Netlify MCP Server

What it does (plain English)

Netlify hosts websites. Its MCP server (a plug-in that gives Claude a new ability) lets Claude use the Netlify API and CLI on your behalf: create projects, build and deploy them, manage environment variables and secrets, turn on form submissions, change who can see a site, and install or remove Netlify extensions.

Netlify offers it two ways. The remote server at https://netlify-mcp.netlify.app/mcp is what Netlify recommends, because it always has the latest capabilities. A local server (npx -y @netlify/mcp) is there for environments that block remote servers. In claude.ai, Netlify appears as an official connector.

Tools are grouped into readers and updaters. From our test of the local package, the groups are:

Tool group	Example operations
netlify-deploy-services-reader / -updater	get-deploy; deploy-site
netlify-project-services-reader / -updater	get-projects, get-forms-for-project; update-visitor-access-controls, update-forms
netlify-team-services-reader	get-teams, get-team-env-vars
netlify-extension-services-reader / -updater	get-extensions; change-extension-installation
netlify-observability-services-reader	get-counts, get-timeseries
netlify-coding-rules	Netlify-specific guidance before writing functions or config

Is it for you?

Pick it if you build sites with Claude and want them online without learning a deploy pipeline. A typical request: “build me a landing page, then put it on Netlify.” You don’t even need a Netlify account to start in Claude Code; Netlify says Claude can prompt you to log in or create one when needed.

If you already host on Vercel or Cloudflare, use their servers instead.

What you can do with it

Prompts from Netlify’s Claude guide, and a couple of our own:

• “Deploy this project to Netlify.”
• “What’s the status of my latest deploy?”
• “Show me my Netlify projects.”
• “Check my team’s Netlify settings.”
• Forms: “Turn on form submissions for the contact form on my site.”

In claude.ai, the connector loads tools only when needed, so you don’t have to mention it by name.

How to set it up

1. claude.ai. From an open chat, go to Customize, then Connectors. Search for Netlify, select Connect, and follow the authorization flow.

2. Set permissions. Netlify recommends: read-only tools on Always allow, write/delete tools on Needs approval, other tools on Always allow.

3. Claude Code (remote, recommended):

   claude mcp add --transport http netlify https://netlify-mcp.netlify.app/mcp

4. Claude Code (local fallback): needs Node.js 22 or higher.

   claude mcp add netlify -- npx -y @netlify/mcp

5. Log in. Ask Claude Code to help, or run netlify login. If your company uses Netlify SSO, use your work login.

6. Optional skills: npx -y skills add netlify/context-and-tools --skill '*' --yes --agent claude-code installs Netlify’s agent skills (functions, forms, Blobs, caching and more).

What we tested (2026-10-18): we ran the local fallback package npx -y @netlify/mcp (version 1.19.0) without logging in, completed the MCP handshake and listed 10 tools, including netlify-deploy-services-updater and netlify-project-services-reader. We did not deploy a site or test the remote server.

Watch out for

• Keep write tools on approval. deploy-site, access-control changes and environment-variable edits change your live site.
• Don’t commit tokens. Netlify’s README suggests a temporary personal access token if login fails, and warns not to commit it; remove it once things work.
• Anonymous test deploys expire. netlify deploy --allow-anonymous publishes a test site that expires within an hour unless claimed; only use it for non-sensitive projects.
• Node version. Use Node.js 22 or higher for the local server.
• Desktop steps live in a separate guide. Netlify points Desktop users to Claude’s Netlify connector and a separate “Set up Claude Desktop for Netlify” guide, which we didn’t review; check it for Desktop-specific steps.

Alternatives

• Vercel MCP for Vercel-hosted apps.
• Cloudflare API MCP for Cloudflare Pages and Workers.
• Playwright MCP to click through the deployed site and check it works.