Telegram MCP Server

What is Telegram MCP Server about?

The server acts as a bridge between the Telegram API and AI assistants, exposing Telegram functionality (account info, dialogs, messages, drafts, read status) via the Model Context Protocol.

How to use Telegram MCP Server?

1. Installation
   • Homebrew: brew install chaindead/tap/telegram-mcp
   • NPX (recommended): npx -y @chaindead/telegram-mcp
   • Binary releases: download the appropriate archive for macOS, Linux or Windows and place the executable in your PATH.
   • From source: go install github.com/chaindead/telegram-mcp@latest (requires Go 1.24+).
2. Authorization

   telegram-mcp auth --app-id <API_ID> --api-hash <API_HASH> --phone <PHONE_NUMBER>
   

   Add --password <2FA> if 2FA is enabled, or --new to force a new session.
3. Client configuration (e.g., Claude Desktop or Cursor)

   {
     "mcpServers": {
       "telegram": {
         "command": "telegram-mcp",
         "env": {
           "TG_APP_ID": "<your-app-id>",
           "TG_API_HASH": "<your-api-hash>",
           "PATH": "<path_to_binary>",
           "HOME": "<home_directory>"
         }
       }
     }
   }
   

   For NPX usage, replace the command with npx -y @chaindead/telegram-mcp as shown in the README.

Key Features of Telegram MCP Server

• Retrieve current account information (tg_me).
• List dialogs with optional unread filter (tg_dialogs).
• Mark a dialog as read (tg_read).
• Fetch messages from a specific dialog (tg_dialog).
• Send draft messages to any dialog (tg_send).

Use Cases of Telegram MCP Server

• Message Management: AI can scan unread messages, summarize them, and draft replies.
• Organization: Analyze chat history to suggest folder structures or importance tags.
• Communication Monitoring: Track specific chats for updates on a topic and generate timely responses.
• Automation: Combine with other MCP‑compatible tools to create workflows (e.g., auto‑archive old chats, trigger notifications).

FAQ

• Do I need a Telegram API key? Yes – obtain API ID and API HASH from https://my.telegram.org.
• Is my account at risk? The server only uses the official Telegram API; misuse may violate Telegram's Terms of Service.
• Which operating systems are supported? macOS, Linux, and Windows (binary releases) and any OS with Go for source builds.
• Can I run the server without installing globally? Yes, use the NPX command which runs the latest version directly.
• How do I update the server? With Homebrew: brew upgrade chaindead/tap/telegram-mcp; with NPX simply rerun the command.

Telegram MCP server

The server is a bridge between the Telegram API and the AI assistants and is based on the Model Context Protocol.

[!IMPORTANT] Ensure that you have read and understood the Telegram API Terms of Service before using this server. Any misuse of the Telegram API may result in the suspension of your account.

Table of Contents

• What is MCP?
• What does this server do?
  • Capabilities
  • Prompt examples
    • Message Management
    • Organization
    • Communication
• Installation
  • Homebrew
  • NPX
  • From Releases
    • MacOS
    • Linux
    • Windows
  • From Source
• Configuration
  • Authorization
  • Client Configuration
• Star History

What is MCP?

The Model Context Protocol (MCP) is a system that lets AI apps, like Claude Desktop or Cursor, connect to external tools and data sources. It gives a clear and safe way for AI assistants to work with local services and APIs while keeping the user in control.

What does this server do?

Capabilities

• Get current account information (tool: tg_me)
• List dialogs with optional unread filter (tool: tg_dialogs)
• Mark dialog as read (tool: tg_read)
• Retrieve messages from specific dialog (tool: tg_dialog)
• Send draft messages to any dialog (tool: tg_send)

Prompt examples

Here are some example prompts you can use with AI assistants:

Message Management

• "Check for any unread important messages in my Telegram"
• "Summarize all my unread Telegram messages"
• "Read and analyze my unread messages, prepare draft responses where needed"
• "Check non-critical unread messages and give me a brief overview"

Organization

• "Analyze my Telegram dialogs and suggest a folder structure"
• "Help me categorize my Telegram chats by importance"
• "Find all work-related conversations and suggest how to organize them"

Communication

• "Monitor specific chat for updates about [topic]"
• "Draft a polite response to the last message in [chat]"
• "Check if there are any unanswered questions in my chats"

Installation

Homebrew

You can install a binary release on macOS/Linux using brew:

# Install
brew install chaindead/tap/telegram-mcp

# Update
brew upgrade chaindead/tap/telegram-mcp

NPX

You can run the latest version directly using npx (supports macOS, Linux, and Windows):

npx -y @chaindead/telegram-mcp

When using NPX, modify the standard commands and configuration as follows:

• Authentication command becomes:

npx -y @chaindead/telegram-mcp auth ...

• Claude MCP server configuration becomes:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "telegram": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@chaindead/telegram-mcp"],
      "env": {
        "TG_APP_ID": "<your-api-id>",
        "TG_API_HASH": "<your-api-hash>"
      }
    }
  }
}

For complete setup instructions, see Authorization and Client Configuration.

From Releases

MacOS

Note: The commands below install to /usr/local/bin. To install elsewhere, replace /usr/local/bin with your preferred directory in your PATH.

First, download the archive for your architecture:

# For Intel Mac (x86_64)
curl -L -o telegram-mcp.tar.gz https://github.com/chaindead/telegram-mcp/releases/latest/download/telegram-mcp_Darwin_x86_64.tar.gz

# For Apple Silicon (M1/M2)
curl -L -o telegram-mcp.tar.gz https://github.com/chaindead/telegram-mcp/releases/latest/download/telegram-mcp_Darwin_arm64.tar.gz

Then install the binary:

# Extract the binary
sudo tar xzf telegram-mcp.tar.gz -C /usr/local/bin

# Make it executable
sudo chmod +x /usr/local/bin/telegram-mcp

# Clean up
rm telegram-mcp.tar.gz

Linux

Note: The commands below install to /usr/local/bin. To install elsewhere, replace /usr/local/bin with your preferred directory in your PATH.

First, download the archive for your architecture:

# For x86_64 (64-bit)
curl -L -o telegram-mcp.tar.gz https://github.com/chaindead/telegram-mcp/releases/latest/download/telegram-mcp_Linux_x86_64.tar.gz

# For ARM64
curl -L -o telegram-mcp.tar.gz https://github.com/chaindead/telegram-mcp/releases/latest/download/telegram-mcp_Linux_arm64.tar.gz

Then install the binary:

# Extract the binary
sudo tar xzf telegram-mcp.tar.gz -C /usr/local/bin

# Make it executable
sudo chmod +x /usr/local/bin/telegram-mcp

# Clean up
rm telegram-mcp.tar.gz

Windows

Windows

1. Download the latest release for your architecture:
   • Windows x64
   • Windows ARM64
2. Extract the .zip file
3. Add the extracted directory to your PATH or move telegram-mcp.exe to a directory in your PATH

From Source

Requirements:

• Go 1.24 or later
• GOBIN in PATH

go install github.com/chaindead/telegram-mcp@latest

Configuration

Authorization

Before you can use the server, you need to connect to the Telegram API.

1. Get the API ID and hash from Telegram API

2. Run the following command:

   Note: If you have 2FA enabled: add --password <2fa_password>

   Note: If you want to override existing session: add --new

   telegram-mcp auth --app-id <your-api-id> --api-hash <your-api-hash> --phone <your-phone-number>
   

   📩 Enter the code you received from Telegram to connect to the API.

3. Done! Please give this project a ⭐️ to support its development.

Client Configuration

Example of Configuring Claude Desktop to recognize the Telegram MCP server.

1. Open the Claude Desktop configuration file:

   • in MacOS, the configuration file is located at ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
   • in Windows, the configuration file is located at %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json

   Note: You can also find claude_desktop_config.json inside the settings of Claude Desktop app

2. Add the server configuration

   for Claude desktop:

    {
      "mcpServers": {
        "telegram": {
          "command": "telegram-mcp",
          "env": {
            "TG_APP_ID": "<your-app-id>",
            "TG_API_HASH": "<your-api-hash>",
            "PATH": "<path_to_telegram-mcp_binary_dir>",
            "HOME": "<path_to_your_home_directory"
          }
        }
      }
    }
   

   for Cursor:

   {
     "mcpServers": {
       "telegram-mcp": {
         "command": "telegram-mcp",
         "env": {
           "TG_APP_ID": "<your-app-id>",
           "TG_API_HASH": "<your-api-hash>"
         }
       }
     }
   }
   

Star History