diff --git a/.ci_support/environment.yml b/.ci_support/environment.yml
index f8a527766..6036afe80 100644
--- a/.ci_support/environment.yml
+++ b/.ci_support/environment.yml
@@ -7,6 +7,7 @@ dependencies:
 - coverage
 - codacy-coverage
 - matplotlib-base =3.8.0
+- mp-api =0.37.2
 - nglview =3.0.8
 - numpy =1.26.0
 - phonopy =2.20.0
diff --git a/setup.py b/setup.py
index 1f03ffc0e..598c9f075 100644
--- a/setup.py
+++ b/setup.py
@@ -38,6 +38,7 @@
     extras_require={
         "grainboundary": ['aimsgb==1.1.0', 'pymatgen==2023.9.10'],
         "pyscal": ['pyscal2==2.10.18'],
+        "mp-api": ['mp-api==0.37.2'],
         "nglview": ['nglview==3.0.8'],
         "plotly": ['plotly==5.17.0'],
         "clusters": ['scikit-learn==1.3.1'],
diff --git a/structuretoolkit/build/__init__.py b/structuretoolkit/build/__init__.py
index 27251a9a5..93400a568 100644
--- a/structuretoolkit/build/__init__.py
+++ b/structuretoolkit/build/__init__.py
@@ -3,6 +3,7 @@
     get_grainboundary_info
 )
 from structuretoolkit.build.compound import B2, C14, C15, C36, D03
+from structuretoolkit.build.materialsproject import MaterialsProject
 from structuretoolkit.build.random import pyxtal
 from structuretoolkit.build.sqs import sqs_structures
 from structuretoolkit.build.surface import (
diff --git a/structuretoolkit/build/materialsproject.py b/structuretoolkit/build/materialsproject.py
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..23c98ea7a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/structuretoolkit/build/materialsproject.py
@@ -0,0 +1,171 @@
+from typing import Union, List
+from ase.atoms import Atoms
+from structuretoolkit.common.pymatgen import pymatgen_to_ase
+
+
+class MPQueryResults:
+    def __init__(self, results):
+        """
+
+        Args:
+            docs (list of dicts): query results from Materials Project, should be obtained with use_document_model=False
+        """
+        self._results = results
+        self._material_ids = [r["material_id"] for r in results]
+
+    def _translate_frame(self, frame):
+        try:
+            return self._material_ids.index(frame)
+        except ValueError:
+            raise KeyError(f"material id {frame} not among results!") from None
+
+    def __iter__(self):
+        yield from self.iter_structures()
+
+    def _get_structure(self, frame, wrap_atoms=True):
+        return pymatgen_to_ase(self._results[frame]["structure"])
+
+    def _number_of_structures(self):
+        return len(self._results)
+
+    def to_list(self):
+        """
+        Get a list of queried structures.
+
+        Returns:
+            list: structures
+        """
+        return [pymatgen_to_ase(r["structure"]) for r in self._results]
+
+
+class MaterialsProject:
+    """
+    Convenience interface to the Materials Project Structure Database.
+
+    Usage is only possible with an API key obtained from the Materials Project.  To do this, create an account with
+    them, login and access `this webpage <https://next-gen.materialsproject.org/api#api-key>`.
+
+    Once you have a key, either pass it as the `api_key` parameter in the methods of this object or export an
+    environment variable, called `MP_API_KEY`, in your shell setup.
+    """
+
+    @staticmethod
+    def search(
+        chemsys: Union[str, List[str]], api_key=None, **kwargs
+    ) -> MPQueryResults:
+        """
+        Search the database for all structures matching the given query.
+
+        Note that `chemsys` takes distint values for unaries, binaries and so!  A query with `chemsys=["Fe", "O"]` will
+        return iron structures and oxygen structures, but no iron oxide structures.  Similarily `chemsys=["Fe-O"]` will
+        not return unary structures.
+
+        All keyword arguments for filtering from the original API are supported.  See the
+        `original docs <https://docs.materialsproject.org/downloading-data/using-the-api>`_ for them.
+
+        Search for all iron structures:
+
+        >>> pr = Project(...)
+        >>> irons = pr.create.structure.materialsproject.search("Fe")
+        >>> irons.number_of_structures
+        10
+
+        The returned :class:`~.MPQueryResults` object implements :class:`~.HasStructure` and can be accessed with the
+        material ids as a short-hand
+
+        >>> irons.get_structure(1) == irons.get_structure('mp-13')
+        True
+
+        Search for all structures with Al, Li that are on the T=0 convex hull:
+
+        >>> alli = pr.create.structure.materialsproject.search(['Al', 'Li', 'Al-Li'], is_stable=True)
+        >>> len(alli)
+        6
+
+        Args:
+            chemsys (str, list of str): confine search to given elements; either an element symbol or multiple element
+            symbols seperated by dashes; if a list of strings is given return structures matching either of them
+            api_key (str, optional): if your API key is not exported in the environment flag MP_API_KEY, pass it here
+            **kwargs: passed verbatim to :meth:`mp_api.MPRester.summary.search` to further filter the results
+
+        Returns:
+            :class:`~.MPQueryResults`: resulting structures from the query
+        """
+        from mp_api.client import MPRester
+
+        rest_kwargs = {
+            "use_document_model": False,  # returns results as dictionaries
+            "include_user_agent": True,  # send some additional software version info to MP
+        }
+        if api_key is not None:
+            rest_kwargs["api_key"] = api_key
+        with MPRester(**rest_kwargs) as mpr:
+            results = mpr.summary.search(
+                chemsys=chemsys, **kwargs, fields=["structure", "material_id"]
+            )
+        return MPQueryResults(results)
+
+    @staticmethod
+    def by_id(
+        material_id: Union[str, int],
+        final: bool = True,
+        conventional_unit_cell: bool = False,
+        api_key=None,
+    ) -> Union[Atoms, List[Atoms]]:
+        """
+        Retrieve a structure by material id.
+
+        This is how you would ask for the iron ground state:
+
+        >>> pr = Project(...)
+        >>> pr.create.structure.materialsproject.by_id('mp-13')
+        Fe: [0. 0. 0.]
+        tags:
+            spin: [(0: 2.214)]
+        pbc: [ True  True  True]
+        cell:
+        Cell([[2.318956, 0.000185, -0.819712], [-1.159251, 2.008215, -0.819524], [2.5e-05, 0.000273, 2.459206]])
+
+
+        Args:
+            material_id (str): the id assigned to a structure by the materials project
+            api_key (str, optional): if your API key is not exported in the environment flag MP_API_KEY, pass it here
+            final (bool, optional): if set to False, returns the list of initial structures,
+            else returns the final structure. (Default is True)
+            conventional_unit_cell (bool, optional): if set to True, returns the standard conventional unit cell.
+            (Default is False)
+
+        Returns:
+            :class:`~.Atoms`: requested final structure if final is True
+            list of :class:~.Atoms`:  a list of initial (pre-relaxation) structures if final is False
+
+        Raises:
+            ValueError: material id does not exist
+        """
+        from mp_api.client import MPRester
+
+        rest_kwargs = {
+            "include_user_agent": True,  # send some additional software version info to MP
+        }
+        if api_key is not None:
+            rest_kwargs["api_key"] = api_key
+        with MPRester(**rest_kwargs) as mpr:
+            if final:
+                return pymatgen_to_ase(
+                    mpr.get_structure_by_material_id(
+                        material_id=material_id,
+                        final=final,
+                        conventional_unit_cell=conventional_unit_cell,
+                    )
+                )
+            else:
+                return [
+                    pymatgen_to_ase(mpr_structure)
+                    for mpr_structure in (
+                        mpr.get_structure_by_material_id(
+                            material_id=material_id,
+                            final=final,
+                            conventional_unit_cell=conventional_unit_cell,
+                        )
+                    )
+                ]