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Michael Amachree
Michael Amachree Subscriber

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Supercharge Your Svelte Development with shadcn-svelte-mcp

#svelte #mcp #shadcn #webdev

If you're building modern web applications with Svelte, chances are you've heard of (or used) shadcn-svelte. It's a fantastic port of the popular shadcn/ui library, helping developers build accessible and customizable components with ease.

But what if you could have an expert on shadcn-svelte right inside your code editor, ready to answer questions, scaffold components, and guide you through configuration?

Enter shadcn-svelte-mcp.

I built this because I kept hitting the same frustrating pattern: even when I gave an AI assistant the shadcn-svelte docs (or an exported markdown copy), it would still respond with React-oriented shadcn/ui patterns. That usually meant wrong props, wrong composition patterns, or React-only concepts sneaking into Svelte code.

With an MCP server, the assistant can reliably pull the correct shadcn-svelte docs and examples on demand, which makes it far more likely to produce Svelte-first output.

What is shadcn-svelte-mcp?

shadcn-svelte-mcp is a Mastra MCP server designed specifically for shadcn-svelte documentation and developer utilities. It bridges the gap between your AI assistant (like Claude, Cursor, or Windsurf) and official shadcn-svelte resources.

By integrating this tool, you empower your AI editor to:

  • Search and Retrieve Docs: Instantly pull up the latest documentation for any component.
  • Understand Best Practices: Get context-aware advice on how to implement components correctly.
  • Scaffold Code: Generate component code that adheres to your project's configuration and style.

In practice, this is most helpful when you're mid-implementation and need an answer that’s both fast and correct:

  • Which props does a component accept?
  • What’s the recommended composition pattern?
  • Which installation step did you forget (Tailwind config, adapters, etc.)?

Why Use It?

  1. Efficiency: No need to switch context between your editor and the browser. Ask your AI about a component, and it gets the answer directly from the source.
  2. Accuracy: The MCP server helps ensure your AI has up-to-date information, reducing hallucinations or outdated code suggestions.
  3. Seamless Integration: Works out of the box with any MCP-compliant client.

Example questions to ask your editor

The real payoff is when you're building larger UI surfaces (admin pages, dashboards, settings screens) that combine multiple components. Prompts like these tend to work extremely well:

  • "Build an admin dashboard page in SvelteKit using shadcn-svelte: sidebar + top nav + cards + table + pagination + loading states"
  • "Create a Users management screen: DataTable + search input + filters + Dialog for 'Create user' + form validation + toast on success"
  • "Generate a Settings page: Tabs (Profile/Billing/Security) with forms in each tab, including a Confirm Dialog for destructive actions"
  • "Scaffold a reusable UserInviteDialog component using Dialog, Input, Select, and Button — plus a clean API for opening/closing"
  • "I need a responsive layout: Sheet on mobile, Sidebar on desktop, and a breadcrumb header — use shadcn-svelte components only"

Tip: If your assistant has ever suggested React-only props (like asChild) or React-style composition, explicitly add: “Svelte 5 + shadcn-svelte only (no React patterns)”.

Getting Started

You can find the project on GitHub: Michael-Obele/shadcn-svelte-mcp.

To install, simply add it to your MCP configuration:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "shadcn-svelte": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "mcp-remote",
        "https://shadcn-svelte.mastra.cloud/api/mcp/shadcn/sse"
      ]
    }
  }
}
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This connects to the hosted Mastra MCP server for shadcn-svelte, providing real-time access to component documentation and utilities.

(Note: The repo README includes endpoint references and deployment notes if you want alternatives like HTTP transport or a backup host.)

A small workflow tip

When you're building a UI, try asking in two steps:

  1. "Show the canonical docs example for X"
  2. "Now adapt that example to my exact constraints (SvelteKit route, form library, Tailwind config, etc.)"

That pattern keeps the implementation grounded while still letting the assistant do the "glue" work.

Conclusion

shadcn-svelte-mcp is a must-have tool for any Svelte developer using shadcn-svelte. It streamlines your workflow and brings the documentation right to your fingertips.

If you found this helpful, consider starring the GitHub repo and sharing the post.

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