Slack connector and MCP server

Slack runs an official MCP server at https://mcp.slack.com/mcp, and that is what Claude talks to when you connect Slack. In claude.ai it shows up as the Slack connector; in Claude Code it comes inside Slack’s plugin. Either way you can ask “what did the team decide about the launch date in #product-planning last week?” and Claude searches your workspace to answer.

What it does (plain English)

Slack’s developer docs list what the MCP server can do:

• Search: messages and files, users, channels, the channels you belong to, and custom emoji.
• Messages: send, schedule and draft messages, read channel history and threads, add and read reactions.
• Canvases: create, update and read (exported as Markdown).
• Users: read profiles and list channel members.
• Files and Lists: upload files, and create, read and update Slack Lists.

The claude.ai directory listing, marked “Made by Slack”, shows a narrower set of 11 tools:

Tool	Area
slack_search_public, slack_search_public_and_private, slack_search_channels, slack_search_users	Search
slack_read_channel, slack_read_thread	Read
slack_send_message	Write
slack_create_canvas, slack_update_canvas, slack_read_canvas	Canvases
slack_read_user_profile	People

Each tool needs a Slack permission scope, such as search:read.public for searching or chat:write for sending. Slack’s rate limits apply exactly as they do for its Web API.

Is it for you?

The claude.ai connector is for teams. Anthropic documents it for Team and Enterprise plans only, and it requires the Claude in Slack app to be installed in your workspace first. If you are on Pro or Max, the Claude Code plugin is the documented route; it signs in to the same Slack server.

Developers get more from the plugin: Slack’s version 1.4.1 bundles the MCP server with skills for Block Kit layouts, the Slack CLI and building Slack apps.

What you can do with it

1. Find a decision. “What did the team decide about the launch date in #product-planning last week?” (Anthropic’s example.)
2. Summarize a thread. “Find the thread about the vendor contract renewal and summarize it.”
3. Daily digest in Claude Code. /slack:channel-digest #support, #sales gives a digest across channels; /slack:summarize-channel does one.
4. Write a standup. /slack:standup builds an update from your recent Slack activity.
5. Draft an announcement. /slack:draft-announcement new pricing page writes it and saves it as a draft for you to post.

How to set it up

claude.ai or the desktop app (Team and Enterprise)

1. A Slack admin installs the Claude in Slack app from the Slack App Marketplace and approves it for the workspace.
2. A claude.ai Owner enables the Slack connector under Organization settings > Connectors.
3. Each member goes to Customize > Connectors, finds Slack and selects Connect. The button changes to Disconnect when it worked.
4. In a chat, select + > Connectors, turn on Slack and ask a question.

Claude Code

1. Run /plugin install slack@claude-plugins-official and choose a scope.
2. The Slack MCP server is configured automatically. On first use you are prompted to authenticate to your workspace.
3. Try /slack:find-discussions <topic>.

We installed the plugin in Claude Code 2.1.302 on 2026-10-18. claude plugin details listed version 1.4.1 with 14 skills and commands, one MCP server and about 1,453 tokens of always-on context. We did not sign in to a Slack workspace.

Watch out for

• Admin approval is required. Slack’s plugin README says your workspace admin must approve the MCP integration before you can authenticate, and Slack’s docs say only directory-published or internal apps may use MCP.
• It can post as you. slack_send_message sends real messages. Keep that tool on Needs approval under the connector’s Tool permissions in claude.ai, and approve each send in Claude Code.
• Private channels. One search tool covers public and private channels and DMs you can access. Be deliberate about what you ask Claude to search.
• Two different products. The Claude in Slack app (talk to Claude inside Slack) and the Slack connector (Claude in claude.ai reads Slack) are separate. Anthropic’s page also says the per-user Slack app is being replaced by Claude Tag, set up by an admin.
• The old reference server is archived. The MCP project’s original Slack server moved to the archived repository, with a note that Zencoder now maintains a fork. For new setups, Slack’s own server is the one to use.

Alternatives

• Knowledge work plugins: several role plugins already bundle the Slack server.
• Gmail connector if the discussion happened over email.
• Claude Tag, Anthropic’s admin-managed way to put Claude inside Slack channels.