A year ago, connecting Claude to a Mac app meant finding a community project on GitHub, installing Node.js and hoping the author kept it working. That has changed quickly. A growing number of Mac apps now ship their own MCP server, switched on from inside the app, often with a button that copies the setup for you.
This list covers apps where the server comes from the app's own developer and runs on your Mac, not only on the developer's servers. We checked every entry against the developer's own documentation or release notes in September 2026. These features are changing month to month, so treat versions and settings paths as a snapshot.
Why does a built-in server matter?
Three reasons. It is maintained: when the app changes, the people who changed it update the server too. It is usually easier: no Node.js, no package to install, and often a Copy Setup button. And it tends to be more careful: the developer knows which actions are risky in their own app and can put a Trash, a permission switch or an approval step in front of them.
Running on your Mac matters for a different reason. The app answers the AI app directly, without your data first passing through the developer's cloud. The AI app itself will usually still send your conversation, including what it found, to its own servers to reply, so "local" describes the server, not the whole chat.
Mac apps with a built-in MCP server
| App | What an AI app can do | Where to turn it on |
|---|---|---|
| DEVONthink | Read, create, move and tag documents | Settings > AI > MCP |
| Day One | Read, search, create and update entries | Preferences > Labs > MCP Access Control |
| Tana | Search, read and add to your outline | On whenever the desktop app is open |
| Reflect | Search, create and edit notes | Desktop app settings |
| Bear | Work with your notes | Its bearcli tool, from Bear 2.8 |
| Atlas | Search, tag, file and lay out boards | Settings > MCP |
| Spatial | Read and add to your spaces | In-app preferences |
| Muse | Search, look at, save and file pictures, links and notes | Settings > Intelligence |
| Sketch | Read and change open documents | Settings > General > MCP Server |
| Figma | Read design context from Dev Mode | Dev Mode inspect panel |
| Xcode | Change the project and build it | Settings > Intelligence |
| JetBrains IDEs | Read and edit code, run commands | Settings > Tools > MCP Server |
| Proxyman | Inspect traffic, set breakpoints and rules | Settings > MCP |
| BetterTouchTool | Run your configured assistants and actions | BetterTouchTool's MCP settings |
A few notes the table cannot hold. Day One needs a Silver or Gold subscription and app version 2026.17 or later, and you grant access journal by journal. DEVONthink added its server in version 4.3 in May 2026, needs macOS Sequoia, and can redact sensitive details such as card numbers before an AI app sees them, a thoughtful touch. Sketch needs version 2025.2.4 and is not in the Mac App Store version. Figma's desktop server needs a Dev or Full seat on a paid plan, and Figma now points most people at its cloud server instead. Xcode gained its server in 26.3, reached through xcrun mcpbridge once you turn on "Allow external agents to use Xcode tools".
Which apps for saved pictures, links and notes?
This is the category we know best, because Muse sits in it. Several apps here now include an MCP server, and they differ in what they are for.
- Atlas added MCP in version 1.6 in August 2026, from a Settings > MCP tab. Deletions go to the Trash unless you turn on permanent deletion, and it snapshots the library before an assistant's first change. Best for: boards and canvas layouts, which are its real strength. Not for: a long try-out first, since its trial is limited to five boards.
- Muse (version 1.0.40 and later) is a visual library for pictures, videos, links and notes, at $29 once. An AI app can search by words, colours and text inside pictures, look at images, find similar ones, save new things and file them into collections. Removals go to Muse's Trash, and before the first AI change each day Muse keeps a copy of your library. Both the MCP Server and the Local API for scripts are off until you turn them on. Best for: finding one picture or link among thousands by what it looks like or what it says. Not for: Intel Macs, or reaching your library from Claude on the web or your phone.
- Spatial introduced a local MCP server in version 1.0.13 in June 2026 and has since let AI apps create spaces and delete items. Best for: arranging items into spaces, in a free app. Not for: free iCloud sync, which is part of its paid Pro.
- Eagle offers MCP as an official plugin, still in beta, alongside a local web API that has been around for years. Best for: designers who already keep a large asset library in Eagle. Not for: anyone who wants a finished MCP server today rather than a beta.
- Anybox documents a local MCP server that needs Anybox 2.15; when we checked on 23 September, the Mac App Store version was 2.14.1. Best for: bookmarks driven by Shortcuts, AppleScript and Raycast. Not for: MCP today, until 2.15 reaches the App Store.
Several well-known services in this space, such as Raindrop, mymind and Savee, also offer MCP, but through their own cloud rather than an app on your Mac. We cover one of them in Raindrop MCP, and a local alternative.
What about apps that are not on the list?
Plenty of favourites have no official server yet. Obsidian relies on community plugins. Raycast is on the other side of the fence: it uses MCP servers rather than providing one. Some developers, including Anytype, NotePlan and Drafts, publish an official server as a separate package you install alongside the app, which works well but is one more thing to set up.
A community server can be excellent, but check three things before trusting one with your data: who maintains it, when it was last updated, and whether it can delete anything.
How do you connect one?
Almost every app above gives you either a command or a block of JSON. Where it goes depends on the AI app you use. We have step-by-step guides for Claude Desktop, Claude Code and Codex, including what to do when a server does not show up. The protocol's own site has a general introduction, using Claude Desktop as the example.
You can connect several at once. Each is one entry in the same list, and the AI app picks whichever fits your question, so Claude can pull a quote from DEVONthink and a picture from Muse in the same conversation.
Frequently asked
What is a built-in MCP server?
Does a local MCP server keep my data private?
Which apps on the list can change my data?
Can I connect more than one app at once?
Does Things or Obsidian have an MCP server?
Add your saved pictures and links to the list
Free for 30 days. Then $29 once, and it is yours.