Android-MCP MCP — Use Cases, Install & Live Demo

Why use it

Key features

10 tools: state, click, long-click, type, swipe, drag, press, wait, notification, shell
Device selection: USB serial, WiFi IP:port, or auto-detect
State tool captures the UI tree for automated assertions
Shell tool exposes full adb shell for advanced ops
Typical latency 2-4s per action — fine for QA, not for realtime gaming

Live Demo

What it looks like in practice

android.replay ▶ ready

0/0

Install

Pick your client

~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json · Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "android": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": [
        "Android-MCP"
      ],
      "_inferred": true
    }
  }
}

Open Claude Desktop → Settings → Developer → Edit Config. Restart after saving.

~/.cursor/mcp.json · .cursor/mcp.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "android": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": [
        "Android-MCP"
      ],
      "_inferred": true
    }
  }
}

Cursor uses the same mcpServers schema as Claude Desktop. Project config wins over global.

VS Code → Cline → MCP Servers → Edit

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "android": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": [
        "Android-MCP"
      ],
      "_inferred": true
    }
  }
}

Click the MCP Servers icon in the Cline sidebar, then "Edit Configuration".

~/.codeium/windsurf/mcp_config.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "android": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": [
        "Android-MCP"
      ],
      "_inferred": true
    }
  }
}

Same shape as Claude Desktop. Restart Windsurf to pick up changes.

~/.continue/config.json

{
  "mcpServers": [
    {
      "name": "android",
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": [
        "Android-MCP"
      ]
    }
  ]
}

Continue uses an array of server objects rather than a map.

~/.config/zed/settings.json

{
  "context_servers": {
    "android": {
      "command": {
        "path": "uvx",
        "args": [
          "Android-MCP"
        ]
      }
    }
  }
}

Add to context_servers. Zed hot-reloads on save.

claude mcp add android -- uvx Android-MCP

One-liner. Verify with claude mcp list. Remove with claude mcp remove.

Use Cases

Real-world ways to use Android-MCP

Automate a smoke test of your Android app

👤 Mobile QA engineers, dev teams without a test framework ⏱ ~30 min intermediate

When to use: You want 'app opens, login, main screen loads' as an auto-run before every release.

Prerequisites

ADB installed and device connected — Android Studio ships ADB; adb devices should show your device
Device has USB debugging or wireless debugging on — Settings > Developer Options > USB Debugging

Flow

Capture current state

Get the UI state — what screen am I on and what elements are visible?✓ Copied

→ UI tree with labeled elements
Execute the flow

Tap the 'Sign In' button, type '[email protected]' in the email field, 'P@ss' in password, submit.✓ Copied

→ App transitions to home
Assert success

Verify the home screen's 'Welcome' banner is visible. If not, fail.✓ Copied

→ Pass/fail verdict

Outcome: A scriptable smoke test you can run on every build.

Pitfalls

Coordinates change between device sizes — Prefer State-Tool queries that find elements by label/id, then click the returned coordinates
Flow breaks on A/B tests — Pin build config or disable experiments for QA builds

Combine with: github

Run a repeatable product demo on a live device

👤 Sales engineers, product folks doing investor demos ⏱ ~20 min intermediate

When to use: You want the app driven hands-free while you talk.

Flow

Script the demo

Script these 5 steps with 3s pauses: open app, tap Explore, scroll to Category B, tap item X, take a screenshot.✓ Copied

→ Step plan
Dry run

Execute. Pause between steps so I can narrate.✓ Copied

→ Device follows

Outcome: A glitch-free demo you can re-run identically.

Triage notifications on a dev device

👤 Developers testing notification flows ⏱ ~10 min beginner

When to use: Verifying push notifications arrive and look right.

Flow

Read recent notifications

List active notifications. Flag any from com.myapp.prod.✓ Copied

→ Filtered list
Inspect one

Pull the full content of the latest myapp notification; does it match our expected format?✓ Copied

→ Diff against expected

Outcome: Fast confirmation that your push pipeline works.

Combinations

Pair with other MCPs for X10 leverage

android + github

Run smoke tests on PRs and post results

When PR #88 has a new APK artifact, install to the connected device, run the smoke test flow, comment results on the PR.✓ Copied

android + filesystem

Save screenshots and logs as QA artifacts

Take a screenshot after each step of the demo flow and save to ./qa/2026-04-14/step-N.png.✓ Copied

Tools

What this MCP exposes

Tool	Inputs	When to call	Cost
State-Tool	(none)	Always first — know what's on screen	free
Click-Tool	x: int, y: int	Tap at a point returned by State	free
Long-Click-Tool	x, y, duration_ms?	Context menus	free
Type-Tool	text: str, clear_first?: bool	Enter text in the focused field	free
Swipe-Tool	x1,y1,x2,y2, duration_ms?	Scroll or gesture	free
Drag-Tool	start_x,y,end_x,y	Drag-and-drop flows	free
Press-Tool	key: Back\|Home\|VolumeUp\|...	Hardware keys / system nav	free
Wait-Tool	ms: int	Wait for animation/transition	free
Notification-Tool	(none) or package: str	Inspect notifications	free
Shell-Tool	cmd: str	Escape hatch for logs, am/pm commands, etc.	free (but powerful — dangerous)

Cost & Limits

What this costs to run

API quota: None — all local via ADB
Tokens per call: State tool returns UI trees that can be 2-10k tokens on dense screens
Monetary: Free
Tip: Ask State to filter by a query ('find buttons with Sign In') rather than dump the whole tree.

Security

Permissions, secrets, blast radius

Credential storage: None; ADB trust is on the device

Data egress: All local; ADB over USB or local Wi-Fi only

Never grant: Shell-Tool on devices with production data — it can read private files

Shell-Tool is essentially adb shell — treat it as root-ish privilege on debuggable devices.
Wireless debugging exposes ADB on your LAN — disable when not testing.

Troubleshooting

Common errors and fixes

adb: device unauthorized

Accept the fingerprint prompt on the device screen, then retry.

Verify: adb devices

No devices found

Check USB debugging is on and USB cable supports data. For WiFi, verify ip:port with adb connect.

Verify: adb devices

Coordinates off on different screen

Use State-Tool to get current coords for the labeled element rather than hardcoded x,y.

Verify: Call State before click

Type-Tool inserts garbage characters

Device uses a non-US keyboard; switch to US or use adb shell input text via Shell-Tool.

Verify: adb shell settings get secure default_input_method

Alternatives

Android-MCP vs others

Alternative	When to use it instead	Tradeoff
Appium	You want a full QA framework with assertions and reports	Heavy setup; no MCP layer
Maestro	YAML-based UI tests	No MCP integration

More

Resources

📖 Read the official README on GitHub

🐙 Browse open issues

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