Linear MCP server

Last verified: 2026-09

Issues, projects, and cycles in Linear.

Community Chat, mail & docs Needs a secret Claude Desktop, Cursor, Windsurf, Claude Code

What it does

Issues in Linear: create, update, search, comment, list yours. Needs LINEAR_API_KEY.

It sits in Chat, mail & docs: These servers act as the bot or the integration you install.

Good for

Search issues assigned to you this cycle.
Create an issue in one team after you have seen search work.
Add a comment instead of bouncing to the Linear UI.
Turn off create if you only wanted a triage assistant.

Tools

linear_create_issue / linear_update_issue — Open or change an issue.
linear_search_issues / linear_get_user_issues — Find issues.
linear_add_comment — Comment.

Config (Claude Desktop / Cursor / Windsurf)

Paste the JSON below. Same mcpServers shape. Replace placeholder paths and secrets. Windows paths look like C:\\Users\\you\\project, not /path/to. Host-side steps →

Claude Desktop

OS	Config file
macOS	`~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json`
Windows	`%APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json` (usually `C:\Users\<you>\AppData\Roaming\Claude\`)
Linux	`~/.config/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json`

Cursor

Scope	macOS / Linux	Windows
This project	`.cursor/mcp.json` in the repo root
This user	`~/.cursor/mcp.json`	`%USERPROFILE%\.cursor\mcp.json`

Windsurf

OS	Config file
macOS / Linux	`~/.codeium/windsurf/mcp_config.json`
Windows	`%USERPROFILE%\.codeium\windsurf\mcp_config.json`

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "linear": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "linear-mcp-server"
      ],
      "env": {
        "LINEAR_API_KEY": "lin_api_..."
      }
    }
  }
}

Windsurf remote MCP: use serverUrl instead of url if the block below is HTTP.

One-liner: npx -y linear-mcp-server

Secrets it wants: LINEAR_API_KEY

Source repo →

How to get started

Create a Linear personal API key. Team-scoped if you can.
Ask it to search issues assigned to you before create.
Turn off create if you only wanted a triage assistant.

Access risk

create/update will file real tickets and @ people. Keys are user-level.

When to skip it

Skip it for Jira or GitHub issues if that is the system of record.

Instead: Jira, GitHub, Asana.

Chat, mail & docsJiraJira issues and JQL search. OfficialGitHubRepos, issues, PRs, and file contents on GitHub. Chat, mail & docsAsanaTasks and projects in Asana.

Vs alternatives

Server	Official?	Needs a secret?	Best for
Linear	No	Yes	Issues, projects, and cycles in Linear.
Jira	No	Yes	Jira issues and JQL search.
GitHub	Yes	Yes	Repos, issues, PRs, and file contents on GitHub.
Asana	No	Yes	Tasks and projects in Asana.

More in Chat, mail & docs

OfficialGoogle MapsGeocode and place search via Google Maps. OfficialSlackRead channels and post messages. Chat, mail & docsAsanaTasks and projects in Asana. Chat, mail & docsConfluenceRead Confluence pages.

All 18 in this category →

FAQ

Which key?

LINEAR_API_KEY — personal API key. Team-scoped if you can. Create/update will @ people.

Linear or Jira?

Linear if that is the tracker. Jira if you are in Atlassian. Do not dual-write.

Is this Linear's official server?

Community package (jerhadf). Confirm the repo before a company key.

Can it delete issues?

Assume update can close or trash if the API allows. Start with search and get.