LinkList — Connect · Claude Desktop

Connect LinkList to Claude Desktop.

Claude Desktop reads its MCP servers from one config file. This one bridges the remote endpoint to it, so the same collections you query in the terminal answer in the desktop app.

Verified against the live endpoint on 2026-07-27.

01 — Get a key

One key per agent or machine. It reads every collection in your account, and can add sources unless you turn that off.

Free · 100 queries/day · no card

No account yet? The demo collection publishes a live read-only key you can paste in place of your own. Query the demo collection first

02 — Add the endpoint

Create the file if it is not there, then quit Claude Desktop completely and open it again. On macOS the file is at ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/, on Windows at %APPDATA%\Claude\.

FILE claude_desktop_config.json

{
"mcpServers": {
"linklist": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"mcp-remote",
"https://linklist.io/mcp",
"--header",
"Authorization:${AUTH_HEADER}"
],
"env": {
"AUTH_HEADER": "Bearer llk_YOUR_KEY"
}
}
}
}

03 — Check it connected

Open the tools menu in a new chat. A connected server lists its tools by name. Nothing appears until the app has been fully quit and reopened — reloading the window is not enough.

Also works

Claude Desktop can also take the endpoint natively: Settings, then Connectors, then Add custom connector, with https://linklist.io/mcp as the URL and authorization set to "Bearer" plus your key under Request headers. That header field is a staged beta and is not on every account yet. The config file above needs no beta access and is why it leads here.

04 — Ask your agent

Ask something your sources cover. Every passage comes back with its URL and the date it was fetched, so the answer is checkable.

> which payroll APIs handle contractor payments?
  search_sources → 8 citations
  [1] highline.co · fetched 2026-07-27 · link_id 7
  [2] atomic.financial · fetched 2026-07-27 · link_id 1
  [3] truv.com · fetched 2026-07-27 · link_id 3

What your agent can call

Five tools, three of them read-only.

Every key lists all five. A read-only key still sees the two write tools and refuses the call, so an agent that tries to add a source gets an error rather than silently writing.

  • search_sources Search vetted sources
  • list_collections List available collections
  • get_source Get full source text
  • add_source Add a source to a collection
  • create_collection Create a collection

Protocol 2025-11-25, negotiated down to 2025-06-18 and 2025-03-26 for older clients.

When it does not work

There is no Request headers section in the connector dialog
Header authentication has not reached your account. It is rolling out gradually. Use the config file above, which does not depend on it.
Server disconnected after editing the config
The config is read once at launch. Quit the app entirely — Cmd+Q on macOS, or Quit from the tray on Windows — and start it again. Closing the window leaves the old config running.
Why is there no space after Authorization:
Claude Desktop on Windows splits each args entry on spaces, which breaks "Bearer llk_..." into two arguments and mangles the header. Keeping the space inside the env value avoids it, and mcp-remote reassembles the header before sending. The same file then works on both platforms.

Other clients

The endpoint is the same for every client that speaks MCP over streamable HTTP. Only the file it goes in changes.

MCP starter pack

Verified setup configs for every client.

Copy-paste configuration for Claude Code, Claude Desktop and Cursor, plus the eval harness so you can measure your own retrieval.

One email with the pack. No sequence.

Point your agent at sources you trust.

Free tier, no card. The endpoint is live now.