Twilio API MCP server

The Model Context Protocol (MCP) server provides a powerful interface to expose Twilio APIs to AI assistants and other tools that support the MCP protocol. This implementation acts as a bridge between Twilio's comprehensive API suite and AI tools that need to access them.

Getting Started with Twilio MCP Server

Prerequisites

Before installing the MCP server, you'll need:

• Node.js and npm installed
• A Twilio account
• Twilio API credentials (Account SID, API Key, and API Secret)

Quick Installation

The easiest way to get started is by using npx. Create a configuration file for your MCP-enabled tool with the following content:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "twilio": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@twilio-alpha/mcp",
        "YOUR_ACCOUNT_SID/YOUR_API_KEY:YOUR_API_SECRET"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Replace YOUR_ACCOUNT_SID, YOUR_API_KEY, and YOUR_API_SECRET with your actual Twilio credentials. You can find or create API keys in the Twilio Console.

Configuration Options

Filtering APIs

To reduce context size and focus on specific APIs, use the following parameters:

npx @twilio-alpha/mcp YOUR_ACCOUNT_SID/YOUR_API_KEY:YOUR_API_SECRET --services messaging,voice

This example only loads the messaging and voice services.

Using Tags

You can also filter APIs by tags:

npx @twilio-alpha/mcp YOUR_ACCOUNT_SID/YOUR_API_KEY:YOUR_API_SECRET --tags sms,call

Security Best Practices

To protect your Twilio account data:

• Avoid running community MCP servers alongside official Twilio MCP servers
• Create dedicated API keys with appropriate permissions
• Regularly rotate your API credentials
• Monitor API usage for unusual activity

Troubleshooting

Authentication Issues

If you encounter authentication problems:

• Verify your credentials format is correct: ACCOUNT_SID/API_KEY:API_SECRET
• Check that your API key has the necessary permissions
• Ensure your account is in good standing

Context Size Limitations

If you receive errors about context size:

• Use the --services or --tags parameters to reduce the API surface
• Break operations into smaller, more focused requests

API Version Compatibility

Different Twilio APIs may use different versions (v1, v2, v3). Ensure you're referencing the correct version when making requests through the MCP server.

Additional Resources

For more advanced configurations or specific API information, visit the Twilio API documentation.

How to install this MCP server

For Claude Code

To add this MCP server to Claude Code, run this command in your terminal:

claude mcp add-json "twilio" '{"command":"npx","args":["-y","@twilio-alpha/mcp","YOUR_ACCOUNT_SID/YOUR_API_KEY:YOUR_API_SECRET"]}'

See the official Claude Code MCP documentation for more details.

For Cursor

There are two ways to add an MCP server to Cursor. The most common way is to add the server globally in the ~/.cursor/mcp.json file so that it is available in all of your projects.

If you only need the server in a single project, you can add it to the project instead by creating or adding it to the .cursor/mcp.json file.

Adding an MCP server to Cursor globally

To add a global MCP server go to Cursor Settings > Tools & Integrations and click "New MCP Server".

When you click that button the ~/.cursor/mcp.json file will be opened and you can add your server like this:

{
    "mcpServers": {
        "twilio": {
            "command": "npx",
            "args": [
                "-y",
                "@twilio-alpha/mcp",
                "YOUR_ACCOUNT_SID/YOUR_API_KEY:YOUR_API_SECRET"
            ]
        }
    }
}

Adding an MCP server to a project

To add an MCP server to a project you can create a new .cursor/mcp.json file or add it to the existing one. This will look exactly the same as the global MCP server example above.

How to use the MCP server

Once the server is installed, you might need to head back to Settings > MCP and click the refresh button.

The Cursor agent will then be able to see the available tools the added MCP server has available and will call them when it needs to.

You can also explicitly ask the agent to use the tool by mentioning the tool name and describing what the function does.

For Claude Desktop

To add this MCP server to Claude Desktop:

1. Find your configuration file:

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

2. Add this to your configuration file:

{
    "mcpServers": {
        "twilio": {
            "command": "npx",
            "args": [
                "-y",
                "@twilio-alpha/mcp",
                "YOUR_ACCOUNT_SID/YOUR_API_KEY:YOUR_API_SECRET"
            ]
        }
    }
}

3. Restart Claude Desktop for the changes to take effect