NotebookLM MCP Server

MCP server that exposes Google NotebookLM as tools for any MCP-compatible client.

Built on notebooklm-py (unofficial SDK).

Quick Start (Step by Step)

Step 1: Install

# Clone or navigate to the project
cd notebooklm-mcp

# Option A: using uv (recommended)
uv venv .venv && source .venv/bin/activate && uv pip install -e .

# Option B: using pip
python3 -m venv .venv && source .venv/bin/activate && pip install -e .

Step 2: Authenticate with Google NotebookLM

notebooklm-auth

This will show:

╔══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╗
║           NotebookLM CLI Authentication                     ║
╚══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝

Open this URL in your browser and log in:

  https://notebooklm.google.com/

Then follow these steps:

1. Open https://notebooklm.google.com/ in your browser
2. Log in with your Google account
3. Open DevTools (press F12)
4. Go to the Network tab
5. Refresh the page (F5)
6. Right-click the first request (notebooklm.google.com)
7. Click Copy > Copy as cURL
8. Paste into the terminal and press Enter twice

Step 3: Verify authentication

notebooklm-auth --verify

Expected output:

Auth file: ~/.notebooklm/storage_state.json
Cookies: <N> found
Verifying against https://notebooklm.google.com/ ...
CSRF token: <token>...
Session ID: <session_id>...

Authentication is VALID.

Step 4: Connect to your MCP client

See Client Configuration below for your specific tool.

Step 5: Start using NotebookLM tools

Once connected, you can use any of the 31 tools — list notebooks, add sources, ask questions, generate podcasts, and more.

Running

stdio (default — for local MCP clients)

notebooklm-mcp

HTTP (for remote clients, web UIs, multi-client setups)

notebooklm-mcp --transport streamable-http --port 8484

SSE (Server-Sent Events)

notebooklm-mcp --transport sse --port 8484

Client Configuration

Claude Code

claude mcp add notebooklm -- notebooklm-mcp

Cursor

Add to .cursor/mcp.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "notebooklm": {
      "command": "notebooklm-mcp"
    }
  }
}

Windsurf / Continue / Cline

Add to your MCP config:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "notebooklm": {
      "command": "notebooklm-mcp"
    }
  }
}

HTTP clients (any language/tool)

# Start the server
notebooklm-mcp --transport streamable-http --port 8484

# Connect from any MCP client at:
#   http://localhost:8484/mcp

Available Tools (31)

Notebooks

Tool	Description
notebook_list	List all notebooks
notebook_create	Create a new notebook
notebook_get	Get notebook details
notebook_delete	Delete a notebook
notebook_rename	Rename a notebook
notebook_summary	Get AI-generated summary

Sources

Tool	Description
source_list	List sources in a notebook
source_add_url	Add a URL or YouTube link
source_add_text	Add pasted text
source_add_file	Upload a local file (PDF, markdown, docx)
source_get	Get source details
source_delete	Delete a source
source_fulltext	Get extracted text
source_guide	Get AI summary of a source

Chat

Tool	Description
chat_ask	Ask questions about notebook sources
chat_history	Get conversation history
chat_configure	Set chat goal, length, or custom prompt

Artifacts

Tool	Description
artifact_list	List generated artifacts
artifact_generate_audio	Generate podcast/audio overview
artifact_generate_report	Generate a report
artifact_generate_study_guide	Generate study guide
artifact_generate_quiz	Generate quiz
artifact_generate_flashcards	Generate flashcards
artifact_generate_mind_map	Generate mind map
artifact_download_audio	Download audio file
artifact_poll_status	Check generation status
artifact_delete	Delete an artifact

Research

Tool	Description
research_start	Start web or Drive research
research_poll	Check research status

Sharing

Tool	Description
sharing_status	Get sharing status
sharing_set_public	Toggle public/private

Authentication

Two options — no Playwright required for either:

Option 1: Interactive CLI (recommended)

notebooklm-auth

Opens instructions to copy cookies from your browser's DevTools. Supports:

• Copy as cURL (right-click in Network tab)
• Raw Cookie header
• JSON export from browser extensions

Option 2: Environment variable

export NOTEBOOKLM_AUTH_JSON='{"cookies":[{"name":"SID","value":"...","domain":".google.com","path":"/","expires":-1,"httpOnly":true,"secure":true,"sameSite":"None"}]}'
notebooklm-mcp

Verify auth

notebooklm-auth --verify

Cookies are stored in ~/.notebooklm/storage_state.json and expire periodically.

Caveats

• Uses undocumented Google APIs — may break without notice
• Not affiliated with Google
• Heavy usage may trigger rate limits
• For personal/research use, not production