App Store MCP Server

An MCP server for searching the App Store, checking keyword rankings, analyzing competition, and tracking trends — powered by a native macOS binary for fast, direct access to App Store APIs.

Also works as a standalone CLI tool with rich output formats.

Requirements

- macOS 26+ (Apple Silicon)

Quick Start

Install via uvx (recommended)

uvx appstore-mcp-server

This downloads the native binary on first run and starts the MCP server. No persistent installation needed.

Install via pip

pip install appstore-mcp-server
appstore-mcp-server

Download binary directly

Download the latest release from GitHub Releases, extract, and run:

tar xzf appstore-*-macos-arm64.tar.gz
./appstore --mcp

MCP Client Setup

Claude Code

claude mcp add --scope user --transport stdio -- appstore-mcp-server uvx appstore-mcp-server

Or with the binary directly:

claude mcp add --scope user --transport stdio -- appstore-mcp-server /path/to/appstore --mcp

Claude Desktop

Add to your Claude Desktop config (~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "appstore-mcp-server": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": ["appstore-mcp-server"]
    }
  }
}

Other MCP Clients

The server communicates over stdio using the standard MCP protocol. Run with --mcp flag:

/path/to/appstore --mcp

MCP Tools

| Tool | Description |
|------|-------------|
| search_apps | iTunes Search API with attribute/genre filtering |
| search_ranked | MZStore API — results match actual App Store rankings |
| lookup_app | Look up an app by ID, bundle ID, or App Store URL |
| top_charts | Current top chart rankings (free, paid, grossing) |
| find_app_rank | Check where an app ranks for a single keyword |
| check_app_rankings | Check an app's rank across auto-generated keywords (slow) |
| analyze_keyword | Competitive analysis with competitiveness score (0-100) |
| app_competitors | Find an app's top competitors via overlapping search results |
| compare_keywords | Compare competitiveness across multiple keywords (slow) |
| discover_trending | Discover trending categories from new chart entries |
| version | Get the server version |

Most tools support:
- storefront — Two-letter country code (default: US). Use for any App Store region.
- verbosity — Controls response detail and token usage:
- compact (default) — Key fields only, no descriptions. Best for most queries.
- full — Includes app descriptions and release notes.
- complete — All fields from the API response. Verbose (~4KB/app).

MCP Resources

| Resource | URI | Description |
|----------|-----|-------------|
| Storefronts | appstore://storefronts | Country codes and names for all supported App Store regions |
| Genres | appstore://genres | Genre IDs and names for App Store categories |
| Search Attributes | appstore://attributes | Available search attribute names for refined searches |
| Chart Types | appstore://chart-types | Available chart types for top charts queries |

MCP Prompts

| Prompt | Description |
|--------|-------------|
| competitive_analysis | Guided workflow: look up an app, find competitors, analyze keyword rankings, and get actionable recommendations. Args: keyword_or_app_id (required), storefront (optional). |
| market_research | Guided workflow: search rankings, top charts, competitiveness analysis, trending discovery, and opportunity identification. Args: category (required), storefront (optional). |

CLI Usage

The binary doubles as a full-featured CLI tool. Run without --mcp for interactive use.

Commands

| Command | Description |
|---------|-------------|
| search <query> | Search the App Store (iTunes Search API) |
| scrape <query> | Search with ranked results matching the App Store app (MZStore API) |
| lookup <id-or-bundle> | Look up apps by ID, bundle ID, or URL |
| ranks <app-id> | Analyze keyword rankings for an app |
| analyze <query> | Competitive analysis of top 20 results with keyword matching |
| top <chart-type> | View top charts (free, paid, grossing, newfree, newpaid) |
| list <type> | List storefronts, genres, attributes, or chart types |

search

Search the App Store using the iTunes Search API.

appstore search "photo editor"
appstore search --limit 5 minecraft
appstore search --storefront JP nintendo
appstore search --attribute softwareDeveloper "Meta Platforms"
appstore search --genre 6014 puzzle             # Games category
appstore search --verbosity minimal spotify
appstore search --output-format json spotify
appstore search --unlimited "weather"

Key options:

| Option | Description |
|--------|-------------|
| --limit <n> | Number of results (1-200, default: 200, 0 for unlimited) |
| --unlimited | Same as --limit 0 |
| --attribute <attr> | Search specific field: titleTerm, softwareDeveloper, descriptionTerm |
| --genre <id> | Filter by genre ID (e.g., 6014 for Games) |
| --storefront <code> | Country code (e.g., US, JP, GB) |
| --output-format <fmt> | text (default), json, raw-json, markdown, html, html-open |
| --verbosity <level> | minimal, summary (default), expanded, verbose, complete |
| --full-description | Show complete app descriptions |

scrape

Search using the MZStore API. Results are in actual App Store ranked order — the same ranking users see in the App Store app. Use this instead of search when ranking position matters.

appstore scrape spotify
appstore scrape --limit 10 "photo editor"
appstore scrape --storefront GB twitter
appstore scrape --output-format json instagram

Key options:

| Option | Description |
|--------|-------------|
| --limit <n> | Maximum results (default: 200) |
| --storefront <code> | Country code (default: US) |
| --output-format <fmt> | text (default), json, raw-json, markdown, html |
| --verbosity <level> | minimal, summary (default), expanded, verbose, complete |

lookup

Look up specific apps by ID, bundle ID, or App Store URL.

appstore lookup 284910350                                   # Numeric = app ID
appstore lookup com.spotify.client                          # Non-numeric = bundle ID
appstore lookup --ids 284910350,324684580                   # Multiple apps
appstore lookup --url "https://apps.apple.com/us/app/yelp/id284910350"
appstore lookup 284910350 --storefront JP
appstore lookup com.facebook.Facebook --output-format json

Key options:

| Option | Description |
|--------|-------------|
| --id <id> | Look up by app ID |
| --ids <id1,id2,...> | Look up multiple apps (comma-separated) |
| --bundle-id <bundle> | Look up by bundle identifier |
| --url <url> | Look up by App Store URL |
| --storefront <code> | Country code (default: US) |
| --output-format <fmt> | text, json, raw-json, markdown, html |
| --verbosity <level> | minimal, summary (default), expanded, verbose, complete |

ranks

Analyze keyword rankings for an app. Auto-generates keywords from the app's name, subtitle, and description, then checks where the app ranks for each keyword. Uses on-device AI (Apple Intelligence) to generate additional keywords when available.

appstore ranks 324684580                        # Analyze Spotify's rankings
appstore ranks 284910350 --limit 30             # Test 30 keywords for Yelp
appstore ranks 544007664 --storefront GB        # UK store rankings

Key options:

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