xcstrings-crud

CLI tool and MCP server for CRUD operations on xcstrings (String Catalog) files.

Motivation

Large xcstrings files can contain thousands of localization keys across multiple languages, resulting in massive JSON files. When AI assistants (like Claude Code) read these files directly, they consume a significant amount of tokens—potentially exceeding context limits or rapidly depleting token budgets.

This tool provides a token-efficient approach by offering targeted CRUD operations:

• Query only what you need: Fetch specific keys or languages instead of loading the entire file
• Incremental updates: Add or update individual translations without reading the full content
• Quick stats: Get coverage and progress summaries without parsing all entries

By using the MCP server or CLI, AI assistants can work with xcstrings files of any size while keeping token usage minimal.

Installation

Using Mise

mise use -g ubi:Ryu0118/xcstrings-crud

Using nest (mtj0928/nest)

nest install Ryu0118/xcstrings-crud

Build from source

git clone https://github.com/Ryu0118/xcstrings-crud.git
cd xcstrings-crud
swift build -c release

Binary will be at .build/release/xcstrings-crud.

MCP Server

The MCP server is available as a subcommand:

xcstrings-crud mcp

Configuration

Add to your Claude Code MCP settings:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "xcstrings-crud": {
      "command": "xcstrings-crud",
      "args": ["mcp"]
    }
  }
}

Available Tools

| Tool | Description | |------|-------------| | xcstrings_create_file | Create a new xcstrings file | | xcstrings_list_keys | List all keys | | xcstrings_list_languages | List supported languages | | xcstrings_list_untranslated | List untranslated keys | | xcstrings_list_stale | List keys with stale extraction state | | xcstrings_batch_list_stale | List stale keys across multiple files | | xcstrings_get_source_language | Get source language | | xcstrings_get_key | Get translations for a key | | xcstrings_check_key | Check if key exists | | xcstrings_check_coverage | Check key language coverage | | xcstrings_stats_coverage | Get overall coverage statistics | | xcstrings_stats_progress | Get translation progress by language | | xcstrings_batch_stats_coverage | Get coverage for multiple files at once | | xcstrings_batch_check_keys | Check if multiple keys exist | | xcstrings_batch_add_translations | Add translations for multiple keys at once | | xcstrings_batch_update_translations | Update translations for multiple keys at once | | xcstrings_add_translation | Add translation for single language | | xcstrings_add_translations | Add translations for multiple languages | | xcstrings_update_translation | Update translation for single language | | xcstrings_update_translations | Update translations for multiple languages | | xcstrings_rename_key | Rename key | | xcstrings_delete_key | Delete entire key | | xcstrings_delete_translation | Delete translation for single language | | xcstrings_delete_translations | Delete translations for multiple languages |

CLI Usage

Create Operations

# Create a new xcstrings file
xcstrings-crud create path/to/Localizable.xcstrings

# Create with specific source language
xcstrings-crud create path/to/Localizable.xcstrings --source-language ja

# Overwrite existing file
xcstrings-crud create path/to/Localizable.xcstrings --overwrite

Read Operations

# List all keys
xcstrings-crud list keys --file path/to/Localizable.xcstrings

# List languages
xcstrings-crud list languages --file path/to/Localizable.xcstrings

# List untranslated keys for a language
xcstrings-crud list untranslated --file path/to/Localizable.xcstrings --lang ja

# List stale keys (potentially unused)
xcstrings-crud list stale --file path/to/Localizable.xcstrings

# List stale keys across 

... [View full README on GitHub](https://github.com/Ryu0118/xcstrings-crud#readme)