trello

The Trello MCP Server exposes an API for interacting with Trello boards, lists, and cards through AI-enabled hosts. It can run in Claude app mode for seamless integration with the Claude Desktop app or in SSE mode to serve any MCP-compatible client (including Cursor). Once running, you can ask Claude or your client to read boards, lists, and cards, create or update items, and manage checklists. Typical interactions include commands like listing boards, retrieving lists in a board, creating a new card in a list, or updating card attributes. When using Cursor, connect to the SSE endpoint at http://localhost:8000 (or your configured host/port) and select the Trello MCP Server to drive Trello actions via natural language prompts. For other MCP clients, point them to the SSE endpoint as well.

Prerequisites:

• Python 3.12 or higher
• uv (package manager) installed
• Trello API credentials (API key and token)
• Claude Desktop (for Claude App mode) if you plan to use Claude integration

Step-by-step installation:

1. Install uv (if not already installed):

curl -LsSf https://astral.sh/uv/install.sh | sh

2. Clone the repository:

git clone https://github.com/m0xai/trello-mcp-server.git
cd trello-mcp-server

3. Set up Trello API credentials:

• Create a Trello API key and token as described in the README, and place them in a .env file in the project root:

TRELLO_API_KEY=your_api_key_here
TRELLO_TOKEN=your_token_here

4. Install dependencies and prepare the MCP server for Claude (if using Claude app mode):

uv run mcp install main.py

5. Run the server in SSE mode (standalone) or Claude app mode:

• Claude App mode

# Ensure USE_CLAUDE_APP=true is set in .env
uv run mcp install main.py

• SSE mode

# Set USE_CLAUDE_APP=false in .env
python main.py

6. Access the server at the configured host/port (default http://localhost:8000).

Optional Docker-based setup is available via docker-compose as described in the repository’s guidance.

Environment variables:

• TRELLO_API_KEY: Trello API key (required)
• TRELLO_TOKEN: Trello API token (required)
• MCP_SERVER_NAME: Friendly MCP server name
• MCP_SERVER_HOST: Host for SSE mode (default 0.0.0.0)
• MCP_SERVER_PORT: Port for SSE mode (default 8000)
• USE_CLAUDE_APP: true to use Claude App mode; false for SSE mode

Common issues:

• Ensure the Trello API key and token have the necessary permissions for the actions you intend (read/write/delete).
• When using Claude App mode, restart Claude after starting the MCP server.
• If you switch to SSE mode, ensure the port is open and not blocked by a firewall.
• In Cursor, ensure the server URL matches your running mode (http://localhost:8000/sse).

Tips:

• For smoother interactions, predefine frequently used Trello operations (e.g., creating standard card templates) within your prompts.
• Use the SSE endpoint to integrate with multiple clients simultaneously.