Set up GitHub MCP in Claude Desktop
Access the GitHub API to manage repositories, issues, pull requests, branches, and workflows directly from your AI editor.
1
Locate the config file
Claude Desktop reads MCP server configuration from the following file:
~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.jsonCreate this file if it does not already exist.
2
Add the configuration
Add the following to your Claude Desktop config file:
json
{
"mcpServers": {
"github-mcp": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"@modelcontextprotocol/server-github"
],
"env": {
"GITHUB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN": "YOUR_GITHUB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN"
}
}
}
}3
Set up environment variables
GitHub MCP requires the following environment variables:
GITHUB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKENRequiredGitHub personal access token
4
Verify it works
Restart Claude Desktop. GitHub MCP should appear in your MCP server list with 20 tools available.
This server adds approximately 10,300 tokens to your context window for tool definitions.