Telegram MCP Server

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that provides full access to your personal Telegram account. This allows you to interact with your Telegram messages, chats, and contacts through MCP clients like Claude Desktop.

Features

• Full Account Access: Access all your personal messages, chats, and channels

• Message Management: Read, send, and search messages across all conversations

• Chat Operations: List, search, and get information about chats, groups, and channels

• User Information: Get details about users and contacts

• Real-time Operations: Mark messages as read and perform live actions

Related MCP server: tgmcp

Prerequisites

1. Telegram API Credentials: You need to obtain API credentials from Telegram

2. Node.js: Version 18 or higher

3. Your Phone Number: The phone number associated with your Telegram account

Setup Instructions

1. Get Telegram API Credentials

1. Go to https://my.telegram.org/apps

2. Log in with your phone number

3. Create a new application:

   • App title: Choose any name (e.g., "My MCP Server")

   • Short name: Choose a short name (e.g., "mcp-server")

   • Platform: Choose "Desktop"

4. Note down your api_id and api_hash

2. Install Dependencies

npm install

3. Configure Environment

1. Copy the example environment file:

cp .env.example .env

2. Edit .env and fill in your credentials:

TELEGRAM_API_ID=your_api_id_here
TELEGRAM_API_HASH=your_api_hash_here
TELEGRAM_PHONE=+1234567890
NODE_ENV=production
SESSION_DIR=./session

4. Build the Project

npm run build

5. Authentication

Before using the MCP server, you need to authenticate with Telegram. Run the standalone authentication script:

npm run auth

You'll be prompted to:

1. Enter the verification code sent to your Telegram app

2. If you have 2FA enabled, enter your password

The session will be saved in the session/ directory and reused automatically by the MCP server.

MCP Client Configuration

Q CLI

For Amazon Q CLI, create or edit your MCP configuration file:

macOS/Linux: ~/.config/mcp/mcp.json Windows: %APPDATA%\mcp\mcp.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "telegram": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["/Users/orrb/personal/workspace/telegram-mcp/dist/index.js"],
      "env": {
        "TELEGRAM_API_ID": "your_api_id",
        "TELEGRAM_API_HASH": "your_api_hash",
        "TELEGRAM_PHONE": "+1234567890"
      }
    }
  }
}

Claude Desktop

Add this to your Claude Desktop configuration file:

macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "telegram": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["/path/to/telegram-mcp-server/dist/index.js"],
      "env": {
        "TELEGRAM_API_ID": "your_api_id",
        "TELEGRAM_API_HASH": "your_api_hash",
        "TELEGRAM_PHONE": "+1234567890"
      }
    }
  }
}

Cline (VS Code Extension)

For Cline, add the MCP server to your VS Code settings or Cline configuration:

{
  "cline.mcpServers": {
    "telegram": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["/path/to/telegram-mcp-server/dist/index.js"],
      "env": {
        "TELEGRAM_API_ID": "your_api_id",
        "TELEGRAM_API_HASH": "your_api_hash",
        "TELEGRAM_PHONE": "+1234567890"
      }
    }
  }
}

Other MCP Clients

For other MCP clients, use:

• Command: node

• Args: ["/path/to/telegram-mcp-server/dist/index.js"]

• Environment Variables: Set the Telegram credentials as shown above

Available Tools

Chat Management

list_chats

List all chats, groups, and channels you have access to.

Parameters:

• limit (optional): Number of chats to return (default: 50, max: 200)

get_chat_info

Get detailed information about a specific chat.

Parameters:

• chatId: The chat ID to get information for

search_chats

Search for chats by title or username.

Parameters:

• query: Search query to find chats by title

• limit (optional): Number of results to return (default: 20, max: 100)

Message Operations

get_messages

Get recent messages from a specific chat.

Parameters:

• chatId: The chat ID to get messages from

• limit (optional): Number of messages to return (default: 20, max: 100)

• fromMessageId (optional): Get messages starting from this message ID

send_message

Send a text message to a chat.

Parameters:

• chatId: The chat ID to send the message to

• text: The message text to send

• replyToMessageId (optional): Message ID to reply to

search_messages

Search for messages across all chats or within a specific chat.

Parameters:

• query: Search query to find messages

• chatId (optional): Limit search to specific chat

• limit (optional): Number of results to return (default: 20, max: 100)

mark_as_read

Mark specific messages as read in a chat.

Parameters:

• chatId: The chat ID to mark messages as read

• messageIds: Array of message IDs to mark as read

User Information

get_user_info

Get information about a specific user.

Parameters:

• userId: The user ID to get information for

Usage Examples

Once configured with an MCP client like Claude Desktop, you can use natural language commands:

• "Show me my recent chats"

• "Get the last 10 messages from my chat with John"

• "Send a message to the Development group saying 'Meeting at 3 PM'"

• "Search for messages containing 'project deadline'"

• "Get information about chat ID 12345"

Development

Running in Development Mode

npm run dev

Building

npm run build

Testing

# Test basic setup and Telegram connection
npm run test-setup

# Test MCP server functionality
npm run test-mcp

Watching for Changes

npm run watch

Security Notes

• Your session data is stored locally in the session/ directory

• Never share your API credentials or session files

• The server only runs locally and doesn't send data to external services

• All communication happens directly between your machine and Telegram's servers

Troubleshooting

Authentication Issues

1. Make sure your API credentials are correct

2. Verify your phone number format includes country code (e.g., +1234567890)

3. Check that you can receive Telegram messages for the verification code

Connection Problems

1. Ensure you have a stable internet connection

2. Try deleting the session/ directory and re-authenticating

3. Check that your API credentials haven't been revoked

MCP Client Issues

1. Verify the path to the built server (dist/index.js) is correct

2. Make sure Node.js is in your PATH

3. Check the MCP client logs for error messages

License

MIT License - see LICENSE file for details.

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.