iOS Simulator MCP Server

Overview

The iOS Simulator MCP Server is a specialized Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that enables AI assistants and LLMs to interact with iOS simulators. This server allows for comprehensive iOS app testing, UI interaction, and quality assurance through structured tool calls.

Features

• 🔍 UI Inspection: Get accessibility information for entire screens and specific elements
• 👆 Touch Interaction: Tap, swipe, and type on simulator screens
• 📸 Screenshots & Recording: Capture screenshots and record video of simulator sessions
• 🧭 Element Analysis: Describe UI elements at specific coordinates
• ⚡ Real-time Control: Direct interaction with running iOS apps

Tools Available

• get_booted_sim_id: Get the ID of the currently booted iOS simulator
• ui_describe_all: Describe accessibility information for the entire screen
• ui_tap: Tap on specific coordinates
• ui_type: Input text into the simulator
• ui_swipe: Perform swipe gestures
• ui_describe_point: Get element details at specific coordinates
• ui_view: Get compressed screenshot of current view
• screenshot: Take and save screenshots
• record_video: Record simulator sessions
• stop_recording: Stop video recording

Use Cases

• Quality Assurance: Automated testing of iOS app UI and functionality
• Accessibility Testing: Verify app accessibility compliance
• User Journey Testing: Test complex multi-step workflows
• Regression Testing: Automated validation of app changes
• Documentation: Generate visual documentation of app states

Prerequisites

• macOS: iOS simulators are only available on macOS
• Xcode: With iOS simulators installed
• Node.js: For running the MCP server
• Facebook IDB: Tool for simulator interaction
• MCP Client: Cursor, Claude Code, or other MCP-compatible tools

Installation

With Cursor

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "ios-simulator": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "ios-simulator-mcp"]
    }
  }
}

With Claude Code

claude mcp add ios-simulator npx ios-simulator-mcp

Configuration

Environment variables for customization:

• IOS_SIMULATOR_MCP_FILTERED_TOOLS: Filter out specific tools
• IOS_SIMULATOR_MCP_DEFAULT_OUTPUT_DIR: Set default output directory

Security Notice

Command injection vulnerabilities in versions < 1.3.3 have been fixed. Please update to v1.3.3 or later.

Featured In

• Claude Code Best Practices: Anthropic's engineering blog
• React Native Newsletter: Issue 187
• Mobile Automation Newsletter: #56
• Awesome MCP Servers: Curated collection listing

Community

• Stars: 951
• Forks: 44
• License: MIT
• Last Updated: August 2025