Unofficial AnyList MCP Server

An MCP server that integrates with AnyList — shopping lists, recipes, and meal planning — exposed via the Model Context Protocol. Works with Claude Desktop, Claude Code, Claude Web/Mobile, or any MCP-compatible client like Home Assistant.

Two deployment modes:

• Local (stdio) — runs on your machine alongside Claude Desktop or Claude Code. Fastest setup, no server required.

• HTTP server — runs in Docker behind a Cloudflare Tunnel. Required for Claude Web, Claude Mobile, or home assistant and useful for sharing access across devices or users.

Tools Overview

The MCP server provides 5 domain-grouped tools rather than 18+ individual ones:

• shopping — Manage shopping lists and items: add, check off, delete, organize by category and store, and browse favorites

• recipes — Browse, create, and import recipes from URLs; includes ingredient and step parsing

• meal_plan — Schedule meals on a calendar with optional links to recipes

• recipe_collections — Organize recipes into curated named collections

• health_check — Verify your connection to AnyList and access to target lists

These tools work together to enable typical workflows: browse or create recipes → plan meals → add ingredients to your shopping list. See docs/tools.md for the complete reference including all actions and parameters.

Related MCP server: AnyList MCP Server

Installation: Claude Desktop

The fastest way to get started is to download the latest anylist-mcp.mcpb from the releases page.

Build a Desktop Extension

Create the local desktop-extension bundle:

npm run pack

This produces anylist-mcp.mcpb in the project root. The bundle includes the MCP server and dependencies and validates its manifest during packaging.

To verify a locally built bundle:

unzip -t anylist-mcp.mcpb

Install the Bundle

Before installing, create the login-Keychain item the extension uses. macOS securely prompts for the password because -w is the final argument:

/usr/bin/security add-generic-password -U \
  -a "you@example.com" \
  -s "anylist-mcp" \
  -l "AnyList MCP" \
  -w

1. Open Claude Desktop → Settings → Extensions.

2. Drag and drop the .mcpb file, or click "Advanced settings" → Install extension.

3. No AnyList username or password is requested. The extension reads both from the anylist-mcp login-Keychain item when it first connects.

Installation: Claude Code (Recipe-First)

Prerequisites

• Node.js v20+

• An AnyList account

Setup

git clone --recurse-submodules https://github.com/bobby060/anylist-mcp.git
cd anylist-mcp
npm install

The recipe tools do not need a shopping-list name. Configure ANYLIST_LIST_NAME only when you also want shopping-list access.

On macOS, save your password in Keychain first. This opens a secure password prompt and does not put the password in a configuration file:

npm run keychain:set -- you@example.com

Run the same command again after changing your AnyList password. ANYLIST_PASSWORD remains a fallback for non-macOS environments, but should not be committed or put in shared MCP configuration.

Add the local stdio server to Claude Code:

claude mcp add \
  --transport stdio \
  --scope user \
  anylist \
  -e ANYLIST_USERNAME=you@example.com \
  -e ANYLIST_KEYCHAIN_SERVICE=anylist-mcp \
  -- /absolute/path/to/node /absolute/path/to/anylist-mcp/src/server.js

Use command -v node to find the absolute Node path. Verify the configuration with claude mcp get anylist, start a new Claude Code session, then run /mcp.

Try: Search my AnyList recipes for chicken and show the first 10 results. Recipe lists are paginated with limit and offset, and a recipe can be read by its AnyList ID or name.

If you prefer manual JSON configuration, use:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "anylist": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["/absolute/path/to/anylist-mcp/src/server.js"],
      "env": {
        "ANYLIST_USERNAME": "you@example.com",
        "ANYLIST_KEYCHAIN_SERVICE": "anylist-mcp"
      }
    }
  }
}

Installation: Claude Web / Claude Mobile

Claude Web and Mobile require an HTTP MCP server accessible over HTTPS. This project includes a Docker-based HTTP server designed to run behind a Cloudflare Tunnel. The server is designed for self-hosting, but can theoretically support any number of users. You can (should?) restrict what email addresses are allowed to create accounts in the allowed-emails.txt file.

See docs/cloudflare-setup.md for the full setup guide, including:

• Quick tunnel for development (no Cloudflare account needed)

• Named tunnel for production (stable URL on your own domain)

Quick start:

git clone --recurse-submodules https://github.com/bobby060/anylist-mcp.git
cd anylist-mcp

# Configure
cp .env.http.example .env          # fill in SERVER_SECRET_KEY and SESSION_SECRET
mkdir -p config
cp allowed-emails.example.txt config/allowed-emails.txt   # add your email

# Start server + Cloudflare quick tunnel
docker compose --profile cloudflare-temp up --build
# Watch logs for the trycloudflare.com URL, then add it as an MCP server in Claude Settings/Connectors

Generating OAuth Client Credentials (for Home Assistant / headless clients)

Some MCP clients — like Home Assistant — require a pre-registered client_id and client_secret rather than dynamic client registration. You create a confidential client once, then enter the credentials in your integration. Home Assistant will still send you through a one-time browser login (authorization code flow) to link your account.

Prerequisites: the HTTP server must already be running and you must have an account on it.

# Run inside the Docker container (the server must be up)
docker compose exec anylist-mcp node scripts/create-client.js you@example.com "Home Assistant"

This prints a client_id and client_secret. Save the secret immediately — it is hashed in the database and cannot be retrieved later.

The server URL (what you enter in HA) is:

https://<your-tunnel-domain>

See docs/home-assistant.md for step-by-step Home Assistant setup.

Development

# Unit tests (mocked, no credentials needed)
npm test

# Integration tests (requires .env with real credentials)
npm run test:integration

# Inspect with the MCP inspector
npx @modelcontextprotocol/inspector node src/server.js

Building the desktop extension

npm run pack   # produces anylist-mcp.mcpb

Roadmap

• Google OAuth — allow users to sign in to the HTTP MCP server with their Google account instead of a separate password.

• Web gui-based workflow for created oauth client credentials

Credits

AnyList API from a fork of anylist by @codetheweb.

Contributions welcome — feel free to open issues and pull requests.