Taobao MCP Server

Model Context Protocol (MCP) server for scraping Taobao/Tmall (淘宝/天猫) product information.

This MCP server enables AI assistants to fetch comprehensive product data from Taobao and Tmall, including product details, images, specifications, customer reviews, and Q&A sections. Perfect for product research, comparison, and analysis.

🌟 Features

• Automatic Link Detection: Recognizes Taobao/Tmall links in Chinese share text

• Multiple Input Formats: Supports product IDs, direct URLs, short links, and share text

• Comprehensive Data: Scrapes titles, prices, images, specs, reviews, and Q&A

• Persistent Sessions: Browser session remains logged in across multiple requests

• Bilingual Support: Handles both English and Chinese (中文) input/output

• Markdown Output: Returns structured, AI-friendly Markdown format

Related MCP server: Taobao Sourcing Assistant

📦 What Gets Scraped

For each product, this MCP server extracts:

🚀 Installation

Prerequisites

• Python 3.10 or higher

• uv package manager (or regular pip)

• Chromium browser (installed automatically by Playwright)

Step 1: Install Dependencies

cd taobao_mcp
uv pip install -e .
# OR
pip install -e .

Step 2: Install Playwright Browser

playwright install chromium

Step 3: Configure MCP Server

Create or edit the MCP configuration file:

For Claude Code CLI

Create .mcp.json in your project root:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "taobao-scraper": {
      "command": "python3",
      "args": [
        "/absolute/path/to/taobao_mcp/server.py"
      ],
      "env": {}
    }
  }
}

Replace /absolute/path/to/ with the actual path to this directory!

For Claude Desktop

Edit ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json (macOS) or %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json (Windows):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "taobao-scraper": {
      "command": "python3",
      "args": [
        "/absolute/path/to/taobao_mcp/server.py"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Step 4: Restart Your AI Assistant

• Claude Code CLI: Start a new conversation or reload

• Claude Desktop: Restart the application

🎯 Usage Workflow

Step 1: Initialize Login (REQUIRED FIRST)

Before scraping any products, you MUST initialize the browser session:

User: "Initialize Taobao login"
AI: [Calls taobao_initialize_login]

The AI will:

1. Launch a Chrome browser window

2. Navigate to Taobao homepage

3. Check if login is required

4. If login needed: Wait for you to scan the QR code (扫码登录)

5. Save the session for future use

This only needs to be done ONCE per session!

Step 2: Fetch Product Information

After initialization, you can fetch products using any of these formats:

User: "【淘宝】假一赔四 https://e.tb.cn/h.StvCjJlWxkNatsx?tk=xxx MF937 「UBV美式休闲空气层棉...」"
AI: [Calls taobao_fetch_product_info with the full text]

User: "Analyze this product: https://detail.tmall.com/item.htm?id=881280651752"
AI: [Calls taobao_fetch_product_info with the URL]

User: "Research product 881280651752"
AI: [Calls taobao_fetch_product_info with the ID]

The AI will automatically:

• Extract the product ID/URL from your message

• Navigate to the product page

• Scrape all available information

• Return structured Markdown

🔧 Available Tools

1. taobao_initialize_login

Purpose: Initialize browser session and handle Taobao authentication

Parameters: None

When to call:

• User mentions Taobao (淘宝), Tmall (天猫), or provides a product link

• MUST be called BEFORE taobao_fetch_product_info

• Only needs to be called ONCE per session

Returns:

• Status: success, login_required, already_initialized, or error

• Message with next steps

Example:

User: "帮我做一个research" + Taobao link
AI: → Calls taobao_initialize_login first

2. taobao_fetch_product_info

Purpose: Scrape comprehensive product information and return as Markdown

Parameters:

• product_url_or_id (string): Product ID, URL, short link, or share text

Supported formats:

• Product ID: "881280651752"

• Direct URL: "https://detail.tmall.com/item.htm?id=881280651752"

• Short link: "https://e.tb.cn/h.StvCjJlWxkNatsx?tk=xxx"

• Share text: "【淘宝】假一赔四 https://e.tb.cn/h.xxx MF937 「商品名称」"

Returns:

• Markdown-formatted product information

• Includes metadata (scrape time, image counts, review counts)

• Image URLs as Markdown image links

• Parameter tables

• Structured reviews and Q&A

Example:

User: "【淘宝】product https://e.tb.cn/h.xxx"
AI: → Calls taobao_fetch_product_info(product_url_or_id='【淘宝】product https://e.tb.cn/h.xxx')

🤖 How AI Assistants Will Use This

Automatic Detection

When you mention Taobao-related keywords or provide links, the AI will automatically:

Trigger Keywords (English):

• Taobao, Tmall, product, scrape, research, analyze, compare, reviews

Trigger Keywords (Chinese):

• 淘宝, 天猫, 商品, 分析, 对比, 评价, 价格

Trigger Patterns:

• URLs starting with https://e.tb.cn/

• URLs containing detail.tmall.com or item.taobao.com

• Share text like 【淘宝】...

Example Conversations

Scenario 1: Research Request

User: "帮我做一个research" + [Taobao link]

AI思考:
1. User wants to research a Taobao product
2. Need to initialize first (if not already done)
3. Then fetch the product info

AI执行:
→ taobao_initialize_login()
→ taobao_fetch_product_info(product_url_or_id='[link]')
→ Analyzes the returned Markdown and presents insights

Scenario 2: Product Comparison

User: "Compare these two products: [link1] and [link2]"

AI执行:
→ taobao_initialize_login() (if needed)
→ taobao_fetch_product_info([link1])
→ taobao_fetch_product_info([link2])
→ Compares prices, specs, reviews, etc.

Scenario 3: User Doesn't Know About MCP

User: "Can you help me browse Taobao?"

AI:
"I can help you research Taobao products! I have access to a Taobao scraping tool.

First, I need to initialize the browser session. This will open a browser window where you may need to scan a QR code if login is required.

Let me start the initialization..."

→ taobao_initialize_login()

⚠️ Important Notes

Prerequisites

1. ALWAYS call taobao_initialize_login first

   • This is mandatory before any product scraping

   • The AI should do this automatically when detecting Taobao content

2. Browser must remain open

   • The browser window will stay open to maintain the session

   • Don't close it manually during scraping

3. QR Code Login

   • If Taobao requires login, scan the QR code in the browser window

   • Use the Taobao mobile app to scan

   • Session will be saved for future use

Data Freshness

• Scrapes live data from Taobao/Tmall

• Reviews and prices are current as of scrape time

• Scraped data is returned immediately (not cached)

Limitations

• Only works with public product pages

• Some products may require login to view full details

• Rate limiting may apply for too many requests in short time

• Page structure changes may require updates to selectors

🐛 Troubleshooting

Error: "Browser not initialized"

Cause: Trying to fetch product before initializing

Solution:

AI should call: taobao_initialize_login()

Error: "Could not extract product ID"

Cause: Invalid product link or ID format

Solution: Verify the input format matches one of:

• Product ID (12-13 digits): 881280651752

• Direct URL: https://detail.tmall.com/item.htm?id=881280651752

• Short link: https://e.tb.cn/h.xxx

• Share text containing the above

Error: "Login required"

Cause: Session expired or not logged in

Solution:

1. Call taobao_initialize_login again

2. Scan QR code in browser if prompted

3. Retry fetching the product

Browser Doesn't Open

Cause: Playwright browser not installed or permission issues

Solution:

playwright install chromium
# Verify installation
python3 -c "from playwright.sync_api import sync_playwright; p = sync_playwright().start(); browser = p.chromium.launch(); print('✓ OK'); browser.close(); p.stop()"

Short Link Resolution Fails

Cause: Network issues or invalid short link

Solution: Try using the direct product URL or ID instead

MCP Server Connection Failed (Claude Code)

Symptoms:

• MCP server shows as "failed" in /mcp management panel

• Error in logs: "No such file or directory (os error 2)"

• Logs location: /Users/yourusername/Library/Caches/claude-cli-nodejs/-Users-yourusername-Desktop-test/mcp-logs-taobao-scraper/

Common Causes:

1. Incorrect path in .mcp.json: The configuration file may have wrong directory paths

2. Using wrong Python interpreter: Not using the virtual environment's Python

3. Double-nested directories: Path like /path/to/taobao_mcp/taobao_mcp (incorrect)

Solution:

1. Check your .mcp.json configuration (located in your project root):

   {
     "mcpServers": {
       "taobao-scraper": {
         "command": "/absolute/path/to/taobao_mcp/.venv/bin/python",
         "args": [
           "/absolute/path/to/taobao_mcp/server.py"
         ],
         "env": {}
       }
     }
   }

2. Verify paths are correct:

   # Check Python exists
   ls -la /path/to/taobao_mcp/.venv/bin/python
   
   # Check server.py exists
   ls -la /path/to/taobao_mcp/server.py
   
   # Test server can start
   /path/to/taobao_mcp/.venv/bin/python /path/to/taobao_mcp/server.py <<< '{"jsonrpc":"2.0","id":1,"method":"initialize","params":{"protocolVersion":"2024-11-05","capabilities":{},"clientInfo":{"name":"test","version":"1.0"}}}'

3. Common mistakes to avoid:

   • ❌ Using python3 instead of full path to venv Python

   • ❌ Path like /path/to/taobao_mcp/taobao_mcp/server.py (double directory)

   • ❌ Relative paths like ./server.py (use absolute paths)

   • ✅ Correct: Full absolute paths to both Python and server.py

4. After fixing, restart Claude Code to reload the MCP server

Debug Tips:

• Run claude --debug to see detailed logs

• Check log files in ~/Library/Caches/claude-cli-nodejs/

• Look for the most recent log file in the mcp-logs-taobao-scraper/ directory

📂 File Structure

taobao_mcp/
├── README.md              # This file (comprehensive documentation)
├── server.py              # Main MCP server with tool registration
├── taobao_scraper.py      # Core scraping logic and browser automation
├── pyproject.toml         # Python dependencies
├── USAGE.txt              # Quick reference guide
└── .venv/                 # Virtual environment (created during install)

🔄 Update & Maintenance

Updating the MCP Server

cd taobao_mcp
git pull  # If using git
uv pip install -e . --force-reinstall

Clearing Browser Cache

If experiencing issues, clear the browser profile:

rm -rf ../user_data/chrome_profile

Then re-initialize and login again.

Version Information

• Current Version: 1.2

• Last Updated: 2025-11-17

• MCP Protocol Version: 1.0

• Python SDK Version: Compatible with mcp>=0.9.0

💡 Tips for Best Results

1. Use Chinese share text directly - No need to extract the link manually

2. Initialize once per session - Don't re-initialize unless login expires

3. Wait for initialization to complete - Scan QR code if prompted

4. Keep browser window open - Don't close it during scraping

5. Use direct URLs when possible - Faster than resolving short links

🌐 Language Support

This MCP server fully supports:

• English: All tool descriptions and error messages

• Chinese (中文): Recognizes Chinese product names, descriptions, and share text

• Mixed Input: Handles bilingual text seamlessly

📝 License & Credits

Created for research and product analysis purposes.

Dependencies:

• MCP Python SDK - Model Context Protocol implementation

• Playwright - Browser automation

• Pydantic - Input validation

• aiohttp - HTTP client

🆘 Support

If you encounter issues:

1. Check this README thoroughly

2. Verify installation steps were followed correctly

3. Check browser profile permissions

4. Try clearing browser cache and re-initializing

5. Ensure Taobao website is accessible from your network

Happy Scraping! 🎉

This MCP server helps AI assistants research Taobao products efficiently.