Snapmcp

[snapmcp]

The visual documentation MCP server.
Terminal · Code · Browser · Markdown · Diff · HTML · PDF · GIF
For documentation workflows — when structured snapshots aren't enough.

[npm version] [npm downloads] [tests] [stars] [MIT]

Real terminal colors, Shiki-highlighted code, visual diffs, PDFs and GIFs — one MCP server, 13 tools. Renders with your system Chrome, or auto-installs Chromium at first setup. SSRF protection on by default. Built for agents that write documentation, not just drive browsers.

Quick Start

Three steps, under two minutes:

1. Install

npm install -g snapmcp# or run without installing: npx -y snapmcp

2. Add to Claude Code (~/.claude/claude.json)

{  "mcpServers": {    "snapmcp": {      "command": "npx",      "args": ["-y", "snapmcp"],      "env": {        "SNAPMCP_DIR": "./captures",        "SNAPMCP_THEME": "nord"      }    }  }}

3. Capture

Ask your agent in natural language:

"Capture a terminal screenshot of git log --oneline -5 and a syntax-highlighted PNG of src/index.ts."

The agent calls capture_terminal and capture_file — images land in ./captures/ with your real terminal theme and the chosen syntax theme applied.

{  "mcpServers": {    "snapmcp": {      "command": "npx",      "args": ["-y", "snapmcp"],      "env": {        "SNAPMCP_DIR": "./captures",        "SNAPMCP_FORMAT": "jpeg",        "SNAPMCP_QUALITY": "95"      }    }  }}

{  "mcpServers": {    "snapmcp": {      "command": "npx",      "args": ["-y", "snapmcp"],      "env": {        "SNAPMCP_DIR": "./captures",        "SNAPMCP_FORMAT": "jpeg"      }    }  }}

docker run -i --rm \  -e SNAPMCP_DIR=/captures \  -e SNAPMCP_THEME=nord \  -v /path/to/output:/captures \  ghcr.io/reeinharddd/snapmcp

What it looks like

Why snapmcp vs Playwright MCP

Different tools for different jobs. Playwright MCP drives a browser through token-efficient accessibility snapshots; snapmcp renders pixel-faithful images for humans to read. If your agent needs to click, use Playwright. If it needs to show, use snapmcp.

Most documentation pipelines pair them: Playwright MCP to interact, snapmcp to document.

Tools

Use cases

Automated documentation — an agent writes a setup guide and embeds real captures: the terminal output of the install command (with your actual theme), the config file syntax-highlighted, the diff of the migration. One prompt, three capture_* calls, images saved next to the markdown.

Visual QA — after a UI change, the agent captures the affected pages with capture_browser, batches before/after with capture_batch, and assembles an animated comparison with capture_gif for the PR description.

Terminal guides — CLI tutorials where the screenshots must match what readers will see: capture_terminal reproduces the real prompt colors instead of a generic dark rectangle.

Security

SSRF protection is on by default — no opt-in required.

Configuration

Environment variables for the MCP server:

27 built-in Shiki themes: dracula, one-dark-pro, nord, tokyo-night, catppuccin-mocha, catppuccin-latte, ayu-dark, ayu-light, vitesse-dark, vitesse-light, min-dark, min-light, poimandres, rose-pine, rose-pine-moon, rose-pine-dawn, slack-dark, slack-ochin, snazzy-light, github-dark-dimmed, github-light, one-light, solarized-light, solarized-dark, material-theme, material-theme-lighter, material-theme-ocean

CLI

SnapMCP ships with a full CLI beyond the MCP server:

snapmcp        — Start the MCP serversnapmcp init   — Interactive setup wizard (detects Chrome, terminal theme, output dir)snapmcp doctor — Health check: 7 checks across Node, Chromium, paths, envsnapmcp test   — Generate test captures (terminal + code) to verify the setup

Documentation

Development

git clone https://github.com/reeinharddd/snapmcpcd snapmcpbun installbun run build    # tsc → dist/bun test         # 317 tests

Requirements: Node.js ≥ 20 or Bun ≥ 1.2. CI runs on ubuntu / macOS / windows via GitHub Actions.

License

MIT — see LICENSE.