stackexchange-mcp-server

Search Stack Exchange questions, fetch Q&A threads as markdown, look up tag FAQs and user profiles.

CommunityOnlineNo sign-inGlobalFreeRead-only

What it can do

    What data it sees

    Do you need an account

    No: the server works without sign-in

    Search Stack Exchange questions, fetch Q&A threads as markdown, look up tag FAQs and user profiles.

    How to connect

    How to connect stackexchange-mcp-server to Claude

    The server address to paste into Claude settings:

    https://stackexchange.caseyjhand.com/mcp

    1. Open Claude (claude.ai or the desktop app).
    2. Go to Settings → Connectors.
    3. Click Add custom connector.
    4. Paste the server address copied below into Remote MCP server URL and click Add.
    5. In a chat, click + → Connectors and switch the new connector on.

    Custom connectors are available on Free, Pro, Max, Team and Enterprise plans (Free is limited to one). On Team and Enterprise an organization Owner adds the connector first under Organization settings → Connectors.

    Authorization

    After you click Add, a sign-in window for the service opens. Sign in with your own account and approve access. Claude never sees your password.

    How to connect stackexchange-mcp-server to ChatGPT

    The server address to paste into ChatGPT settings:

    https://stackexchange.caseyjhand.com/mcp

    1. Open ChatGPT in a browser (chatgpt.com). A Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise or Edu plan is required.
    2. Turn on developer mode once: Settings → Apps → Advanced settings → Developer mode.
    3. Open Settings → Connectors and click Create.
    4. Fill in the form: Name (anything), Description (one line about what the service does), MCP server URL (copy it below).
    5. Under Authentication choose OAuth if the service requires sign-in, otherwise None. Click Create.
    6. In a new chat open + → Apps/Connectors and enable the connector.

    OpenAI has renamed this section before (Connectors → Apps/Plugins). If the label differs, search settings for "developer mode". On Business/Enterprise workspaces an admin must allow custom connectors first.

    Authorization

    On first use ChatGPT opens the service's sign-in window. Sign in and approve access.

    How to connect stackexchange-mcp-server to Cursor

    The server address to paste into Cursor settings:

    https://stackexchange.caseyjhand.com/mcp

    Fastest: click Open in Cursor below and confirm the prompt.

    Manually:

    1. In Cursor open Settings → Cursor Settings → MCP and click Add new global MCP server.
    2. Paste the JSON copied below into ~/.cursor/mcp.json (per project: .cursor/mcp.json in the repo root).
    3. Save the file. The server appears in the MCP list; authorize it there if asked.

    Authorization

    If the service needs sign-in, an authorize button appears next to the server in the MCP list.

    Server tool list (5)

    Raw names from tools/list. Only developers need these.

    stackexchange_list_sitesEnumerate all sites in the Stack Exchange network — name, api_site_parameter, audience, and URL. The api_site_parameter value is what other tools accept as the `site` input (e.g. "stackoverflow", "superuser", "serverfault"). Results are fetched live and optionally filtered by name. Use this tool to discover valid site parameters before calling other stackexchange_* tools.
    stackexchange_search_questionsSearch questions across a Stack Exchange site. Returns ranked questions with title, score, answer count, accepted status, tags, ask and last-activity dates, and a short excerpt of the question body — not the full body. Results supply question_id values for stackexchange_get_thread, which fetches the full question body and all answers. Results past the pageSize cap are reachable with the `page` parameter. Use the `site` parameter to target a specific community (e.g. "stackoverflow", "superuser", "unix"); call stackexchange_list_sites to discover valid site values.
    stackexchange_get_tag_faqFetch the highest-voted answered questions for a tag on a Stack Exchange site — the canonical "best answers in X" list. Returns a question list without bodies; use stackexchange_get_thread to read the full body and answers for any result. Results past the pageSize cap are reachable with the `page` parameter. Use this tool to find the authoritative community resources on a topic (e.g. tag "javascript" on stackoverflow). Use stackexchange_search_questions for free-text search rather than tag-based browsing.
    stackexchange_get_userFetch a Stack Exchange user profile by numeric user ID: reputation, badge counts, answer and question counts, account and last-access dates, and top tags by answer score. Useful for credibility context on an answer author — pass the authorUserId from any question or answer in stackexchange_get_thread output. Returns profile fields plus up to 10 top tags by answer score.
    stackexchange_get_threadFetch a complete Q&A thread — question body and all answers, accepted answer first then sorted by score, rendered as clean markdown with fenced code blocks. Accepts an integer question ID or a full Stack Exchange question URL (e.g. "https://stackoverflow.com/questions/11227809/why-is-processing-a-sorted-array-faster" or "11227809"). HTML is normalized to markdown automatically; attribution (author + link) included per CC BY-SA 4.0. Get question IDs from stackexchange_search_questions or stackexchange_get_tag_faq.