server that provides seamless integration with GitHub APIs, enabling advanced

automation and interaction capabilities for developers and tools.

[](https://insiders.vscode.dev/redirect/mcp/install?name=github&inputs=%5B%7B%22id%22%3A%22github_token%22%2C%22type%22%3A%22promptString%22%2C%22description%22%3A%22GitHub%20Personal%20Access%20Token%22%2C%22password%22%3Atrue%7D%5D&config=%7B%22command%22%3A%22docker%22%2C%22args%22%3A%5B%22run%22%2C%22-i%22%2C%22--rm%22%2C%22-e%22%2C%22GITHUB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN%22%2C%22ghcr.io%2Fgithub%2Fgithub-mcp-server%22%5D%2C%22env%22%3A%7B%22GITHUB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN%22%3A%22%24%7Binput%3Agithub_token%7D%22%7D%7D) [](https://insiders.vscode.dev/redirect/mcp/install?name=github&inputs=%5B%7B%22id%22%3A%22github_token%22%2C%22type%22%3A%22promptString%22%2C%22description%22%3A%22GitHub%20Personal%20Access%20Token%22%2C%22password%22%3Atrue%7D%5D&config=%7B%22command%22%3A%22docker%22%2C%22args%22%3A%5B%22run%22%2C%22-i%22%2C%22--rm%22%2C%22-e%22%2C%22GITHUB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN%22%2C%22ghcr.io%2Fgithub%2Fgithub-mcp-server%22%5D%2C%22env%22%3A%7B%22GITHUB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN%22%3A%22%24%7Binput%3Agithub_token%7D%22%7D%7D&quality=insiders)

- Automating GitHub workflows and processes.

- Extracting and analyzing data from GitHub repositories.

- Building AI powered tools and applications that interact with GitHub's ecosystem.

[](https://insiders.vscode.dev/redirect/mcp/install?name=github&config=%7B%22type%22%3A%20%22http%22%2C%22url%22%3A%20%22https%3A%2F%2Fapi.githubcopilot.com%2Fmcp%2F%22%7D)[](https://insiders.vscode.dev/redirect/mcp/install?name=github&config=%7B%22type%22%3A%20%22http%22%2C%22url%22%3A%20%22https%3A%2F%2Fapi.githubcopilot.com%2Fmcp%2F%22%7D&quality=insiders)

The remote GitHub MCP Server is hosted by GitHub and provides the easiest method for getting up and running. If your MCP host does not support remote MCP servers, don't worry! You can use the[local version of the GitHub MCP Server](https://github.com/github/github-mcp-server?tab=readme-ov-file#local-github-mcp-server) instead.

1. An MCP host that supports the latest MCP specification and remote servers, such as[VS Code](https://code.visualstudio.com/).

For quick installation, use one of the one-click install buttons above. Once you complete that flow, toggle Agent mode (located by the Copilot Chat text input) and the server will start. Make sure you're using the[latest version of VS Code](https://code.visualstudio.com/updates/v1_101) for remote MCP and OAuth support.

For MCP Hosts that have been[configured to use the remote GitHub MCP Server](docs/host-integration.md), add the following JSON block to the host's configuration:

{

"mcp": {

"servers": {

"github": {

"type":"http",

"url":"https://api.githubcopilot.com/mcp/"

}

}

}

}

[](https://insiders.vscode.dev/redirect/mcp/install?name=github&inputs=%5B%7B%22id%22%3A%22github_token%22%2C%22type%22%3A%22promptString%22%2C%22description%22%3A%22GitHub%20Personal%20Access%20Token%22%2C%22password%22%3Atrue%7D%5D&config=%7B%22command%22%3A%22docker%22%2C%22args%22%3A%5B%22run%22%2C%22-i%22%2C%22--rm%22%2C%22-e%22%2C%22GITHUB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN%22%2C%22ghcr.io%2Fgithub%2Fgithub-mcp-server%22%5D%2C%22env%22%3A%7B%22GITHUB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN%22%3A%22%24%7Binput%3Agithub_token%7D%22%7D%7D) [](https://insiders.vscode.dev/redirect/mcp/install?name=github&inputs=%5B%7B%22id%22%3A%22github_token%22%2C%22type%22%3A%22promptString%22%2C%22description%22%3A%22GitHub%20Personal%20Access%20Token%22%2C%22password%22%3Atrue%7D%5D&config=%7B%22command%22%3A%22docker%22%2C%22args%22%3A%5B%22run%22%2C%22-i%22%2C%22--rm%22%2C%22-e%22%2C%22GITHUB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN%22%2C%22ghcr.io%2Fgithub%2Fgithub-mcp-server%22%5D%2C%22env%22%3A%7B%22GITHUB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN%22%3A%22%24%7Binput%3Agithub_token%7D%22%7D%7D&quality=insiders)

1. To run the server in a container, you will need to have[Docker](https://www.docker.com/) installed.

For quick installation, use one of the one-click install buttons at the top of this README. Once you complete that flow, toggle Agent mode (located by the Copilot Chat text input) and the server will start.

For quick installation, use one of the one-click install buttons. Once you complete that flow, toggle Agent mode (located by the Copilot Chat text input) and the server will start.

For manual installation, addthe following JSON block to yourUser Settings (JSON) file in VS Code. You can do this by pressing`Ctrl + Shift + P` and typing`Preferences: Open User Settings (JSON)`.

Addthe following JSON block to yourIDE MCP settings.

{

The GitHub MCP Server supports enabling or disabling specific groups of functionalities via the`--toolsets` flag. This allows you to control which GitHub API capabilities are available to your AI tools. Enabling only the toolsets that you need can help the LLM with tool choice and reduce the context size.

_Toolsets are not limited to Tools. Relevant MCP Resources and Prompts are also included where applicable._

The following sets of tools are available (all are on by default):

| Toolset| Description|

| -----------------------| -------------------------------------------------------------|

|`repos`| Repository-related tools (file operations, branches, commits)|

|`context`|**Strongly recommended**: Tools that provide context about the current user and GitHub context you are operating in|

|`code_security`| Code scanning alerts and security features|

|`issues`| Issue-related tools (create, read, update, comment)|

|`users`| Anything relating toGitHubUsers|

|`notifications`|GitHubNotifications related tools|

|`pull_requests`| Pull request operations (create, merge, review)|

|`actions`| GitHub Actions workflows and CI/CD operations|

|`code_security`| Code scanning alerts and security features|

|`repos`| Repository-related tools (file operations, branches, commits)|

|`secret_protection`| Secret protection related tools, such as GitHub Secret Scanning|

|`users`| Anything relating to GitHub Users|

|`experiments`| Experimental features (not considered stable)|

To specify toolsets you want available to the LLM, you can pass an allow-list in two ways: