Build with AI: agent skills, MCP server, and CLI

Your AI coding agent needs two things to build notifications with Courier: knowledge of how Courier works, and access to your workspace. Courier Skills gives it the first. The MCP server and the Courier CLI give it the second. Install Courier Skills so the agent knows how to build with Courier. It needs no API key:

npx skills add trycourier/courier-skills

Then connect the MCP server so the agent can create templates, send test notifications, and read delivery logs in your workspace. In Claude Code:

claude mcp add --transport http courier https://mcp.courier.com --header api_key:YOUR_COURIER_API_KEY

MCP server has setup for Claude Code, Cursor, Codex, VS Code, and nine other clients.

Courier Skills

Courier Skills gives your coding agent Courier’s own guidance: how to call the API, which feature fits each job, and the rules each channel needs. Your agent gets Courier code right the first time, so it codes faster and spends fewer tokens searching docs or retrying calls that fail. It loads only the files a task needs, and it can debug the Courier code you already have. The skill touches nothing in your workspace, so it needs no API key. Courier Skills covers the Claude Code plugin and how to check it loaded.

MCP server

The hosted MCP server at https://mcp.courier.com turns the Courier API into tools your agent calls from a chat session. That makes it easy to test and debug with Courier without leaving your agent: send a test notification, check what was delivered, and read the logs when something fails. Ask in plain language:

Create a profile for user_123 with sarah@acme-corp.com, send them my welcome template, and show me the delivery status.

Tool calls run with the key you connect. A production key sends to real users, so connect a Test key while you build. MCP tools lists every tool and marks which ones write.

Courier CLI

The CLI covers the same API as the MCP server, as shell commands an agent, script, or CI job can run:

npm install -g @trycourier/cli
export COURIER_API_KEY="YOUR_COURIER_API_KEY"

courier send message \
  --message.to '{"user_id": "user_123"}' \
  --message.template "nt_01kx4h2jdafq8bk9aftxak4b40"

Courier CLI covers flags and output formats. CLI recipes has a command for each common task.

Docs for agents

Every docs page is available in a form agents read cheaply, with no API key:

Source	Use it for
`https://www.courier.com/docs/mcp`	A docs MCP server that searches and reads every page and the OpenAPI specs
Any page URL + `.md`	One page as plain markdown
`llms.txt`	An index of every page, per the llms.txt standard
`llms-full.txt`	The full docs in one file

llms-full.txt is over 3 MB, enough to crowd out your code in a coding session. Point the agent at the docs MCP server or single .md pages instead.

API keys

The MCP server and the CLI need a key. Create one in Settings → API Keys. Each key belongs to one environment. A Test key comes with a testing provider, so the agent can send before you set up a real one.

FAQ

What is the difference between Courier Skills and the MCP server?

Courier Skills changes the code your agent writes and touches nothing in your workspace. The MCP server gives the agent tools that call the Courier API, so it can create templates, send notifications, and read delivery logs. Most setups install both.

Which AI coding tools work with Courier?

Courier Skills installs into Claude Code, Cursor, Codex, Windsurf, Cline, and any tool that loads agent skills. The MCP server has setup steps for Claude Code, Cursor, Codex, VS Code, Windsurf, Gemini CLI, Antigravity, Zed, Warp, OpenCode, Grok Build, Devin, and Claude Desktop.

Can an AI agent send a real notification through Courier?

An agent connected to the MCP server or CLI sends through the same API your application uses. A Test key keeps sends in your Test environment. A production key reaches real users.

Does Courier have an MCP server for its documentation?

Courier hosts a docs MCP server at https://www.courier.com/docs/mcp. It needs no API key and is separate from the API MCP server at https://mcp.courier.com.

Get started

Tools

Build with AI: agent skills, MCP server, and CLI

Courier Skills

MCP server

Courier CLI

Docs for agents

API keys

FAQ

​Courier Skills

​MCP server

​Courier CLI

​Docs for agents

​API keys

​FAQ

Courier Skills

MCP server

Courier CLI

Docs for agents

API keys

FAQ