How to add MCP servers to Claude Code (claude mcp add)

Add local and remote MCP servers to Claude Code with claude mcp add, choose a scope, and check them with /mcp.

Add a local (stdio) server

Register the server with the claude CLI. Everything after -- is the command that starts the server:

claude mcp add --transport stdio airtable -- npx -y airtable-mcp-server

Pass environment variables with --env KEY=value before the --.

Add a remote server

For an https:// endpoint, use the HTTP transport:

claude mcp add --transport http notion https://mcp.notion.com/mcp

Choose a scope

By default a server is added to local scope (only you, only this project). Add --scope project to write it to a shared .mcp.json in the project, or --scope user to make it available in all your projects.

Check it

Run /mcp inside a Claude Code session to see connected servers and their tools.