Claude Code

Official docs:

Use project scope when you want to check the config into the repo for the team. Use user scope when this server should be available across all of your projects but stay private to your machine.

Fastest Setup

Project-scoped install:

claude mcp add --scope project yt-text -- yt-text

User-scoped install:

claude mcp add --scope user yt-text -- yt-text

Config Files

Project scope writes .mcp.json at the project root:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "yt-text": {
      "command": "yt-text",
      "args": []
    }
  }
}

Claude Code stores local-scope and user-scope MCP entries in ~/.claude.json. Project-scoped servers are the only ones written to .mcp.json.

Verify

Outside Claude Code:

claude mcp list
claude mcp get yt-text

Inside Claude Code:

/mcp

Then ask Claude Code to run get_metadata on a public YouTube URL.

Notes

  • local scope is the default if you do not pass --scope.
  • The CLI is the cleanest way to configure Claude Code because it writes the right file shape for the chosen scope.
  • If yt-text is not on PATH, use an absolute path in the claude mcp add command after the --.