GuideUpdated October 19, 2026

Gmail MCP server: official Google preview, open source or hosted

Yes, Google offers an official Gmail MCP server at https://gmailmcp.googleapis.com/mcp/v1. It is a Developer Preview, though: you need to be accepted into Google's preview program and bring your own Google Cloud project and OAuth client.[1][3] The server searches, reads, drafts and labels mail; its published tool list has no send tool.[2] If you just want Gmail inside Claude, the built-in connector involves far less setup.[4]

Command Mail is our product and appears below as a fourth option. This guide is based on vendor documentation and GitHub data retrieved on 2026-10-19. We have not run Google's preview ourselves with our own Cloud project.

Updated: Fact-checked: About 7 min readAs Markdown

Contents
  1. Four things people mean by "Gmail MCP server"
  2. What Google's official server can do
  3. Prerequisites
  4. Steps: add Google's Gmail MCP server to Claude
  5. Did it work?
  6. Troubleshooting the official server
  7. When another route fits better
  8. Using Gmail through Command Mail
  9. Next steps
  10. Frequently asked questions
  11. Sources

01Four things people mean by "Gmail MCP server"

Searches for a Gmail MCP server mix up four different things: Google's hosted server, the built-in connectors in AI apps, open-source servers you run yourself, and hosted services that bring their own inbox. What separates them is who owns the OAuth client, whether the agent can send, and how much setup you take on.[1][4][5][6]

RouteRun bySendingSetupStatus
Google Gmail MCPGoogleNo send tool; drafts onlyPreview application, Cloud project, OAuth clientDeveloper Preview
Claude Gmail connectorAnthropicYes, approval before each send by default; Team/Enterprise owners can relax this for membersConnect from Claude's menu; Team/Enterprise owners must enable it firstAvailable to all users per Anthropic
google_workspace_mcpOpen source (MIT), self-hostedDepends on tool tier; read-only mode availableOwn OAuth client, uvx workspace-mcpActively maintained
GongRzhe/Gmail-MCP-ServerOpen source (MIT)Yes per README (send_email), also deletionLocal via npx, own OAuth clientArchived, last push 2025-08-06
Command MailFYN Labs (hosted)Pro and above: approved drafts, or separately enabled autonomous sending with limitsGmail forwarding, OAuth on the MCP serverGenerally available

Sources: Google,[1][2] Anthropic,[4] GitHub[5][6] and Command Mail.[8] Star counts and push dates are snapshots from 2026-10-19. They indicate attention, not active users or security review.

02What Google's official server can do

Google's reference page lists ten tools: search_threads, get_thread, get_message, list_labels, list_drafts, create_draft, label_thread, unlabel_thread, label_message and unlabel_message.[2] The setup page's navigation also shows create_label. Treat whatever your client receives from tools/list after connecting as the authoritative list.[1][2]

Google's own example shows the intended split. The agent writes a draft with create_draft, and you review and send it in Gmail.[1] There is no delete tool in the list either. The OAuth consent screen requests gmail.readonly and gmail.compose, but a granted scope does not prove that a tool uses all of it.

The server acts with the signed-in user's permissions and inherits that account's data governance. Google explicitly warns about indirect prompt injection: anyone feeding untrusted email to a language model should screen prompts and responses, for example with Model Armor or a documented solution of their own.[1]

03Prerequisites

You need membership in the Google Workspace Developer Preview Program. You apply with your Workspace account and Cloud project details, and Google says the process should be done within a couple of days.[3] Features usually stay in the preview for three to six months.

If you are building a product, read the terms first. Preview features may not be included in public applications before Google announces general availability.[3] That makes the server fine for an internal experiment and unsuitable, for now, as the base of something you ship to customers.

You also need the gcloud CLI, installed, up to date and initialized with gcloud init, plus a Google Cloud project and an MCP host. For Claude.ai or Claude Desktop, Google names the Pro, Max, Team and Enterprise plans.[1]

04Steps: add Google's Gmail MCP server to Claude

These steps follow Google's instructions for Claude.[1]

  1. Confirm your preview membership and pick the Cloud project that was registered.[3]
  2. Enable the Gmail API and the Gmail MCP API:[1] gcloud services enable gmail.googleapis.com --project=PROJECT_ID gcloud services enable gmailmcp.googleapis.com --project=PROJECT_ID
  3. In the Cloud console, open Google Auth Platform → Branding and create the consent screen. Choose Internal as the audience, or External with yourself added as a test user.
  4. Under Data Access → Add or Remove Scopes, paste https://www.googleapis.com/auth/gmail.readonly and https://www.googleapis.com/auth/gmail.compose, add them and save.
  5. Under Google Auth Platform → Clients → Create Client, create a web application. Add https://claude.ai/api/mcp/auth_callback as the redirect URI, select Use this client for an AI-powered agent, then copy the client ID and secret.
  6. In Claude, open Settings → Connectors → Add custom connector. Name it Gmail, enter https://gmailmcp.googleapis.com/mcp/v1, put the client ID and secret under Advanced settings and click Add.

Other clients need the same details: the server URL, Streamable HTTP transport and OAuth 2.0 with a client marked as an AI agent. Google documents a separate Antigravity configuration in ~/.gemini/config/mcp_config.json.[1]

05Did it work?

Start with a read-only question whose answer you already know, such as "What did Ariel say in her last email about our marketing plan?" The client should call search_threads and then get_thread.[1] Check the sender, date and wording against the original message in Gmail.

Next, ask for a draft and open Gmail's Drafts folder. If the draft is there and nothing was sent, the server behaves the way Google describes it.

06Troubleshooting the official server

Requests are rejected. Check that the OAuth client has Use this client for an AI-powered agent selected. If you cannot change that on an existing client, Google suggests a new, separate client for agent use.[1]

You have to sign in again about every hour. Your client is not getting a refresh token. Google only issues one when the authorization request includes access_type=offline; the OIDC offline_access scope is not enough. Add prompt=consent to get a new token for a user who already granted access.[1]

The server does not appear or reports missing permission. Check that the project is registered for the preview and that both APIs are enabled. An administrator can also review OAuth log events in the security investigation tool.[1][3]

07When another route fits better

Claude's built-in connector is, in our assessment, the route with the least setup if you simply want Gmail in Claude. Anthropic offers it to all users; on Team and Enterprise, an owner has to enable the connectors for the organization first. It searches, reads and drafts, and it can send, reply and forward, asking for approval before each of those actions by default, and Team and Enterprise owners decide whether members may turn that off. It sees attachment metadata, not attachment content.[4] ChatGPT has a separate Gmail app, covered in connect Gmail to ChatGPT.

google_workspace_mcp suits people who want to self-host, need more than Gmail, and do not want to wait for preview access. It is MIT-licensed, covers twelve Workspace services and offers tool tiers (--tool-tier core), a read-only mode and per-service selection (--tools gmail).[5] You create the OAuth client yourself, and hosting and updates are your job.

GongRzhe/Gmail-MCP-Server can send, delete and create filters according to its README. The repository is archived, though, and its last push was on 2025-08-06.[6] Existing installs may keep working without receiving fixes. We would not choose it for a new setup.

gws lives in the googleworkspace GitHub organization, yet its README says it is not an officially supported Google product, and it is not an MCP server. It is a command-line tool for Workspace APIs, with commands such as gws gmail +send that coding agents can call directly.[7]

08Using Gmail through Command Mail

Command Mail is a hosted inbox with an MCP server at https://commandmail.app/mcp. Sign-in uses OAuth 2.1 with PKCE and dynamic client registration, so you do not need a Google Cloud project.[8] In Claude Code, run claude mcp add --transport http commandmail https://commandmail.app/mcp.

Gmail reaches Command Mail through forwarding. Command Mail receives copies of new messages, and forwarding gives it no access to your Gmail mailbox. Changes in Command Mail do not flow back to Gmail, and older mail needs a separate import. Command Mail sends only from an address set up for sending there, not as your Gmail address.[8]

Its value is different from Google's server: addresses from several providers in one inbox, permissions you can switch off one by one when connecting, and autonomy levels per mailbox. There are two ways to send. With mail:send-approved, an agent sends exactly the draft revision a person approved. With mail:send, it sends without individual approval, but only from mailboxes on the auto level, with a daily limit and at most 20 recipients per message; that permission is off when you connect. Free reads, sorts and drafts without sending. Pro adds sending at €19 per month for the first 100 paying accounts and €29 after that.[8]

Command Mail is the wrong fit if you want the agent to change labels, archive state or read status in your actual Gmail account; Google's server or Claude's connector handle that. See permissions and autonomy for the permission model and the email MCP server comparison for more servers.

09Next steps

First decide whether your agent should work in the original mailbox or in a copy. For the original, most people need only the built-in connector or, with preview access, Google's server. If you need several addresses and finer permissions, read using multiple email accounts with one AI agent.

Start Command Mail free and connect your agent when it fits.

Frequently asked questions

Is there an official Gmail MCP server from Google?

Yes. Google runs a remote MCP server for Gmail at https://gmailmcp.googleapis.com/mcp/v1. It is part of the Google Workspace Developer Preview Program, so you have to apply and set up your own Google Cloud project with an OAuth client.

Can the official Gmail MCP server send email?

Not according to Google's published tool list. It searches and reads threads, lists labels and drafts, creates drafts and adds or removes labels. You send the draft yourself in Gmail.

Is GongRzhe's Gmail MCP server still maintained?

No. The repository is archived on GitHub and its last push was on 2025-08-06, so it will not receive fixes. For a new setup, pick a maintained project or one of the official routes.

Is gws from the googleworkspace organization an official Gmail MCP server?

No. gws is a command-line tool for Google Workspace APIs that agents can call. Its README states that it is not an officially supported Google product, and it is not an MCP server.

Do I need a Gmail MCP server to use Gmail with Claude?

Usually not. Claude has a built-in Gmail connector that Anthropic makes available to all users; it can also send, asking for approval before each send by default; on Team and Enterprise, owners decide whether members may skip that prompt. Google's own server is added to Claude as a custom connector, and Google lists the Pro, Max, Team and Enterprise plans for that.

Sources

  1. Google: Configure the Gmail MCP server developers.google.com, accessed
  2. Google: MCP Reference gmailmcp.googleapis.com developers.google.com, accessed
  3. Google: Google Workspace Developer Preview Program developers.google.com, accessed
  4. Anthropic: Use Google Workspace connectors support.claude.com, accessed
  5. GitHub: taylorwilsdon/google_workspace_mcp (README and API snapshot) github.com, accessed
  6. GitHub: GongRzhe/Gmail-MCP-Server (README and API snapshot, archived) github.com, accessed
  7. GitHub: googleworkspace/cli (gws) github.com, accessed
  8. Command Mail: llms.txt with plans, scopes and connection options commandmail.app, accessed
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