Skip to main content
The MCP Marketplace is built into Cline and gives you access to hundreds of ready-to-use MCP servers across categories like search, file systems, browser automation, research, and more. Installation is handled end-to-end: Cline downloads the server code, installs dependencies, builds it, and writes the configuration — you just supply any required API keys.

​
Prerequisites

Before installing servers from the Marketplace, make sure the following runtimes are present on your machine. Most servers require at least one of these.
Check your version:
node --version
Install or update from nodejs.org.
Check your version:
python --version
Install or update from python.org. Some servers require Python 3.11+.

​
Installing a server from the Marketplace

1

Open the Marketplace

In VS Code, click the Cline icon in the Activity Bar to open the Cline panel. Then click the Extensions button (square icon) in Cline’s top toolbar. The MCP Marketplace opens, showing servers grouped by category.
2

Browse and select a server

Scroll through categories such as Search, File-systems, Browser-automation, Research-data, and others. Click any server card to read a description of its capabilities and requirements.
3

Install and configure

Click the Install button on the server detail page.
  • If the server requires an API key, Cline will show you where to obtain one and prompt you to enter it securely.
  • Cline installs the server to ~/Documents/Cline/MCP/ and updates your MCP settings file automatically.
Corporate users: confirm with your security team that installing third-party MCP servers is permitted before proceeding.
4

Verify installation

After installation, Cline shows a confirmation message. Open the MCP Servers panel (the plug icon in Cline’s toolbar) and check that your new server shows a green status dot, indicating it is connected and ready.
5

Use the server

Start a new chat and ask Cline to use the server’s capabilities. For example:
“Search the web for the latest React 19 release notes using Perplexity.”
Cline selects the appropriate tool, asks for your approval, and executes it.

​
What happens during installation

When you click Install, Cline performs these steps automatically:
1

Download

The server code is cloned or downloaded to ~/Documents/Cline/MCP/<server-name>/.
2

Build

Dependencies are installed (npm install or pip install / uv sync) and the project is compiled if needed (TypeScript → JavaScript).
3

Configure

Your MCP settings file is updated with the server’s entry, including its command, arguments, and any environment variables you provided.Settings file location:
~/Library/Application Support/Code/User/globalStorage/saoudrizwan.claude-dev/settings/cline_mcp_settings.json
4

Launch

Cline detects the configuration change, spawns the server as a child process, and establishes communication via stdio or HTTP.
5

Register capabilities

The server’s tools and resources are added to Cline’s context so they are available in every subsequent conversation.

​
MCP server rules

When you have many MCP servers enabled, you can guide Cline’s tool selection using MCP Rules in a .clinerules file or your custom instructions. Rules map keyword triggers to server groups, so Cline activates the right server automatically based on what you type. 
{
  "mcpRules": {
    "webInteraction": {
      "servers": ["firecrawl-mcp-server", "fetch-mcp"],
      "triggers": ["web", "scrape", "browse", "website"],
      "description": "Tools for web browsing and scraping"
    },
    "finance": {
      "servers": ["alphaadvantage-mcp"],
      "triggers": ["stock", "price", "earnings", "market"],
      "description": "Financial data and analysis tools"
    }
  },
  "defaultBehavior": {
    "priorityOrder": ["webInteraction", "finance"],
    "fallbackBehavior": "Ask user which tool would be most appropriate"
  }
}
How it works:
  • servers — the MCP server names to activate for this category.
  • triggers — keywords Cline watches for in your messages.
  • description — a human-readable label for the category.
  • priorityOrder — resolves ambiguity when multiple categories match.
For example, if you type “Can you scrape this website?”, Cline detects the trigger words scrape and website, and automatically enables the webInteraction servers.

​
Troubleshooting

​
Common installation problems

ProblemSolution
node: command not foundInstall Node.js 18+ from nodejs.org
python: command not foundInstall Python 3.10+ from python.org
uv: command not foundRun pip install uv or follow the uv install instructions above
API key rejectedDouble-check the key was copied correctly with no leading/trailing spaces
Server shows red dotClick Restart Server in the MCP Servers panel; check logs for errors
Port already in useAnother process is using the server’s port; stop the conflicting process

​
How to remove a server

  1. Open cline_mcp_settings.json (path shown in the Configure tab of the MCP Servers panel).
  2. Delete the entire key for your server inside the mcpServers object.
  3. Save the file.
  4. Delete the server directory from ~/Documents/Cline/MCP/<server-name>/.
  5. Restart Cline.

​
Server keeps failing

If a server repeatedly errors after installation:
  • Run the server command manually in a terminal to see the raw error output: 
    node /Users/you/Documents/Cline/MCP/my-server/build/index.js
  • Verify all required environment variables are set in your MCP config.
  • Check that file paths in the config point to files that actually exist after the build step.
  • Try Claude Sonnet as your model during installation — it tends to handle build debugging best.
  • Remove and reinstall the server if configuration state is corrupted.

Build docs developers (and LLMs) love

Get started for freeTalk to us