Scratchpad MCP server

Give your AI your notes. An MCP server for Scratchpad, so Claude, Cursor, Codex, and any other MCP client can search, read, write, and organize the notes you already keep.

It is small on purpose: about 2,000 lines of TypeScript, no database, and no state on disk. Every tool is one or two calls to Scratchpad's HTTPS API, so you can read the whole thing in an evening and know exactly what your assistant can do.

Two ways to connect

Remote (recommended)

No install. Point your client at the hosted server and sign in with OAuth. This is the only way that works on a phone.

https://app.scratchpad.sh/api/mcp

Claude Code:

claude mcp add --transport http --scope user scratchpad https://app.scratchpad.sh/api/mcp

Cursor, in ~/.cursor/mcp.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "scratchpad": { "url": "https://app.scratchpad.sh/api/mcp" }
  }
}

Local (stdio)

For a client that only speaks stdio, or if you would rather hold an API token than an OAuth session. Create a token in Scratchpad under Settings, API tokens.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "scratchpad": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@scratchpadsh/mcp"],
      "env": { "SCRATCHPAD_TOKEN": "scr_your_token" }
    }
  }
}

Check the token before wiring it up:

SCRATCHPAD_TOKEN=scr_your_token npx -y @scratchpadsh/mcp --check

Related MCP server: Zettelkasten MCP Server

Tools

Every name carries a scratchpad_ prefix, so the tools sit cleanly beside other servers in one session.

Built so a model cannot quietly wreck your notes

• There is no tool that deletes a note. That stays a job for you.

• Editing is two steps. propose_edit writes nothing: it returns a diff and an id. apply_edit takes that id and no content, so the text cannot change between showing you the diff and writing it.

• Edits check the base. If the note changed since the proposal, the edit is refused rather than overwriting what you typed.

• Every edit is reversible. History keeps earlier versions, and restore_version keeps the current one first.

• Password-locked notes stay invisible, to tokens and connectors alike.

• Tools are annotated, so a client can run reads freely and stop to show you each write.

Develop

npm install
npm test

License

MIT. See LICENSE.

Made by Scratchpad, the notes app your AI can actually read. More at scratchpad.sh/ai.