ZulipChat MCP Server

Quick Start

uvx zulipchat-mcp --zulip-config-file ~/.zuliprc

That's it. Your AI assistant can now read and write Zulip messages.

Need a zuliprc? Zulip Settings > Personal > Account & privacy > API key — download the file, save it as `~/.zuliprc`.

Interactive onboarding:

uvx --from zulipchat-mcp zulipchat-mcp-setup

What This Does

ZulipChat MCP bridges any MCP-compatible AI assistant (Claude Code, Gemini CLI, Cursor, Windsurf, etc.) to your Zulip workspace. The assistant can:

• Send and read messages — stream messages, DMs, replies, reactions
• Search conversation history — full-text search with filters for sender, stream, time range
• Resolve people by name — "message Jaime" just works, no hunting for formal emails
• Switch identities — post as yourself or as a bot, in the same session
• Monitor activity — search recent messages, get stream info, check who's online
• Bind sessions to Zulip topics — give long-running agent sessions a stable control topic
• Request approvals in-topic — owner replies with `approve` / `deny` in the session topic

Two-Tier Tool Architecture

v0.6.0 introduced a deliberate split: 20 core tools by default, 60 tools when you need more.

Core Mode (default)

The 20 tools that cover most daily use:

Why 20 instead of 60? Fewer tools means faster tool selection, lower token overhead, and less confusion for the AI. Most tasks — sending messages, searching, reacting, and binding an agent session to Zulip — only need the core set.

Extended Mode

Need scheduled messages, event queues, file uploads, analytics, or advanced search?

uvx zulipchat-mcp --zulip-config-file ~/.zuliprc --extended-tools

Or via environment variable:

ZULIPCHAT_EXTENDED_TOOLS=1 uvx zulipchat-mcp --zulip-config-file ~/.zuliprc

Extended mode adds: `toggle_reaction`, `cross_post_message`, `advanced_search`, `construct_narrow`, `get_scheduled_messages`, `manage_scheduled_message`, `get_drafts`, `create_draft`, `edit_draft`, `delete_draft`, `register_events`, `get_events`, `listen_events`, `upload_file`, `manage_files`, `get_daily_summary`, `manage_user_mute`, `get_user`, `get_presence`, `get_user_groups`, and more.

Installation

Full per-client setup guide: docs/integrations/README.md

Claude Code

claude mcp add zulipchat -- uvx zulipchat-mcp --zulip-config-file ~/.zuliprc

With dual identity (you + a bot):

claude mcp add zulipchat -- uvx zulipchat-mcp \
  --zulip-config-file ~/.zuliprc \
  --zulip-bot-config-file ~/.zuliprc-bot

Optional Claude hook bridge for lifecycle and approval routing:

uvx zulipchat-mcp-hook \
  --zulip-config-file ~/.zuliprc \
  --zulip-bot-config-file ~/.zuliprc-bot

Optional Claude package export for project-local hooks, skills, and subagents:

uvx zulipchat-mcp-integrate export \
  --client claude-code \
  --mode standalone \
  --output-dir . \
  --zulip-config-file ~/.zuliprc \
  --zulip-bot-config-file ~/.zuliprc-bot

Gemini CLI

Add to `~/.gemini/settings.json` under `mcpServers`:

{
  "zulipchat": {
    "command": "uvx",
    "args": ["zulipchat-mcp", "--zulip-config-file", "/path/to/.zuliprc"]
  }
}

Claude Desktop / Cursor / Any MCP Client

Add to your MCP configuration:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "zulipchat": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": ["zulipchat-mcp", "--zulip-config-file", "/path/to/.zuliprc"]
    }
  }
}

Configuration Options

Remote HTTP Transport

ZulipChat MCP supports stateless HTTP deployments under the MCP 2026-07-28 protocol:

# Run server over HTTP with bearer authentication
ZULIPCHAT_HTTP_AUTH_TOKEN=your-secret-token \
  uvx zulipchat-mcp --zulip-config-file ~/.zuliprc --transport http --host 0.0.0.0 --port 8000

Generate client integration snippets for remote HTTP connections:

uvx zulipchat-mcp-integrate print --client claude-code --remote-url http://mcp.internal:8000/mcp --remote-token your-secret-token

> Note on Multi-Replica Deployments: DuckDB state persistence is single-writer. When deploying multiple HTTP replicas, ensure each instance points to a distinct DuckDB path or run a single-instance deployment.

AI Analytics & LLM Provider

AI-powered analytics tools (`analyze_stream_with_llm`, `analyze_team_activity_with_llm`, `intelligent_report_generator`) execute using a server-side Anthropic LLM provider:

• Set `ANTHROPIC_API_KEY` on the server process for LLM generation.
• Optionally set `ANTHROPIC_MODEL` to override the default model (`claude-opus-5`).
• Without an API key, analytics tools return structured data summaries with `llm_unavailable: true` so your client assistant can analyze the data directly.

More clients

Dedicated setup pages:

• Gemini CLI
• Codex
• OpenCode
• VS Code + GitHub Copilot
• Cursor
• Windsurf
• Antigravity
• Generic MCP

Dual Identity

Configure both a user and a bot zuliprc to let your assistant switch between identities mid-session:

uvx zulipchat-mcp \
  --zulip-config-file ~/.zuliprc \
  --zulip-bot-config-file ~/.zuliprc-bot

The assistant posts as you by default. Call `switch_identity` to post as the bot — useful for automated notifications, agent-to-agent communication, or keeping human vs. bot messages distinct.

Real-World Examples

"Catch me up on what happened in #engineering today"

→ Assistant calls `search_messages` with stream + time filter, summarizes the thread.

"Tell the team we're deploying at 3pm"

→ Assistant calls `send_message` to #engineering with the announcement.

"Who sent that message about the API migration?"

→ Assistant calls `search_messages` with keywords, returns sender and context.

"React with :thumbs_up: to Sarah's last message"

→ Assistant calls `resolve_user` ("Sarah"), `search_messages` (sender), then `add_reaction`.

"DM Jaime that the PR is ready"

→ Assistant calls `teleport_chat` with fuzzy name resolution — no email needed.

Development

git clone https://github.com/akougkas/zulipchat-mcp.git
cd zulipchat-mcp
uv sync
uv run zulipchat-mcp --zulip-config-file ~/.zuliprc

Run checks:

uv run pytest -q              # full test suite, 60% coverage gate
uv run ruff check .           # Linting
uv run mypy src               # Type checking

For packaging, dependency, FastMCP, or startup changes, run the release smoke:

uv build
scripts/pre_release_smoke.sh --version X.Y.Z --allow-dirty

See CONTRIBUTING.md for the full guide, and CLAUDE.md / AGENTS.md for AI agent instructions.

Architecture

src/zulipchat_mcp/
├── core/           # Client wrapper, identity, caching, security
├── tools/          # MCP tool implementations (two-tier registration)
├── services/       # Background listener and session event routing
├── utils/          # Logging, DuckDB persistence, metrics
└── config.py       # config loading (zuliprc + environment fallback)

Built on FastMCP with async-first design, DuckDB for agent state persistence, and smart user/stream caching for fast fuzzy resolution.

Privacy

• No data collection — nothing leaves your machine except Zulip API calls
• No telemetry — zero analytics, tracking, or usage reporting
• Local execution — all processing happens on your hardware
• Credentials stay local — API keys are never logged or transmitted beyond your Zulip server

Full policy: PRIVACY.md

License

MIT — See LICENSE

Links

• Documentation Index
• Support
• Security Policy
• Zulip API Documentation
• Model Context Protocol
• Report Issues
• Discussions