GitHub MCP Server
by GitHub
GitHub's official MCP server — lets an agent read repositories, open issues and pull requests, review diffs, and manage workflows directly from your GitHub account.
Add the hosted server (OAuth)
claude mcp add --transport http github https://api.githubcopilot.com/mcp/
About
GitHub's official MCP server exposes repositories, issues, pull requests, branches, and Actions workflows as tools an agent can call directly — searching code across repos, opening a PR, commenting on an issue, or checking a workflow run's status, all without leaving your coding session.
It ships as both a remote hosted server (OAuth login, no token management) and a local binary for self-hosted or offline use, with fine-grained scopes so you can limit an agent to read-only access or specific repositories.
Key features
- Search code, issues, and pull requests across your repositories
- Create and update issues, PRs, and PR review comments
- Inspect commit history, branches, and file contents
- Read GitHub Actions workflow runs and logs
Use cases
- Have an agent open a pull request with a generated changelog after finishing a task
- Search across repositories for where a function or config key is used
- Triage incoming issues by reading and labeling them automatically
Available tools
search_repositories
Searches GitHub repositories by name, owner, or keyword.
get_file_contents
Reads a file's contents from a specific repo, branch, or commit.
create_pull_request
Opens a new pull request between two branches.
create_issue
Creates a new issue with a title, body, and labels.
list_workflow_runs
Lists recent GitHub Actions workflow runs and their status.
Frequently asked questions
Do I have to paste a personal access token?
No — the hosted endpoint uses browser-based OAuth, so your client opens a GitHub login flow and you approve the scopes directly. A local binary with a PAT is available for CI environments.
Can I restrict it to read-only access?
Yes — the OAuth consent screen lets you grant only the scopes you need, and self-hosted deployments can set explicit read-only toolsets.