xcode-mcli

xcode-mcli is a macOS CLI for Apple's Xcode MCP bridge exposed through xcrun mcpbridge.

It gives you a daemon-backed terminal interface to the current Xcode MCP tool surface without registering Xcode MCP inside Codex or another MCP client.

Requirements

• macOS
• Xcode with Xcode Tools enabled in Settings > Intelligence
• Node.js 25+

Install

npm install

For a global install:

npm install -g xcode-mcli

Quick Start

xcode-mcli setup
xcode-mcli windows list
xcode-mcli windows use --tab-identifier windowtab1
xcode-mcli files read --tab-identifier windowtab1 --file-path Path/To/File.swift
xcode-mcli project build --tab-identifier windowtab1

The daemon auto-starts on the first daemon-backed command.

Output Modes

• Default output is concise text.
• --json prints a stable wrapper envelope.
• --verbose prints the exact Xcode MCP tool name to stderr for tool-backed commands.

Example:

xcode-mcli --json --verbose windows list

--json, --verbose, and --tab-identifier <id> can be passed either before the command path or after the specific command.

Command Groups

• setup
• daemon
• windows
• project
• docs
• snippet
• build
• issues
• tests
• preview
• files

Docs

• docs/api-reference.md
• docs/compatibility.md
• docs/setup.md
• docs/troubleshooting.md

Compatibility

Pin and verify the Xcode MCP surface with:

npm run compat:xcode-mcp:verify

The pinned Apple Xcode 26.3 baseline lives at:

skill/references/apple-xcode-26.3.surface.json

Development

npm test
make lint
make verify