iOS Simulator MCP

iOS Simulator MCP Server

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server for interacting with iOS simulators. This server allows you to interact with iOS simulators by getting information about them, controlling UI interactions, and inspecting UI elements.

Security Notice: Command injection vulnerabilities present in versions < 1.3.3 have been fixed. Please update to v1.3.3 or later. See SECURITY.md for details.

https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/453ebe7b-cc93-4ac2-b08d-0f8ac8339ad3

🌟 Featured In

This project has been featured and mentioned in various publications and resources:

Claude Code Best Practices article - Anthropic's engineering blog showcasing best practices
React Native Newsletter Issue 187 - Featured in the most popular React Native community newsletter
Mobile Automation Newsletter - #56 - Featured a long running newsletter about mobile testing and automation resources
punkeye/awesome-mcp-server listing - Listed in one of the most popular curated awesome MCP servers collection

Tools

`get_booted_sim_id`

Description: Get the ID of the currently booted iOS simulator

Parameters: No Parameters

`ui_describe_all`

Description: Describes accessibility information for the entire screen in the iOS Simulator

Parameters:

{
  /**
   * Udid of target, can also be set with the IDB_UDID env var
   * Format: UUID (8-4-4-4-12 hexadecimal characters)
   */
  udid?: string;
}

`ui_tap`

Description: Tap on the screen in the iOS Simulator

Parameters:

{
  /**
   * Press duration in seconds (decimal numbers allowed)
   */
  duration?: string;
  /**
   * Udid of target, can also be set with the IDB_UDID env var
   * Format: UUID (8-4-4-4-12 hexadecimal characters)
   */
  udid?: string;
  /** The x-coordinate */
  x: number;
  /** The y-coordinate */
  y: number;
}

`ui_type`

Description: Input text into the iOS Simulator

Parameters:

{
  /**
   * Udid of target, can also be set with the IDB_UDID env var
   * Format: UUID (8-4-4-4-12 hexadecimal characters)
   */
  udid?: string;
  /**
   * Text to input
   * Format: ASCII printable characters only
   */
  text: string;
}

`ui_swipe`

Description: Swipe on the screen in the iOS Simulator

Parameters:

{
  /**
   * Udid of target, can also be set with the IDB_UDID env var
   * Format: UUID (8-4-4-4-12 hexadecimal characters)
   */
  udid?: string;
  /** The starting x-coordinate */
  x_start: number;
  /** The starting y-coordinate */
  y_start: number;
  /** The ending x-coordinate */
  x_end: number;
  /** The ending y-coordinate */
  y_end: number;
  /** The size of each step in the swipe (default is 1) */
  delta?: number;
}

`ui_describe_point`

Description: Returns the accessibility element at given co-ordinates on the iOS Simulator's screen

Parameters:

{
  /**
   * Udid of target, can also be set with the IDB_UDID env var
   * Format: UUID (8-4-4-4-12 hexadecimal characters)
   */
  udid?: string;
  /** The x-coordinate */
  x: number;
  /** The y-coordinate */
  y: number;
}

`ui_view`

Description: Get the image content of a compressed screenshot of the current simulator view

Parameters:

{
  /**
   * Udid of target, can also be set with the IDB_UDID env var
   * Format: UUID (8-4-4-4-12 hexadecimal characters)
   */
  udid?: string;
}

`screenshot`

Description: Takes a screenshot of the iOS Simulator

Parameters:

{
  /**
   * Udid of target, can also be set with the IDB_UDID env var
   * Format: UUID (8-4-4-4-12 hexadecimal characters)
   */
  udid?: string;
  /** File path where the screenshot will be saved. If relative, it uses the directory specified by the `IOS_SIMULATOR_MCP_DEFAULT_OUTPUT_DIR` env var, or `~/Downloads` if not set. */
  output_path: string;
  /** Image format (png, tiff, bmp, gif, or jpeg). Default is png. */
  type?: "png" | "tiff" | "bmp" | "gif" | "jpeg";
  /** Display to capture (internal or external). Default depends on device type. */
  display?: "internal" | "external";
  /** For non-rectangular displays, handle the mask by policy (ignored, alpha, or black) */
  mask?: "ignored" | "alpha" | "black";
}

`record_video`

Description: Records a video of the iOS Simulator using simctl directly

Parameters:

{
  /** Optional output path. If not provided, a default name will be used. The file will be saved in the directory specified by `IOS_SIMULATOR_MCP_DEFAULT_OUTPUT_DIR` or in `~/Downloads` if the environment variable is not set. */
  output_path?: string;
  /** Specifies the codec type: "h264" or "hevc". Default is "hevc". */
  codec?: "h264" | "hevc";
  /** Display to capture: "internal" or "external". Default depends on device type. */
  display?: "internal" | "external";
  /** For non-rectangular displays, handle the mask by policy: "ignored", "alpha", or "black". */
  mask?: "ignored" | "alpha" | "black";
  /** Force the output file to be written to, even if the file already exists. */
  force?: boolean;
}

`stop_recording`

Description: Stops the simulator video recording using killall

Parameters: No Parameters

💡 Use Case: QA Step via MCP Tool Calls

This MCP server allows AI assistants integrated with a Model Context Protocol (MCP) client to perform Quality Assurance tasks by making tool calls. This is useful immediately after implementing features to help ensure UI consistency and correct behavior.

How to Use

After a feature implementation, instruct your AI assistant within its MCP client environment to use the available tools. For example, in Cursor's agent mode, you could use the prompts below to quickly validate and document UI interactions.

Example Prompts

Verify UI Elements:
Verify all accessibility elements on the current screen
Confirm Text Input:
Enter "QA Test" into the text input field and confirm the input is correct
Check Tap Response:
Tap on coordinates x=250, y=400 and verify the expected element is triggered
Validate Swipe Action:
Swipe from x=150, y=600 to x=150, y=100 and confirm correct behavior
Detailed Element Check:
Describe the UI element at position x=300, y=350 to ensure proper labeling and functionality
Show Your AI Agent the Simulator Screen:
View the current simulator screen
Take Screenshot:
Take a screenshot of the current simulator screen and save it to my_screenshot.png
Record Video:
Start recording a video of the simulator screen (saves to the default output directory, which is `~/Downloads` unless overridden by `IOS_SIMULATOR_MCP_DEFAULT_OUTPUT_DIR`)
Stop Recording:
Stop the current simulator screen recording

Prerequisites

Node.js
macOS (as iOS simulators are only available on macOS)
Xcode and iOS simulators installed
Facebook IDB tool (see install guide)

Installation

This section provides instructions for integrating the iOS Simulator MCP server with different Model Context Protocol (MCP) clients.

Installation with Cursor

Cursor manages MCP servers through its configuration file located at ~/.cursor/mcp.json.

Option 1: Using NPX (Recommended)

Edit your Cursor MCP configuration file. You can often open it directly from Cursor or use a command like:
# Open with your default editor (or use 'code', 'vim', etc.) open ~/.cursor/mcp.json # Or use Cursor's command if available # cursor ~/.cursor/mcp.json
Add or update the mcpServers section with the iOS simulator server configuration:
{ "mcpServers": { // ... other servers might be listed here ... "ios-simulator": { "command": "npx", "args": ["-y", "ios-simulator-mcp"] } } }
Ensure the JSON structure is valid, especially if mcpServers already exists.
Restart Cursor for the changes to take effect.

Option 2: Local Development

Clone this repository:
git clone https://github.com/joshuayoes/ios-simulator-mcp cd ios-simulator-mcp
Install dependencies:
npm install
Build the project:
npm run build
Edit your Cursor MCP configuration file (as shown in Option 1).
Add or update the mcpServers section, pointing to your local build:
{ "mcpServers": { // ... other servers might be listed here ... "ios-simulator": { "command": "node", "args": ["/full/path/to/your/ios-simulator-mcp/build/index.js"] } } }
Important: Replace /full/path/to/your/ with the absolute path to where you cloned the ios-simulator-mcp repository.
Restart Cursor for the changes to take effect.

Installation with Claude Code

Claude Code CLI can manage MCP servers using the claude mcp commands or by editing its configuration files directly. For more details on Claude Code MCP configuration, refer to the official documentation.

Option 1: Using NPX (Recommended)

Add the server using the claude mcp add command:
claude mcp add ios-simulator npx ios-simulator-mcp
Restart any running Claude Code sessions if necessary.

Option 2: Local Development

Clone this repository, install dependencies, and build the project as described in the Cursor "Local Development" steps 1-3.
Add the server using the claude mcp add command, pointing to your local build:
claude mcp add ios-simulator --command node --args "/full/path/to/your/ios-simulator-mcp/build/index.js"
Important: Replace /full/path/to/your/ with the absolute path to where you cloned the ios-simulator-mcp repository.
Restart any running Claude Code sessions if necessary.

Configuration

Environment Variables

Variable	Description	Example
`IOS_SIMULATOR_MCP_FILTERED_TOOLS`	A comma-separated list of tool names to filter out from being registered.	`screenshot,record_video,stop_recording`
`IOS_SIMULATOR_MCP_DEFAULT_OUTPUT_DIR`	Specifies a default directory for output files like screenshots and video recordings. If not set, `~/Downloads` will be used. This can be handy if your agent has limited access to the file system.	`~/Code/awesome-project/tmp`

Configuration Example

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "ios-simulator": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "ios-simulator-mcp"],
      "env": {
        "IOS_SIMULATOR_MCP_FILTERED_TOOLS": "screenshot,record_video,stop_recording",
        "IOS_SIMULATOR_MCP_DEFAULT_OUTPUT_DIR": "~/Code/awesome-project/tmp"
      }
    }
  }
}

MCP Registry Server Listings

License

MIT

Deploy Server

HTTP connection URL

security – no known vulnerabilities

license - permissive license

quality - confirmed to work

How are these scores calculated?

local-only server

The server can only run on the client's local machine because it depends on local resources.

Tools

View all tools

Enables interaction with iOS simulators by providing tools to inspect UI elements, control UI interactions, and manage simulators through natural language commands.

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