---
meta:
  title: "Claude Desktop + Liveblocks"
  parentTitle: "Integrations"
  description:
    "Use Claude Desktop with Liveblocks agent skills and the MCP server to
    inspect and modify your project with AI."
---

Use [Claude Desktop](https://claude.ai/download) with Liveblocks to add
collaborative features to your app. Install
[agent skills](/docs/tools/agent-skills) so your assistant follows Liveblocks
and Yjs guidance, and use our [MCP server](/docs/tools/mcp-server) to allow AI
to inspect and modify your data, such as rooms, Storage, Yjs, comments, and
more.

<PromptCta />

## Setup

<Steps>
  <Step>
    <StepTitle>Install agent skills</StepTitle>
    <StepContent>
      To help AI follow best practices in your app, add [Liveblocks agent skills](/docs/tools/agent-skills)
      to your system. Make sure to select Claude Desktop in the CLI. Global installation is easiest.

      ```bash
      npx skills add liveblocks/skills
      ```

    </StepContent>

  </Step>

  <Step>
    <StepTitle>Install MCP server</StepTitle>
    <StepContent>
      To allow AI to inspect and modify data in your project, install the
      [Liveblocks MCP server](/docs/tools/mcp-server).

      1. In Claude Desktop, go to Settings → Developer → Edit Config.
      2. Open the JSON file, `claude_desktop_config.json`.
      3. Add the following JSON, inserting your secret key from
         [your dashboard](/dashboard):

      ```json
      {
        "mcpServers": {
          "liveblocks": {
            "command": "npx",
            "args": ["-y", "github:liveblocks/liveblocks-mcp-server"],
            "env": {
              "LIVEBLOCKS_SECRET_KEY": "{{SECRET_KEY}}"
            }
          }
        }
      }
      ```

      <Banner type="warning" title="Only for development">
        Do not use a secret key from a production project, as AI will have direct access to delete data.
      </Banner>

    </StepContent>

  </Step>

  <Step lastStep>
    <StepTitle>Get help from your AI assistant</StepTitle>
    <StepContent>
      You can now use your AI assistant to help you structure and debug your Liveblocks application. 
      Here are a few examples.

      > Q: Set up a Liveblocks room on this page.
      >
      > A: _Certainly, I've set up a Liveblocks room on this page using `RoomProvider`, it has…_

      <br />

      > Q: How many rooms are there?
      >
      > A: _There are 10 rooms, the last was created 7 minutes ago. Its room ID is `l8Gaj9` and…_

      <br />

      > Q: Add placeholder comments to the `l8Gaj9` room.
      >
      > A: _I've filled the room with example commands and threads, following your instructions._
    </StepContent>

  </Step>
</Steps>

## More information

### Agent skills

Two agent skills are available to your assistant, `liveblocks-best-practices`
and `yjs-best-practices`. These are collections of markdown files that detail
various best practices for using Liveblocks and Yjs. We always recommend using
these skills when building, debugging, or answering questions about Liveblocks
and Yjs.

<Button href="/docs/tools/agent-skills">Agent skills documentation</Button>

### MCP server

Most Liveblocks [REST API](/docs/api-reference/rest-api-endpoints) operations as
tools, so your AI can inspect and edit rooms and data from Claude Desktop. This
is helpful for fetching data when debugging, and also useful for creating
placeholder content in your development app, for example you can ask AI to
create new rooms and add placeholder comments and data.

Each Liveblocks project has a unique secret key, which you pass when installing
the MCP server. Only data from this project can be inspected. Never use a secret
key from a production project, as giving AI direct access would be dangerous,
allowing it to delete your production data.

<Button href="/docs/tools/mcp-server">MCP server documentation</Button>

## Limitations and troubleshooting

### Skills do not load

Re-run `npx skills add liveblocks/skills` and ensure Claude Desktop is selected
in the CLI. Restart Claude Desktop after installation.

### MCP returns auth errors

Use a secret key from the same [Liveblocks project](/dashboard) as your app.
Confirm `LIVEBLOCKS_SECRET_KEY` in `claude_desktop_config.json` matches that
project.

### MCP returns incorrect data

Check that you’re using the correct secret key for your current project. Try
uninstalling and reinstalling with the correct key.

## Related docs

- [Agent skills](/docs/tools/agent-skills).
- [MCP server](/docs/tools/mcp-server).
- [REST API reference](/docs/api-reference/rest-api-endpoints).

---

For an overview of all available documentation, see [/llms.txt](/llms.txt).