# recursechat/mcp-server-apple-shortcuts [Health: Active]

**Category:** 📂 Browser Automation  
**Repository:** https://github.com/recursechat/mcp-server-apple-shortcuts  
**GitHub Stars:** 352  
**npm Downloads (last month):** 1695  
**Views:** 4  
**Installs:** 0  
**Upvotes:** 0  
**Directory Page:** https://allmcps.com/mcp/recursechat-mcp-server-apple-shortcuts

## Description
An MCP Server Integration with Apple Shortcuts

## Tools
Capabilities this server exposes over MCP:

- **run_shortcut** — Run a Shortcuts automation by name
- **list_shortcuts** — List all available shortcuts

## Claude Desktop Quick Installation
Install path detected from listing signals. Uses `npx` (confidence: high):

```json
"mcpServers": {
  "mcp-server-apple-shortcuts": {
    "command": "npx",
    "args": ["-y","mcp-server-apple-shortcuts"]
  }
}
```

## Documentation

## What recursechat/mcp-server-apple-shortcuts MCP server does

The recursechat/mcp-server-apple-shortcuts MCP server exposes macOS Shortcuts automations through the Model Context Protocol. An assistant can first retrieve the shortcuts available on the Mac, then invoke one by its name. This provides an MCP interface for automations already configured in the Shortcuts app rather than defining those automations inside the server.

The repository documents examples such as asking an assistant to list shortcuts, retrieve a word of the day, or play a song. The actual actions depend on the shortcuts installed and configured on the target Mac.

## How it works

The server runs as an MCP process and makes two operations available:

- `list_shortcuts` returns the available shortcuts.
- `run_shortcut` starts a selected shortcut by name and can accept optional input parameters.

An MCP client sends requests to these tools. For a typical workflow, the assistant uses `list_shortcuts` to discover available names and then passes a selected name to `run_shortcut`. The README presents Claude Desktop as the client and shows a configuration that starts the package with `npx`.

## Setup and configuration

The recursechat/mcp-server-apple-shortcuts MCP server requires Node.js 18 or newer, Claude Desktop, and macOS with the Shortcuts app configured. The documented package-based setup adds an MCP server entry with `npx -y mcp-server-apple-shortcuts` as the command and argument configuration.

A local source build is also supported. Clone the repository, install dependencies with `npm install`, and create the build with `npm run build`. Claude Desktop can then be configured to launch the generated `build/index.js` file through `npx` using its local path.

No environment variables are documented as required. Because the tools operate on macOS Shortcuts, the server is intended to run in an environment where that app and its shortcuts are available.

## Tools and capabilities

`list_shortcuts` is useful for discovering the names that can be passed to the execution tool. `run_shortcut` runs a named automation and supports optional input parameters. Together, these tools cover shortcut discovery and invocation through an MCP client.

The server does not provide a separate catalog of automation actions. What it can do is determined by the shortcuts configured in the macOS Shortcuts app and by the inputs those shortcuts accept.

## Limitations and notes

This server depends on macOS and the Shortcuts app, so it is not a general-purpose automation service for other operating systems. A shortcut must already exist and be configured before the assistant can invoke it. The README specifically documents Claude Desktop rather than describing behavior for other MCP clients.

The repository does not document authentication settings, environment variables, shortcut permissions, or a remote deployment mode. Evaluate the configured shortcuts and their effects before making them available to an assistant.

_Full upstream README: https://allmcps.com/mcp/recursechat-mcp-server-apple-shortcuts/readme_