are possible when a failure originates below the handler.",
+          "examples": [
+            "rate_limited",
+            "upstream_budget_exhausted",
+            "upstream_timeout",
+            "upstream_unavailable",
+            "upstream_unauthorized",
+            "upstream_forbidden",
+            "comma_in_filter_value",
+            "upstream_invalid_params",
+            "upstream_invalid_id_value",
+            "upstream_invalid_params_other",
+            "upstream_validation_failed"
+          ],
+          "type": "string"
+        },
+        "recovery": {
+          "additionalProperties": {},
+          "description": "Actionable next step for the caller.",
+          "properties": {
+            "hint": {
+              "type": "string"
+            }
+          },
+          "required": [
+            "hint"
+          ],
+          "type": "object"
+        },
+        "retryable": {
+          "description": "Whether retrying may succeed.",
+          "type": "boolean"
+        }
+      },
+      "type": "object"
+    },
+    "message": {
+      "description": "Human-readable description of what went wrong.",
+      "type": "string"
+    }
+  },
+  "required": [
+    "code",
+    "message"
+  ],
+  "type": "object"
+}

removedOutput schema / required
```
Removed value: -[
-  "results"
-]
```

Changed9 schema fields changedJul 27, 2026

changedInput schema / properties / entity_type / description

Previous value: -"Entity type to search. Omit for cross-entity search (useful when entity type is unknown)."New value: +"Entity type to search. Omit for cross-entity search (useful when entity type is unknown). Not applied when `query` is an identifier — an identifier determines its own entity type."

changedInput schema / properties / filters / description

Previous value: -"Narrow autocomplete results with filters. Example: restrict to a specific country or publication year range."New value: +"Narrow autocomplete results with filters. Example: restrict to a specific country or publication year range. Applies to name queries only — an identifier already addresses a single record."

changedInput schema / properties / query / description

Previous value: -"Name or partial name to resolve. Also accepts DOIs for quick lookup."New value: +"Name or partial name to resolve. Also accepts an identifier, bare or in URL form — OpenAlex ID (\"W2741809807\", \"F4320332161\"), DOI (\"10.1038/nature12373\"), ORCID (\"0000-0002-1825-0097\"), ROR (\"https://ror.org/00hx57361\"), PMID (\"12345678\"), PMCID (\"PMC1234567\"), ISSN (\"1234-5678\") — which resolves straight to that one record instead of running a name search."

addedOutput schema / properties / budget / properties / prepaidRemainingUsd

Added value: +{
+  "description": "USD left in the prepaid balance — a separate pool OpenAlex draws on only after the daily allowance runs out, and which the daily reset does not refill. Add it to `remainingUsd` for the full spendable amount. Absent when the account holds no prepaid balance.",
+  "type": "number"
+}

changedOutput schema / properties / notice / description

Previous value: -"Recovery guidance when no matches were found — echoes the query and suggests corrections. Absent when results are present."New value: +"Guidance notice. Set when nothing matched (echoes the query and suggests corrections) or when an identifier query was passed name-search parameters that do not apply to it. Absent otherwise."

addedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / display_name / anyOf
```
Added value: +[
+  {
+    "type": "string"
+  },
+  {
+    "type": "null"
+  }
+]
```

changedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / display_name / description

Previous value: -"Human-readable name."New value: +"Human-readable name. null only for an identifier lookup that landed on a record OpenAlex holds no title for (paratext works and other untitled entries) — use `id` to identify it."

removedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / display_name / type
```
Removed value: -"string"
```

changedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / hint / description

Previous value: -"Disambiguation context: author names (works), last institution (authors), host org (sources), location (institutions)."New value: +"Disambiguation context — last institution (authors), host organization (sources), place or country (institutions); author names (works) from a name search, publication year from an identifier lookup. null when the record carries none."

Changed1 schema field changedJul 26, 2026

addedOutput schema / properties / budget

Added value: +{
+  "additionalProperties": false,
+  "description": "What this call cost against the OpenAlex daily budget and what is left of it. Read `remainingUsd` here to size the search or traversal this resolution feeds. Absent when OpenAlex omitted the accounting headers.",
+  "properties": {
+    "costUsd": {
+      "description": "USD this call spent. Autocomplete is priced at the floor — resolving a name before filtering costs far less than the failed searches an ambiguous name causes.",
+      "type": "number"
+    },
+    "remainingUsd": {
+      "description": "USD left in today's OpenAlex budget after this call.",
+      "type": "number"
+    },
+    "resetsInSeconds": {
+      "description": "Seconds until the daily budget refills (midnight UTC).",
+      "type": "number"
+    }
+  },
+  "required": [
+    "costUsd",
+    "remainingUsd",
+    "resetsInSeconds"
+  ],
+  "type": "object"
+}

Changed1 schema field changedMay 30, 2026

addedOutput schema / properties / notice

Added value: +{
+  "description": "Recovery guidance when no matches were found — echoes the query and suggests corrections. Absent when results are present.",
+  "type": "string"
+}

Changed1 schema field changedMay 8, 2026

changedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / entity_type / description

Previous value: -"Entity type (work, author, source, institution, etc.)."New value: +"Entity type — one of: work, author, source, institution, topic, keyword, publisher, funder."

Changed1 schema field changedApr 24, 2026

addedOutput schema / properties / results / items / description

Added value: +"A single autocomplete match with its ID, name, entity type, activity stats, and a disambiguation hint."

First observedMar 30, 2026

TDQS

A5/5.0

Behavior5/5

Does the description disclose side effects, auth requirements, rate limits, or destructive behavior?

Beyond the annotations (readOnlyHint, openWorldHint, idempotentHint), the description discloses concrete behaviors: names return up to 10 autocomplete matches with disambiguation hints, identifiers resolve to exactly one record, and the PMCID edge case (recognized but resolves nothing). It even explains why (OpenAlex indexes no PMCIDs). This adds substantial value over the structured hints.

Agents need to know what a tool does to the world before calling it. Descriptions should go beyond structured annotations to explain consequences.

Conciseness5/5

Is the description appropriately sized, front-loaded, and free of redundancy?

Two sentences carry a wealth of information without padding. The most critical rule ('ALWAYS use this before filtering') is front-loaded, and the second sentence efficiently packs identifier types, the autocomplete limit, and the PMCID caveat. Every clause earns its place.

Shorter descriptions cost fewer tokens and are easier for agents to parse. Every sentence should earn its place.

Completeness5/5

Given the tool's complexity, does the description cover enough for an agent to succeed on first attempt?

The description covers input types (names vs. identifiers), output behavior (autocomplete vs. single record), parameter applicability (filters, entity_type), and the one edge case an agent might trip on (PMCID). An output schema exists, so return format needs no explanation. Nothing an agent needs to invoke this correctly is missing.

Complex tools with many parameters or behaviors need more documentation. Simple tools need less. This dimension scales expectations accordingly.

Parameters5/5

Does the description clarify parameter syntax, constraints, interactions, or defaults beyond what the schema provides?

While the schema already describes each parameter with 100% coverage, the description enriches them with interplay rules: filters apply only to name queries (an identifier already addresses one record), entity_type is not applied for identifiers, and query accepts a wide range of identifier formats (DOI, ORCID, ROR, PMID, ISSN, keyword URLs) not fully enumerated in the schema's description. This goes well beyond a baseline of 3.

Input schemas describe structure but not intent. Descriptions should explain non-obvious parameter relationships and valid value ranges.

Purpose5/5

Does the description clearly state what the tool does and how it differs from similar tools?

The description opens with the exact action: 'Resolve a name or an identifier to an OpenAlex ID.' It immediately distinguishes this from searching by stating 'ALWAYS use this before filtering by entity' and contrasts names (ambiguous, return autocomplete matches) with identifiers (resolve directly). This clearly differentiates it from sibling tools like search_entities.

Agents choose between tools based on descriptions. A clear purpose with a specific verb and resource helps agents select the right tool.

Usage Guidelines5/5

Does the description explain when to use this tool, when not to, or what alternatives exist?

The description explicitly states 'ALWAYS use this before filtering by entity — names are ambiguous, IDs are not,' giving a strong when-to-use directive. It also clarifies that identifiers need no entity_type and warns that a PMCID resolves nothing, directing the user to pass the PMID or DOI instead. This is explicit, actionable guidance with no ambiguity.

Agents often have multiple tools that could apply. Explicit usage guidance like "use X instead of Y when Z" prevents misuse.

All openalex-mcp-server tools Inspect

Try in Browser

One endpoint for every MCP toolRayrun runs every MCP server behind one URL and holds the credentials. Each call is decided per client, tool, and argument, then recorded.ray.runAd

Glama MCP Gateway

Add one secure layer between your agents and this server.

Openalex Resolve Name

Input Schema

Output Schema

Schema Changelog

TDQS

Glama MCP Gateway

Resources