MCP setup

Use this guide when you want to connect an IDE or terminal agent to Swytchcode through MCP. It’s the fastest path to a working setup: install the CLI, sign in, initialize your editor, and confirm your AI client can see Swytchcode’s tools.

Browse the full, up-to-date list of supported APIs at swytchcode.com/apis.

1. Install the CLI

npm

npm install -g swytchcode

Windows

irm https://cli.swytchcode.com/install.ps1 | iex

macOS / Linux

curl -fsSL https://cli.swytchcode.com/install.sh | sh

Use swy as a shorter alias for swytchcode. Verify the install:

swy --version

2. Sign in

swy login

This is a device-flow browser login that saves your session to ~/.swytchcode/auth.json. Sign in before initializing your editor - fetching integrations and connecting provider accounts through your AI client both need an authenticated session. In CI or headless environments, set the SWYTCHCODE_TOKEN environment variable instead; the CLI reads it only from the process environment, not .env files.

3. Initialize Swytchcode for your editor

swy init --editor=<name> does two things at once: it creates .swytchcode/ and tooling.json for the project, and it registers the MCP server for the editor you pick - as a stdio subprocess, so there’s no daemon or manual URL/port setup for any of the editors below.

Cursor

swy init --editor=cursor

Installs the rule file at .cursor/rules/swytchcode.mdc and merges the stdio entry into ~/.cursor/mcp.json automatically.

Claude Code

swy mcp serve --claude

Registers the MCP server with Claude Code so it discovers tools automatically. Claude Code is the one editor this doesn’t handle via swy init --editor=: since its config format isn’t meant to be hand-written, this shells out to the claude CLI (claude mcp add) instead, so you’ll need claude on your PATH.

Windsurf

swy init --editor=windsurf

Automatically merges the stdio entry into ~/.codeium/windsurf/mcp_config.json. If you’d rather configure it by hand, open Settings → MCP Servers and add a new server with command swy mcp serve and transport stdio.

Copilot

swy init --editor=copilot

This writes .vscode/mcp.json and .github/copilot-instructions.md so Copilot can connect.

Gemini CLI

swy init --editor=gemini

This writes GEMINI.md and merges the MCP server into ~/.gemini/settings.json so Gemini CLI can connect.

Codex

swy init --editor=codex

This writes AGENTS.md and merges the MCP server into ~/.codex/config.toml so Codex can connect.

Hermes

swy init --editor=hermes

This writes AGENTS.md (shared with Codex) and merges the MCP server into ~/.hermes/config.yaml so Hermes can start it automatically.

OpenClaw

swy init --editor=openclaw

This writes OPENCLAW.md and merges the MCP server into ~/.openclaw/settings.json so OpenClaw can connect.

Re-running init with a different --editor later is safe - it warns about any orphaned files left over from the previous choice.

4. Other MCP clients

Every editor above is wired up automatically by swy init --editor=<name>. If you’re connecting a different MCP-compatible client, or need a specific transport, run the server directly:

# Standard I/O (recommended for desktop editors)
swy mcp serve

# HTTP transport (remote/shared server)
swy mcp serve --transport http --port 5476

# Daemon (background) mode
swy mcp serve --transport http --port 5476 -d

Then point your client at the equivalent of:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "swytchcode": {
      "command": "swy",
      "args": ["mcp", "serve"]
    }
  }
}

5. Confirm the connection

Ask your editor or agent:

Connect GitHub and show me the tools available from the Swytchcode MCP server.

If the tools show up and it can list them, the MCP server is wired up correctly. If nothing appears, check that the project you initialized is the one open in your editor and that the CLI is signed in (swy whoami).

Where to go next

Browse all examples →

Zoom via MCP

Drives Zoom entirely through Swytchcode as an MCP server in Claude, Cursor, Codex, Copilot, or Windsurf.

MCP Overview

Learn how the built-in MCP server works and how it exposes your trusted tools to AI coding assistants.

CLI Overview

Understand how the Swytchcode CLI manages projects, integrations, authentication, and tool execution behind MCP.

Authentication

Connect your Swytchcode account and securely manage provider credentials for tool execution.

MCP Reference

Explore the complete MCP server configuration, commands, and supported options.