Getting started

Version 0.4.0 provides 42 tools through one executable, available from the terminal or an MCP client. This manual documents installation, Google access and the complete tool interface.

Build from the repository checkout:

cargo install --path . --locked

Install

Prebuilt Linux x86_64, macOS Apple Silicon and macOS Intel binaries are available in GitHub Releases. Download the archive for your machine, verify it against SHA256SUMS, extract it and put mcp-gmap-rs on your PATH. Linux binaries target glibc 2.35 or newer. macOS binaries are not signed or notarized.

With Rust 1.88 or newer, install from crates.io:

cargo install mcp-gmap-rs --version 0.4.0 --locked
mcp-gmap-rs --version

No Rust, Python or JavaScript runtime is needed after the executable is built. The host needs CA certificates, DNS and outbound HTTPS access to Google.

Configure access

Create a restricted key and enable services, or configure service-account OAuth. Store credentials in an ignored .env in your working directory:

GOOGLE_MAPS_AUTH_MODE=api-key
GOOGLE_MAPS_API_KEY=your-restricted-api-key

Environment variables override the file. Keep credentials outside source control and image layers. The working directory matters: parent directories are not searched for .env.

Discover, check, call

Discovery and offline diagnostics do not make Google requests:

mcp-gmap-rs tools
mcp-gmap-rs schema search-places
mcp-gmap-rs doctor

Then make your first potentially billable call:

mcp-gmap-rs search-places --query 'coffee near Gare de Lyon, Paris'

The result is JSON. Keep the returned place IDs for follow-up details rather than resolving the same names repeatedly. Read CLI usage for automation or MCP integration to connect an agent. Recipes show how to combine tools; the complete reference documents every parameter, default and result.