AWS S3 MCP Server: Setup for Claude, Cursor and Other Apps
Not the official AWS MCP server. This one is built by the community. AWS makes its own: AWS Knowledge MCP Server →
Lets Claude and other assistants list your Amazon S3 buckets, browse the files in them and read file contents.
AWS S3 MCP is a community server by samuraikun that gives the assistant read access to Amazon S3. It can list buckets, list the objects in a bucket and read an object's contents. It is not made by Amazon.
It runs on your computer and uses your AWS credentials, either from your normal AWS setup or from key variables. You can limit it to named buckets with an allow list, which is worth doing.
Good for
- Developers who want Claude to read logs, exports or configs stored in S3
- Analysts who keep CSV or JSON data in S3 and want it summarised
- Anyone who wants S3 access that cannot write or delete
Works in
12 should work
Tap an app to see how to set it up and any known problems.
Supports local MCP servers.
Supports local MCP servers.
Supports local MCP servers.
Supports local MCP servers.
Supports local MCP servers.
Supports local MCP servers.
Supports local MCP servers.
Supports local MCP servers.
Supports local MCP servers.
Supports local MCP servers.
Supports local MCP servers.
Supports local MCP servers.
Client does not support this transport.
Client does not support this transport.
Install AWS S3 MCP
Claude Code
- 1
Copy this prompt.
Add the AWS S3 MCP server to Claude Code. Run this command: claude mcp add aws-s3 -- npx -y aws-s3-mcp Then check that it loaded and tell me if I need to sign in or restart.
- 2
Paste it into Claude Code. It shows the change and asks before running it.
Requires Node.js.
Built from the package data we hold. Not yet tested by us.
Tools
Lists the S3 buckets you can reach
Calls S3 to list buckets, keeps only those on your allowed list if you set one, and returns up to the maximum number set (5 by default).
Try: “Which S3 buckets do I have?”
Network ·
list-bucketsLists the files in a bucket, optionally under a folder prefix
Returns the object keys in one bucket. You can limit it to a prefix and a maximum number of keys, which defaults to 1000.
Try: “List the files under reports/2026 in my-data-bucket.”
Network ·
list-objectsReads a file from a bucket
Fetches one object by bucket and key. Text files come back as text, PDFs are converted to text, and other files come back as raw data.
Try: “Read reports/2026/summary.csv from my-data-bucket and summarise it.”
Network ·
get-object
Read from the source code
Permissions
medium risk · 3 things to watch
Medium risk
The assistant can read any file in the S3 buckets your AWS key reaches. Set the allowed-buckets list and use a read-only key.
What it can do
- Read your data
- Create and change things
- Delete things
- Read-only modeHow to turn it on
Watch out for
It can read any object your AWS key can reach
Unless you set S3_BUCKETS, every bucket your credentials can list is available. Set the allow list and use a read-only key limited to the buckets you need. registry.npmjs.org
The optional HTTP mode listens on every interface with no sign-in
With --http (or MCP_TRANSPORT=http) the server starts on port 3000 with no host setting and allows requests from any origin. Anyone on your network could read your allowed buckets, so stay with the default mode. registry.npmjs.org
The README and the package disagree on the default mode
The README says it starts in HTTP mode by default, but the published 0.4.0 code uses stdio unless you pass --http. Trust the install box configs. github.com
Security advisories
No published security advisories as of Nov 1, 2026.
Technical details
| Turning on read-only | All three tools only list or read; the code issues only list-buckets, list-objects and get-object calls to S3. Use an AWS key with read-only permissions to enforce it. |
|---|---|
| Talks to | Amazon S3 in your configured region |
| Sign-in and keys | Uses your AWS credentials from the standard AWS setup or from AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID and AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY in the server's environment. |
Questions
Is it official?
No. It is a community server by samuraikun and is not made by Amazon Web Services. AWS publishes its own servers in the awslabs/mcp repository, but none of them is a general bucket and object reader like this one: the S3 Tables MCP Server manages S3 Tables for analytics, and the AWS API MCP Server covers all AWS services through validated API commands.
Can it delete or overwrite files?
No. It has three tools and the code only lists buckets, lists objects and reads objects. Use a read-only AWS key as well, to be safe.
How do I give it AWS credentials?
Use your normal AWS credentials setup, or set AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID and AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY along with AWS_REGION in the server environment.
How do I limit which buckets it can see?
Set S3_BUCKETS to a comma-separated list of bucket names. Without it, all buckets your key can list are allowed.
Why does it only show 5 buckets?
The default maximum is 5. Raise it with S3_MAX_BUCKETS.
Does it work with S3-compatible storage like MinIO?
The README includes a Docker Compose setup with MinIO for local testing. It does not document other S3-compatible services.
How do I add it to Claude?
Use the Claude Code or Claude Desktop tab in the install box above, and set your AWS region and bucket list.
Can it read PDFs?
Yes. The code converts PDF objects to text before returning them. Other binary files come back as raw data.
Information
updated Nov 2, 2026
- Publisher
- Community
- Package
aws-s3-mcp- Registry
- npm
- Transport
- stdio, Streamable HTTP
- Version
- 0.4.0
- License
- MIT
- Last commit
- Feb 14, 2026
- Open issues
- 3
Other AWS MCP servers
Sources
Docs, issue trackers and discussions this page is built from. Issues, quotes and findings above link to their own source.
Show all 3Hide
- aws-s3-mcp README (v0.4.0) · github.com
- aws-s3-mcp 0.4.0 npm package (dist) · registry.npmjs.org
- AWS MCP Servers (awslabs/mcp) README · github.com