Claude Web MCP Integration | Setup Steps, Features, and Supported Plans

How MCP Works in the Claude Web Version

Starting in the second half of 2025, claude.ai officially released the Connectors feature, enabling connections to MCP (Model Context Protocol) servers directly from the browser. Connector is the UI name Anthropic gave to this feature; internally, it is the Remote MCP protocol itself.

The mechanism works as follows: Claude's backend acts as an MCP client and connects to the HTTPS URL entered by the user, retrieving the list of tools published by the server. During a conversation, when Claude determines a tool is necessary, it calls the relevant tool and incorporates the result into its context to generate a response.

Anthropic's official documentation states:

The server must be publicly exposed through HTTP (supports both Streamable HTTP and SSE transports). Local STDIO servers cannot be connected directly. (MCP connector — Anthropic Official, as of May 2026)

In other words, the web version can only connect to Remote MCP servers exposed via HTTPS. Local MCP servers launched with npx / uvx — widely used in Claude Desktop — cannot be called from the web version.

Supported Plans and Limitations

The behavior of the Connector feature in the web version varies by plan. The specifications as of May 2026 are as follows:

A Pro plan or higher is required to use custom Connectors. On the Free plan, only a subset of official Connectors published by Anthropic (such as GitHub and Google Drive) are available as options.

On Team / Enterprise plans, administrators can configure Connectors for use across the entire organization at once, and it is also possible to prevent individual members from adding their own. The ability to centrally manage authentication credentials is a major advantage for enterprise use cases.

Steps to Add an MCP Server in the Web Version

The steps for individual Pro / Max plan users to add any Remote MCP server are as follows:

1. Click your avatar in the upper right of claude.ai → open Settings
2. Select Connectors from the left menu
3. Click "+ Add custom connector" in the upper right
4. Paste the Remote MCP's HTTPS URL into the Server URL field (e.g., https://mcp.example.com/sse)
5. Enter the OAuth Client ID / Secret if required
6. Click Add to run a connection test
7. On success, a tool icon will appear at the lower left of the input field in the conversation screen

For Connectors that support OAuth, you will be redirected to the provider's authentication screen immediately after adding, and the connection is completed simply by clicking the allow button. If you need to manually enter a Bearer Token, issue a token according to the server's documentation.

After connecting, Claude will autonomously call tools during conversations. You can also explicitly instruct Claude to "use this tool," and in the web version, an approval dialog appears each time a tool is called.

Choosing Between Web Version, Desktop, and Claude Code

There are three entry points for MCP, and it is practical to choose based on your use case.

The strengths of the web version are its OS independence and the maturity of its Connector UI. Whether you access from iPad Safari, Android Chrome, or Windows Edge, the same Connector settings are available. On the other hand, local file operations and local command execution such as git or bash are structurally impossible.

Choose Desktop when you need access to your PC's file system or resident processes. Claude Code is specialized for coding called from VS Code and similar editors, and combining both types of MCP in agent workflows is the standard approach. See also the Introduction to Claude Code article for more details.

Popular Connectors / MCP Servers for the Web Version

As of May 2026, the official web version Connectors provided by Anthropic include the following lineup:

• GitHub — Browse repository issues, PRs, and code
• Google Drive — Search Docs, Sheets, and Slides in Drive
• Gmail — Search emails and retrieve message content (draft creation requires manual approval)
• Google Calendar — Retrieve and create calendar events
• Notion — Search pages and retrieve blocks
• Linear — List and retrieve issue details
• Slack — Search channels and summarize recent messages

These can be added simply by selecting by name in the UI and are immediately ready to use after going through the OAuth flow. Custom MCP servers published by third parties can also be added by pasting a URL into + Add custom connector. Some reports count over 10,000 publicly available Remote MCP servers, with the majority of business tools being Connector-ized (Jinrai Co., Ltd. survey).

Important Notes Specific to the Web Version

When using MCP in the web version, there are behavioral differences from Desktop that you should be aware of.

First, local file access is not available. It is impossible to directly read and write paths like /Users/... the way Desktop's Filesystem MCP does. You need to shift to a design that operates on cloud-side files via Drive or GitHub.

Second, state from long-running processes is difficult to retain. Because sessions in the web version are tied to browser tabs, if asynchronous processing via a Connector hangs for an extended period, the context is lost the moment the tab is closed. It is safer to run large-scale data processing via the API or on the Desktop side.

Third, prompt / resource features are not supported — only tool calls work. For servers that use MCP specification prompts / resources, only the tool portion is visible in the web version at this time.

Fourth, Connector authentication credentials are stored on Anthropic's servers. OAuth tokens are encrypted and designed not to leak externally, but when connecting high-confidentiality internal servers, it is recommended to enable administrator control on Team / Enterprise plans.

Troubleshooting Checklist

When you cannot connect or tools are not working, check the following in order:

1. Does the URL start with https:// and is the HTTPS certificate valid? (Self-signed certificates are not accepted)
2. Does the server support either Streamable HTTP or SSE? (Older stdio-only servers are not supported)
3. Is https://claude.ai/api/.../callback registered as an OAuth Redirect URI?
4. Have you reached the simultaneous connection limit? (Disable unnecessary Connectors)
5. Use the "Test connection" button on the Connector detail screen to verify connectivity

If you still cannot connect, the quickest approach is to check the Connectors service status on Anthropic's official Status page.

Summary

MCP integration in the Claude web version is a feature that lets you directly operate business services such as GitHub, Drive, and Slack from Claude, all within a browser. With a Pro plan or higher, you can add any Remote MCP server with a single URL, and OAuth authentication is completed in one click. Let Desktop / Code handle local file operations while the web version Connector handles cloud-based work — this division of roles is the standard way to use Claude in 2026.

For related reading, How to Use Claude Remote MCP | OAuth Authentication and API Setup covers Remote MCP connections via the Claude API, and What is Claude MCP — Full Feature List and 5 Connection Steps covers the MCP concept as a whole.

Sources

• MCP connector — Anthropic Official Documentation (as of May 2026)
• Claude's Web Version Now Supports the Long-Awaited Model Context Protocol (MCP) Integration! — DevelopersIO
• 15 Recommended MCP Servers for Claude — Jinrai Co., Ltd. (2026-04-19)
• How to Set Up Claude MCP [Beginner's Guide] Step-by-Step — ainow