Google Developer Knowledge MCP server
Endpoint: https://developerknowledge.googleapis.com/mcp · Authentication: API key header
Searches, retrieves, and answers questions from Google developer documentation for Firebase, Google Cloud, Android, Maps, and other Google platforms. Requires a Google Cloud API key with the Developer Knowledge API enabled, sent in the X-Goog-Api-Key header.
How do I authenticate?
Create a scoped API key with the provider and configure X-Goog-Api-Key in your client. Use the generated setup below; do not put the key in the endpoint URL.
Authentication and connection guideConnection specification
- Remote endpoint
https://developerknowledge.googleapis.com/mcp- Browser access
- Not yet measured
- Declared MCP transport
- Streamable HTTP
- Live-validated MCP transport
- Streamable HTTP — Observed by the latest catalog validation
- Declared authentication
- API key
- Detected authentication
- API key detected or retained from publisher evidence
- Protocol lifecycle
- Stateful MCP · 2025-11-25
- Required header
X-Goog-Api-Key— Google Cloud API key restricted to the Developer Knowledge API- Authorization server
https://accounts.google.com/- Category
- Documentation
Product documentation · Official listing documentation
Provider guidance
- Tool listing succeeded without credentials in the 2026-10-20 audit; tool calls require the API key. Google also documents OAuth and Application Default Credentials for supported clients.
More Documentation MCP servers · Browse all MCP servers · Test this endpoint in the MCP Playground
Connect it
Live-validated endpoint: https://developerknowledge.googleapis.com/mcp · Streamable HTTP. API key authentication uses the publisher-documented header name when available.
Agent prompt for Claude Code or Codex
Add the Google Developer Knowledge MCP server to my MCP client configuration and verify that it works.
What it is: Searches, retrieves, and answers questions from Google developer documentation for Firebase, Google Cloud, Android, Maps, and other Google platforms. Requires a Google Cloud API key with the Developer Knowledge API enabled, sent in the X-Goog-Api-Key header.
Server URL: https://developerknowledge.googleapis.com/mcp
Transport: Streamable HTTP (remote MCP server, no local install).
Authentication: API key. API key authentication uses the publisher-documented header name when available.
Tools (3, as last observed by mcptest): answer_query, get_documents, search_documents.
Reference: https://mcptest.io/servers/google-developer-knowledge/
Steps:
1. Work out which MCP client I use (Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, VS Code or another) and add the server under the name "google-developer-knowledge" in that client's MCP configuration, user scope unless I ask otherwise.
Claude Code: claude mcp add --transport http --scope user --header 'X-Goog-Api-Key: '"${GOOGLE_API_KEY}" 'google-developer-knowledge' 'https://developerknowledge.googleapis.com/mcp'
Other clients: use the setup for that client on the reference page.
2. Never write a credential value into a file that could be committed; reference an environment variable or the client's secret store, and ask me for any value you need.
3. Verify: connect to the server and call tools/list. Confirm the tools above are listed, and report any sign-in step I still have to complete.Claude Code setup
Run in a terminal. This user-scoped entry is available across projects.
claude mcp add --transport http --scope user --header 'X-Goog-Api-Key: '"${GOOGLE_API_KEY}" 'google-developer-knowledge' 'https://developerknowledge.googleapis.com/mcp'- Store GOOGLE_API_KEY in your operating system keychain, secret manager, or protected environment; never commit the value. The X-Goog-Api-Key header syntax is <GOOGLE_API_KEY>.
Codex CLI setup
Add to ~/.codex/config.toml, then securely set GOOGLE_API_KEY_HEADER to the raw credential value, which is the complete X-Goog-Api-Key header value.
[mcp_servers.google-developer-knowledge]
url = "https://developerknowledge.googleapis.com/mcp"
env_http_headers = { "X-Goog-Api-Key" = "GOOGLE_API_KEY_HEADER" }- Store GOOGLE_API_KEY_HEADER in your operating system keychain, secret manager, or protected environment; never commit the value. Set it to the raw credential value, which is the complete X-Goog-Api-Key header value.
Cursor setup
Add to .cursor/mcp.json for this project, or ~/.cursor/mcp.json for all projects.
{
"mcpServers": {
"google-developer-knowledge": {
"url": "https://developerknowledge.googleapis.com/mcp",
"headers": {
"X-Goog-Api-Key": "${env:GOOGLE_API_KEY}"
}
}
}
}- Store GOOGLE_API_KEY in your operating system keychain, secret manager, or protected environment; never commit the value. The X-Goog-Api-Key header syntax is <GOOGLE_API_KEY>.
VS Code setup
Add to .vscode/mcp.json, or run “MCP: Open User Configuration” for a private user-level entry.
{
"servers": {
"google-developer-knowledge": {
"type": "http",
"url": "https://developerknowledge.googleapis.com/mcp",
"headers": {
"X-Goog-Api-Key": "${input:google_api_key}"
}
}
},
"inputs": [
{
"type": "promptString",
"id": "google_api_key",
"description": "GOOGLE_API_KEY for Google Developer Knowledge",
"password": true
}
]
}- VS Code requests GOOGLE_API_KEY as a masked input; use a secret manager and do not put a default value in mcp.json. The X-Goog-Api-Key syntax remains <GOOGLE_API_KEY>.
Claude setup
Add the endpoint above in Claude:
- Customize > Connectors > Add custom connector
- Team/Enterprise: Organization settings > Connectors > Add > Custom > Web
Claude Desktop setup
Add the endpoint above in Claude Desktop:
- Remote: Customize > Connectors (same as claude.ai)
- Local: Settings > Developer > Edit Config, or Settings > Extensions for .mcpb files
~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json(macOS) or%APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json(Windows), local servers only
ChatGPT setup
Add the endpoint above in ChatGPT:
- ChatGPT web: Plugins > Add custom MCP server, then configure authentication and accept the risk warning
Windsurf setup
Add the endpoint above in Windsurf:
~/.config/devin/mcp_config.json(%APPDATA%\devin\mcp_config.jsonon Windows),serverUrlorurl- Cascade panel > ... > MCPs > Open MCP config file
Gemini CLI setup
Add the endpoint above in Gemini CLI:
gemini mcp add --transport http <name> <url>~/.gemini/settings.json(user) or.gemini/settings.json(project),mcpServers
MCP SDK setup
Add the endpoint above in MCP SDK:
- Programmatic:
new Client(...).connect(new StreamableHTTPClientTransport(url))
Notes for every client
- Provider guidance: Tool listing succeeded without credentials in the 2026-10-20 audit; tool calls require the API key. Google also documents OAuth and Application Default Credentials for supported clients.
Client compatibility
| Client | Status | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Claude Code | Supported | Claude Code supports Streamable HTTP servers and API key headers. |
| Codex | Supported | Codex supports Streamable HTTP servers and API key headers. |
| Cursor | Supported | Cursor supports Streamable HTTP servers and API key headers. |
| VS Code | Supported | VS Code supports Streamable HTTP servers and API key headers. |
| Claude | Partial | Claude supports API key headers only in limited availability. static_headers: beta, for a limited set of organizations. |
| Claude Desktop | Partial | Claude Desktop supports API key headers only in limited availability. static_headers: beta, for a limited set of organizations. |
| ChatGPT | Not supported | ChatGPT does not support API key headers. ChatGPT cannot present custom API keys. |
| Windsurf | Supported | Windsurf supports Streamable HTTP servers and API key headers. |
| Gemini CLI | Supported | Gemini CLI supports Streamable HTTP servers and API key headers. |
| MCP SDK | Supported | MCP SDK supports Streamable HTTP servers and API key headers. |
Computed from this server's validated transport, protocol and authentication against documented client support. Checks the catalog has not observed are not counted.
Latest validation evidence
- Validation status
- Online when last tested
- Validation checked at
- Oct 26, 2026 at 11:06 AM
- Validation detail
- Negotiated stateful MCP 2025-11-25 at https://developerknowledge.googleapis.com/mcp; detected transport streamable-http; authentication api-key
Tool inventory
What the catalog validator observed on at https://developerknowledge.googleapis.com/mcp without credentials. The live server may have changed since; connect in the Playground for the current list.
Tools provided by Google Developer Knowledge 3
Some details were sanitized for public display.
answer_queryoutputSchema declaredUse answer_query to get a grounded, synthesized conceptual answer to a high-level question about Google developer products. For exact code samples, CLI flags, specific error messages, or full document walkthroughs, prefer `search_documents` followed by `get_documents` instead. This tool has limited quota. This tool will synthesize information from the corpus to generate an answer to the query. answer_query grounds answers using the same corpus as search_documents. This tool returns the generated answer_text and a list of document names (references) used to generate the answer. Always cite the
Input
query: stringquery: stringrequiredRequired. The query to answer.
get_documentsoutputSchema declaredUse this tool to retrieve the full content of a single document or up to 20 documents in a single call. The document names should be obtained from either the `parent` field of results from a call to the `search_documents` tool or the `references` field returned by the `answer_query` tool. Set the `names` parameter to a list of document names (`documents/...`), and cite the authoritative source documents used in your final response.
Input
names: arraynames: arrayrequiredRequired. The names of the documents to retrieve, as returned by the `parent` field of `search_documents` results or the `references` field of `answer_query`. A maximum of 20 documents can be retrieved in one call. The documents are returned in the same order as the `names` in the request. Format: `documents/{uri_without_scheme}` Example: `documents/docs.cloud.google.com/storage/docs/creating-buckets`
search_documentsoutputSchema declaredUse this tool to find documentation about Google developer products. The documents contain official APIs, code snippets, release notes, best practices, guides, debugging info, and more. It covers the following products and domains: * ADK: adk.dev * Android: developer.android.com * Apigee: docs.apigee.com * Chrome: developer.chrome.com * Dart: dart.dev * Firebase: firebase.google.com * Flutter: docs.flutter.dev * Fuchsia: fuchsia.dev * Gemini CLI: geminicli.com * Genkit: genkit.dev * Go: go.dev * Google AI: ai.google.dev * Google Antigravity: antigravity.google * Google Cloud: cloud.google.com
Input
query: stringquery: stringrequiredRequired. The raw query string provided by the user, such as "How to create a Cloud Storage bucket?".