datetime-mcp-server

A simple, focused MCP (Model Context Protocol) server that provides current date and time information. This server enables Claude to always get accurate current date/time instead of relying on stale session start dates.

Features

• Three datetime tools for different use cases:

  • get_current_datetime: Returns ISO 8601 format with timezone
  • get_current_date: Returns date in YYYY-MM-DD format
  • get_formatted_datetime: Returns human-readable format

• Europe/Amsterdam timezone - All times are in CET/CEST timezone

• Proper error handling - Graceful error management

• Type hints - Full type annotations for better code quality

• Clean implementation - Simple, focused, no extra features

Installation

Prerequisites

• Python 3.10 or higher
• pip package manager

Install from source

1. Clone the repository:

git clone https://github.com/<ACTUAL_USERNAME_OR_ORG>/datetime-mcp-server.git
cd datetime-mcp-server

2. Install the package:

pip install -e .

Or install dependencies directly:

pip install -r requirements.txt

Usage

Running the server standalone

You can test the server by running it directly:

python -m datetime_mcp_server.server

Adding to Claude Desktop

To use this MCP server with Claude Desktop, add the following to your Claude Desktop configuration file:

macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "datetime": {
      "command": "python",
      "args": [
        "-m",
        "datetime_mcp_server.server"
      ],
      "env": {
        "PYTHONPATH": "/absolute/path/to/datetime-mcp-server/src"
      }
    }
  }
}

Replace /absolute/path/to/datetime-mcp-server/src with the actual absolute path to the src directory in your installation.

Alternatively, if you installed the package globally or in a virtual environment:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "datetime": {
      "command": "python",
      "args": [
        "-m",
        "datetime_mcp_server.server"
      ]
    }
  }
}

After updating the configuration, restart Claude Desktop.

Available Tools

get_current_datetime

Returns the current date and time in ISO 8601 format with timezone information.

Example output: 2025-12-03T14:30:15.123456+01:00

get_current_date

Returns just the current date in YYYY-MM-DD format.

Example output: 2025-12-03

get_formatted_datetime

Returns the current date and time in a human-readable format.

Example output: Wednesday, December 03, 2025 - 14:30:15 CET

Development

Project Structure

datetime-mcp-server/
├── src/
│   └── datetime_mcp_server/
│       ├── __init__.py
│       └── server.py
├── pyproject.toml
├── requirements.txt
└── README.md

Running tests

Install dev dependencies:

pip install -e ".[dev]"

Run tests:

pytest

Technical Details

• Language: Python 3.10+
• Framework: MCP Python SDK
• Timezone: Europe/Amsterdam (CET/CEST)
• Protocol: Model Context Protocol (MCP)

Why This Server?

Claude's knowledge of the current date/time is based on the session start time, which can become stale during long conversations. This MCP server provides a reliable way for Claude to:

• Get the actual current date and time
• Format dates consistently
• Work with accurate timezone information
• Avoid confusion from stale session data

License

MIT License - feel free to use and modify as needed.

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.

Support

For issues or questions, please open an issue on the GitHub repository.