How to Use Baidu Map MCP Server: A Step-by-Step Guide

The Baidu Map MCP Server is a fully MCP-compliant, open-source location-based service (LBS) solution that empowers AI agents and applications with robust geospatial capabilities such as geocoding, POI search, route planning, traffic data, and more. This guide walks you through the process of setting it up and using it in your MCP ecosystem.

What You’ll Need

Before you begin, make sure you have the following:

• A Baidu Map Open Platform account
• A server-side API Key (AK)
• An MCP-compatible client such as Claude, Cursor, or your custom agent
• Node.js and npm installed locally (for Node integration)

Step 1: Get Your Baidu Maps API Key

1. Visit the Baidu Map Open Platform and log in.
2. Create a new application and enable the required APIs.
3. Ensure that the “MCP (SSE)” service is enabled for optimal performance.
4. Copy your API Key (AK) — you’ll need it for the server configuration.

Step 2: Configure Your MCP Server

To integrate Baidu Map MCP Server into your MCP client, use the following configuration:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "baidu-map": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@baidumap/mcp-server-baidu-map"
      ],
      "env": {
        "BAIDU_MAP_API_KEY": "xxx"
      }
    }
  }
}

Replace "xxx" with your actual Baidu API Key.

You can place this in your mcp.config.json or equivalent configuration file depending on your platform (Claude, Qianfan, etc.).

Step 3: Install & Run the Server

In your terminal, simply run:

npx -y @baidumap/mcp-server-baidu-map

This will launch the MCP-compatible Baidu Map server and expose a set of standardized APIs for your agent to consume.

Supported Tools & APIs

Baidu Map MCP Server provides a rich set of tools, including:

Tool Name	Description
map_geocode	Convert address to geographic coordinates
map_reverse_geocode	Get POI and address info from coordinates
map_search_places	Search points of interest by keyword, region, etc.
map_place_details	Fetch detailed POI information
map_directions	Plan routes (driving, walking, cycling, transit)
map_directions_matrix	Batch route planning
map_weather	Real-time and forecast weather data
map_ip_location	Locate position using an IP address
map_road_traffic	Real-time traffic conditions
map_poi_extract*	Extract POIs from free text (requires permission)

Example Use Cases

Navigation & Travel Assistant

Plan trips with weather checks and POI suggestions:

• map_search_places + map_directions + map_weather

Logistics Optimization

Batch compute delivery routes:

• map_directions_matrix

LLM Integration

Enable geospatial reasoning in large language models:

• Claude or AppBuilder + map_* tools

Quick Recap

Task	Tool/API to Use
Convert address to coordinates	map_geocode
Find a restaurant nearby	map_search_places
Get a location’s weather	map_weather
Plan delivery routes	map_directions_matrix

Learn More

Visit the official Baidu Map MCP Server page on MCP Server Hub for documentation, FAQs, and advanced use cases.

If you're building a smart agent, delivery app, or LLM-powered assistant — Baidu Map MCP Server provides everything you need to add powerful, real-time geospatial intelligence into your project.