Installation

Get started with Distill in under a minute.

Quick Start (Recommended)

# Install globally
npm install -g distill-mcp

# Auto-configure your IDE
distill-mcp setup

That's it! The setup command auto-detects Claude Code, Cursor, and Windsurf.

Prerequisites

Node.js 18+ required
An MCP-compatible IDE (Claude Code, Cursor, or Windsurf)

Installation Options

Option 1: Global Install + Auto Setup

npm install -g distill-mcp
distill-mcp setup

Option 2: Configure Specific IDE

distill-mcp setup --claude     # Claude Code only
distill-mcp setup --cursor     # Cursor only
distill-mcp setup --windsurf   # Windsurf only

Option 3: Run with npx (No Install)

npx distill-mcp serve

Then manually add to your IDE config (see below).

Manual IDE Configuration

If you prefer manual setup or distill-mcp setup didn't work:

Claude Code

Edit ~/.claude/mcp.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "distill": {
      "command": "distill-mcp",
      "args": ["serve"]
    }
  }
}

Or with npx (no global install):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "distill": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["distill-mcp", "serve"]
    }
  }
}

Cursor

Edit ~/.cursor/mcp.json (or Settings > MCP Servers):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "distill": {
      "command": "distill-mcp",
      "args": ["serve"]
    }
  }
}

Windsurf

Edit ~/.codeium/windsurf/mcp_config.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "distill": {
      "command": "distill-mcp",
      "args": ["serve"]
    }
  }
}

Verify Installation

# Check everything is configured correctly
distill-mcp doctor

Then restart your IDE and ask: "Run the session_stats tool"

CLI Reference

distill-mcp setup      # Auto-configure IDEs
distill-mcp serve      # Start the MCP server
distill-mcp doctor     # Check installation
distill-mcp analyze    # Analyze token usage in codebase
distill-mcp --help     # Show all options

Next Steps

MCP Tools Reference - See all 21 optimization tools
Claude Code Guide - Advanced Claude Code setup
Troubleshooting - Common issues and solutions

Installation

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