Claude Connectors Explained: How to Add a Custom Connector (With a WordPress Example)
A Claude connector is a saved link between Claude and another application or service: upon establishment of the connection, Claude can fetch your information from that service and perform actions within it, typically relying on the authorisation you have within that platform (a shared credential allows access to what it can reach).[1] If you manage a WordPress website, it can serve as one of these services, and this tutorial will guide you through each stage with a practical WordPress example.
What is a Claude connector?
Connectors fall into three categories, with the first being a directory connector, selected from the Connectors Directory, where each connector is accompanied by a page explaining its use cases, read or write abilities, and its availability.
Custom connectors are the DIY variety: you introduce any remote MCP server using its URL. MCP (Model Context Protocol) constitutes the open standard behind these Servers; should this initialism be unfamiliar, a straightforward guide exists to clarify it. The third type is exclusive to Claude Desktop: a desktop extension that operates on your personal computer.
In February 2026, WordPress.com revealed a directory connector for its hosted sites, providing read-only access to site content, with MCP access constrained to paid WordPress.com plans.[5] For a self-hosted site, the path is via a custom connector, which is the primary focus of this guide.
Who can add a custom connector?
Custom connectors function on Claude, Cowork, and Claude Desktop across all plans: Free, Pro, Max, Team, and Enterprise. One limitation exists: Free accounts are restricted to a single custom connector.
For Team plans, only Owners and Main Owners can add a connector in Organization settings → Connectors; on Enterprise, a member with a designated role to manage the organisation’s libraries can also add one. With individual OAuth sign-in, members will locate it under Customize → Connectors (often labelled Custom) and click Connect to verify using their own account.
The reachability rule: who initiates the connection
When you set up a custom connector, Claude connects to your server from Anthropic’s cloud infrastructure, not directly from your device; this applies to claude.ai, Claude Desktop, Cowork, and the mobile applications.[2]
Implication: your server must be accessible via the public internet from Anthropic’s IP ranges. A server situated on a private network, behind a VPN, or obstructed by a firewall will not connect, regardless of its accessibility on your own system. For private networks, whitelist Anthropic’s IP addresses in the firewall; Anthropic’s documentation also indicates MCP tunnels.
A WordPress site, when served by the plugin shown in the example below, adds another criterion: by default, its OAuth endpoints decline regular HTTP requests from non-local addresses. Through plain HTTP, its OAuth discovery endpoint responds with a 403 error and the message “OAuth metadata endpoints require HTTPS.”
| Connection Method | Connection Origin | Can it reach a localhost or private site? |
|---|---|---|
| Custom connector in claude.ai, Claude Desktop, or Cowork | Anthropic’s cloud | Not localhost; a private site only if reachable by Anthropic’s IP ranges (firewall allowlist or MCP tunnel) |
Claude Code (claude mcp add) | Your computer | Yes, Claude Code can access a site on localhost, for instance, http://localhost:8094 in the illustrations below |
How to set up a custom connector, step by step
The specific buttons may vary between Anthropic’s help pages and across different organizations.[3]
- Navigate to Customize → Connectors and select to add a custom connector (look for an Add or Add custom connector button); on Team and Enterprise accounts, the Owner adds it under Organization settings → Connectors instead.
- Input a name and the remote MCP server URL: the HTTPS address where the server can accept MCP requests.
- Click Continue, examine the authentication settings detected by Claude, then choose Authentication: Sign in with (each user logs in through the server’s OAuth process before utilizing the connector), Sign in when needed (Claude prompts when the server requests), or sign in.
- If you opted for an OAuth sign-in option, select the OAuth client: Use Claude’s published identity (recommended, contingent on server support), Register automatically (dynamic client registration, compatible with most Servers), or your own OAuth client.
- If the server utilises an API key instead of OAuth, select sign in and input the key under Request headers (this is in beta and limited to certain organizations, thus you might not see it); for a bearer token, the value should be Bearer followed by the token.
- Press Add, click Connect, and complete the sign-in if OAuth is used by the server, then activate the connector by per conversation (+ button in the chat, then Connectors).
Example: Integrating your WordPress site as a custom connector
The practical example illustrates how to connect Claude Code with a WordPress site hosted on the same machine; as a custom connector in claude.ai, Claude Desktop or Cowork, the same site must have its public HTTPS address. Easy MCP AI is a free plugin that transforms a site into a remote MCP server, running PHP inside your WordPress, with an external relay in between, making the address Claude connects to as follows: https://your-site/wp-json/easy-mcp-ai/v1/mcp. Easy MCP AI is developed by Themeisle, the entity behind this blog.
You can install and activate it from the wordpress.org listing and reach the plugin’s Dashboard, where a connect card guides you through three steps: Select a client, Add this site, Confirm functionality. The installation, token, and Claude Desktop walkthrough is available in this previous guide.
The images show a demo site, Harbor Street Bakery, operational locally on WordPress 7.1.2 with Easy MCP AI 2.0.1 and Claude Code 2.1.289, hence the address reads http://localhost:8094; a live site displays its own https:// address.
Steps 1 and 2: select Claude and add the site
For Claude.ai, step 2 presents a Connect to Claude (1-click) button that leads directly to Claude’s connectors page, incorporating your site’s name and URL in the link. A noteworthy detail updates the card: its labelled steps utilise Anthropic’s former menu names; however, the one-click link already directs to the current Customize → Connectors.
Signing in on your site
An OAuth sign-in involves passing through an approval page on your own site. Easy MCP AI illustrates this with the app name, stating it will perform actions on the site as your WordPress user “and never beyond what that account can do”, offering three access levels: Read-only (“The AI can observe content, settings, and the user list. It cannot create, modify, or delete anything.”), Full access, and Custom, accompanied by Approve & Continue and Deny buttons. Initiate with the Read-only level. If Claude’s Add custom connector window prompts for an OAuth client, Register automatically employs dynamic client registration, which Easy MCP AI 2.0.1 advertises in its OAuth metadata (registration is enabled by default).
Step 3: verify functionality
The card presents a copyable check prompt requesting the AI to access the site using the wp_get_site_settings tool and enact changes: copy this prompt into a chat where the connector is enabled and observe the response naming your site and its address. An account lacking admin rights will instead receive a post count.
The same site in Claude Code
The card offers an OAuth command, marked RECOMMENDED: OAUTH, alongside a manual-token choice; this particular example utilises the token command, incorporating –scope user to ensure the server is accessible across all projects:
claude mcp add --scope user --transport http wordpress http://localhost:8094/wp-json/easy-mcp-ai/v1/mcp --header "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_TOKEN"Subsequently, claude mcp list registered the server as Connected; the command employs the same –transport http format along with an Authorization header, as detailed in Claude Code’s documentation.[4] When dispatched to Claude Code, the prompt from the card elicited the site name, Harbor Street Bakery, and its address, with the note “It only reads data, so nothing on the site was altered.” The card (showing “Connect other client” since a credential exists) updated to “Claude Code is connected.” with “First call: wp_get_site_settings.”
What actions the AI performed, and what was recorded
After verifying the connection, a subsequent prompt requested Claude Code to read the published posts, replicate their tone, and recompose Holiday pre-orders while retaining it as a draft. Claude Code examined the three published articles and the draft, subsequently executing a singular wp_update_post call via a full-access API token. The revised post maintained its draft status (“It remains a draft and hasn’t been published.”), incorporated names Ana, Tom, and Lia from the published Meet the bakers article, and utilized bracketed placeholders like [LOAF 1] rather than fabricating dates or loaf names. The post remained in draft form, and WordPress saved a revision; however, the draft’s timestamp shifted to the save time, even though the AI’s summary stated the date was unchanged: check the post in WordPress, not just the AI’s response.
The audit log records every MCP tool call (this feature is enabled by default, retaining entries for 30 days): the screenshot below displays nine instances, each marked as OK. An additional Change history maintains before/after snapshots of modifications enacted through MCP, allowing for comparison of what a write function altered.
Ensuring the security of the connection
Anthropic’s recommendations: connect exclusively to Servers operated by trusted organisations, scrutinise the permissions requested during the sign-in process, and stay alert for prompt injection: “Malicious MCP Servers may embed hidden instructions aimed at coercing Claude into performing unintended actions.” Review tool approval requests and select “Allow always” solely for a verified server and tool to operate autonomously, while blocking specific tools you don’t require under Customize → Connectors.
Research can automatically invoke connector tools without requiring additional approval, so disable tools capable of conducting write actions ahead of a research session.
Keep the audit log enabled, ensuring a response to “What actions did the AI take” is feasible for every MCP call within the specified retention window. For heightened security, you can configure Easy MCP AI to request your authorisation before any destructive actions such as deletions; this feature is optional (switched off by default) under Easy MCP AI → Settings → Access & Safety, and it won’t pause edits like the wp_update_post call unless you include that tool in its Always ask for list.
Modifying or removing a connector (and common errors)
One primary rule: you cannot alter a connector’s authentication settings after its addition. To modify them, remove the connector (Customize → Connectors, or Organization settings → Connectors for Team and Enterprise Owners) and then re-add it; members will reconnect afterwards.
- The custom connector fails to connect or times out. As the connection is established from Anthropic’s cloud, the server must possess a public HTTPS address; an Easy MCP AI site also requires HTTPS for its OAuth sign-in; for a local copy, utilise a client on your system, like Claude Code.
- The Free plan has already reached its limit of one custom connector. You must remove the existing one first.
- The connector is added, but Claude fails to use it. Connectors are toggled per conversation: access the + menu in the chat, select Connectors, and enable it.
- Responses take longer than expected to reach the site. Execute the card’s diagnostics; if another MCP plugin is active on the site, deactivate it (as clients may become confused with multiple OAuth endpoints).
Conclusion
In summary, a custom connector is your server’s HTTPS URL added from any plan (limited to one on Free), and accessible from Anthropic’s cloud; for a WordPress website, begin with Read-only access and only expand once the audit log reflects the anticipated calls. Have you linked Claude to your own WordPress site yet? What would you be willing to trust it with first? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below!
References
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