mcp-cli Skill for Claude: Use MCP Servers From the Command Line

Teaches Claude to find and call tools on your MCP servers from the command line, using the mcp-cli program.

Installs: 9.7K; on skills.sh
Stars: 40.7K; on GitHub
Updated: Oct 2026; last repo commit

Claude follows four steps: run mcp-cli to list servers and tools, run mcp-cli <server> to see parameters, run mcp-cli <server>/<tool> for the JSON schema, then call the tool with a JSON argument. It can also search tools by name with a glob.

The skill bundles no scripts. It assumes the mcp-cli program is already installed and has servers configured. SKILL.md does not say how to get either, so set those up first.

Good for

Developers who already have MCP servers set up and want Claude to use them from a shell
People who want to list or search the tools their MCP servers offer
Anyone scripting MCP tool calls and piping JSON output

Install mcp-cli

Claude Code

Copy this prompt.

Install the mcp-cli skill in Claude Code. Run this command:

npx skills add https://github.com/github/awesome-copilot --skill mcp-cli

Then check that it loaded and tell me how to use it.

2
Paste it into Claude Code. It shows the change and asks before running it.

Requires Node.js.

This installs only the skill. SKILL.md does not say how to install the mcp-cli program or configure MCP servers; do that separately.

From its listing on skills.sh. Source.

What's in the skill

When it loads

Interface for MCP (Model Context Protocol) servers via CLI. Use when you need to interact with external tools, APIs, or data sources through MCP servers, list available MCP servers/tools, or call MCP tools from command line.

Sections in SKILL.md

Commands
Workflow
Examples
Options
Exit Codes

Key facts

Source: Listed in github/awesome-copilot, a community-created collection
Folder: 1 file including SKILL.md
Needs: The mcp-cli command on your PATH and at least one configured MCP server; SKILL.md gives no install steps
Installs on skills.sh: 9,659 (Nov 2, 2026)
GitHub stars: 40,666 (Nov 2, 2026)
License: MIT
Last repo commit: Oct 30, 2026

What it includes

Lists all servers and their tool names.
Step 1, Discover.
Runs code · mcp-cli
Shows a server's tools with their parameters.
Add -d to include descriptions.
Runs code · mcp-cli <server>
Prints the JSON schema for one tool.
Step 3, Inspect.
Runs code · mcp-cli <server>/<tool>
Calls the tool with JSON arguments.
Runs the tool on its server, which can reach GitHub, filesystems, databases or APIs depending on the server. Complex JSON can come from a heredoc or from stdin.
Try: “Use mcp-cli to read ./README.md with the filesystem server.”
Runs code · mcp-cli <server>/<tool> '<json>'
Searches tool names by glob pattern.
For example, mcp-cli grep "*file*".
Runs code · mcp-cli grep "<glob>"
Flags -j/--json, -r/--raw and -d; exit codes 0 to 3.
0 is success, 1 is a client error, 2 is a server error and 3 is a network error.
Options and exit codes

From the official docs

Permissions

Medium risk

It lets Claude run mcp-cli and call tools on your MCP servers. Approve each command, and read tool names before a call.

What it can do

Read your data
Create and change things
Delete things
Read-only mode

Watch out for

It can call any tool on your MCP servers
A call does whatever that tool does, and tools differ by server. Check the server and tool name before you approve a command.
An example pipes tool output into a shell command
The last example in SKILL.md feeds file names found by search_files into xargs and sh -c. Read any piped command before running it.

Technical details

Scopes	Runs the mcp-cli command in your shell Calls tools on whichever MCP servers you have configured

Questions

What does the mcp-cli skill do?

It teaches Claude the mcp-cli commands for listing MCP servers, reading a tool's schema and calling the tool with JSON. The skill is instructions only, so the actual work is done by the mcp-cli program.

How do I install mcp-cli?

Use the install box above for the skill. SKILL.md does not say how to install the mcp-cli program itself or how to configure servers, so install that separately. There is no Claude app tab because the skill runs a command-line program.

Do I need MCP servers already?

Yes. The commands list and call tools on servers you have configured. SKILL.md gives no setup for them.

Does it need an API key?

SKILL.md names none. Servers you call may need their own keys, which you set up with those servers.

Is it safe to use?

The skill folder bundles no scripts, but it lets Claude call tools on your configured MCP servers, and a call does whatever that tool does. Approve commands you do not recognize, and read the tool name before a call.

What output formats does it support?

-j or --json gives JSON for scripting, -r or --raw gives raw text content, and -d adds descriptions. Exit codes are 0 for success, 1 for client errors, 2 for server errors and 3 for network errors.

Information

updated Nov 2, 2026

Repository: github/awesome-copilot
Folder: skills/mcp-cli

github/awesome-copilot skills.sh

Sources

Docs, issue trackers and discussions this page is built from.

Show all 2

mcp-cli SKILL.md · github.com
awesome-copilot README · github.com