macOS
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brew install mcphostprovider-native install command
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Install mcphost with Homebrew
CLI host for LLMs to interact with tools via MCP. Version 0.34.0 via Homebrew; verified 2026-07-29.
install
Additional install commands
overview
Package summary
CLI host for LLMs to interact with tools via MCP
Project links
Commands and aliases
- mcphost
history
Project history and usage
MCPHost is a command-line host application that lets large language models use external tools through the Model Context Protocol. In package terms it is a local, installable MCP client/host: the user configures MCP servers once, chooses a model provider, and interacts with tools from a terminal.
Project history
The project was created publicly on GitHub in December 2024, soon after MCP became a common protocol for connecting tools to LLM clients. Its README describes MCPHost as a CLI that supports interactive chat, non-interactive prompts, YAML-based scripts, configurable MCP servers, hooks, multiple model providers, and multiple MCP transports.
MCPHost's configuration story evolved around home-directory YAML or JSON files. The current README says it prefers `.mcphost.yml` or `.mcphost.json`, while retaining `.mcp.yml` and `.mcp.json` for backwards compatibility, which reflects the fast-moving naming conventions of early MCP tooling.
Adoption history
By July 2026, GitHub metadata showed about 1.6k stars and more than 200 forks, enough to make it one of the better-known standalone terminal hosts for MCP workflows. Its release history on GitHub starts with v0.4.3 in January 2025 and reaches v0.34.0 by February 2026.
The project's adoption comes from users who want a model-and-tool terminal rather than a specific desktop app. The README documents providers such as Anthropic, OpenAI, Google, Ollama, and OpenAI-compatible endpoints, which helped it fit mixed local and hosted model setups.
How it is used
A typical user installs `mcphost`, places MCP server definitions in `~/.mcphost.yml` or a compatible JSON/YAML file, and starts an interactive session with `mcphost`. The same binary can also run one-shot prompts with `-p`, choose models with `--model`, override provider URLs and API keys with flags, or execute script files with YAML front matter.
For MCP configuration, the README documents local, remote, and builtin server types mapped to stdio, streamable HTTP, and in-process transports. It also supports environment-variable substitution in config files, which is the documented way to keep API keys out of committed configuration.
Why package nerds care
MCPHost is package-nerd interesting because it packages the host side of MCP as a single CLI rather than requiring a GUI client. That makes it useful in shell scripts, CI jobs, demos, and reproducible examples where a Homebrew or Nix install is easier to explain than editor-specific setup.
Its backwards-compatible config filenames also show a common early-ecosystem pattern: tools stabilized around MCP names while retaining older generic `.mcp` files so existing users did not have to rewrite local setups.
Timeline
- 2024-12: GitHub repository created.
- 2025-01: v0.4.3 release published.
- 2025: README documents preferred `.mcphost` config files plus backwards-compatible `.mcp` config files.
- 2026-02: v0.34.0 release published.
Related projects
- MCPHost is related to MCP server packages such as MCP Toolbox for Databases and to inspection/interaction tools such as mcptools. It also overlaps with MCP-aware coding clients and agent CLIs, but its niche is hosting model conversations and MCP servers directly from the terminal.
Sources
security posture
Risk level: green
narrow executable package without higher-risk signals.
Risk classifier
green risk · low confidence · appliance
Why
- narrow executable package without higher-risk signals
Signals
- metadata:no-higher-risk-signals
Install behavior
- No Homebrew bottle metadata was recorded.
Recommended review
Before unattended agent use, check whether the tool reads plaintext credentials, writes remote state, publishes artifacts, or shells out to plugins.
local files
Configuration and credential file locations
These source-backed paths show where this package keeps local settings or durable credentials. Automic Vault can use them as review targets for secret scanning, migration, and command approval.
Configuration files
Config paths the tool may read or write during local use.
- Unix
~/.mcphost.yml~/.mcphost.json~/.mcp.yml~/.mcp.json- Windows
%USERPROFILE%\.mcphost.yml%USERPROFILE%\.mcphost.json%USERPROFILE%\.mcp.yml%USERPROFILE%\.mcp.json
executables
Installed executables
| Command | Kind | Exposure | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
mcphost | executable | indexed executable | Discovered from the local executable index. |
freshness
Version and freshness
These signals separate page generation age, package-manager activity, and upstream release comparison. Version lag is warned only when an evidence URL and comparable versions are present.
page generated2026-08-03
manager version0.34.0
manager updated2026-07-29
local dataunknown
upstreamnot available
latest detectednot detected
- okNo freshness warnings were generated.
install metadata
Package metadata
| Package key | brew:mcphost |
|---|---|
| Version | 0.34.0 |
| Package manager | Homebrew |
| Homepage | https://github.com/mark3labs/mcphost |
| Repository | https://github.com/mark3labs/mcphost |
| Last updated | 2026-07-29T17:04:52+02:00 |
| Pulse | updated |
| Bottle | not recorded |
| Service | none declared |
source trail
Generated from repository data
This page is generated by av-web from the private package SQLite artifact built by scripts/generate-pkg-sqlite.py.
Combined YAML source
View the package source record on GitHub.
Used sources
- Geiger risk classifier
- Nucleus package database
- curated configuration and credential file locations
- curated package history
- pkgdb category and tag curation