Install locally

You need:

• A Chromium browser: Chrome, Edge, Brave, Arc, Vivaldi, Opera or Chromium. Firefox and Safari are not supported.
• macOS, Windows or Linux. Windows support is new; tell us if anything breaks.
• Node.js 20 or newer for the npx install. The Claude Desktop bundle doesn't need it if Claude Desktop's own runtime works for the bridge. wield-mcp doctor tells you.

There are two parts. The Wield extension runs recipes in your browser. wield-mcp is the MCP server your AI app talks to. A small helper (the bridge) connects the two on your computer.

#1. Install wield-mcp

#Claude Desktop: one click

1. Download wield.mcpb from wield.run/install.
2. Double-click it. Claude Desktop opens and asks to install Wield. The API key field is optional; leave it empty for the free public recipes.
3. Wield sets up its bridge the first time it starts. Nothing else on your computer is changed.

#Any client: the installer

npx -y wield-mcp init

init does four things:

• installs Wield into ~/.wield;
• registers the bridge with every Chromium browser it finds;
• asks you, app by app, whether to add Wield to Claude Desktop, Claude Code, Cursor and Codex, making a backup of each config file first;
• waits for the extension to connect, then runs one live sample.

#2. Add the extension

Add Wield from wield.run/install. Until the Chrome Web Store listing is live, init puts the extension in ~/.wield/extension and loading it takes four clicks:

1. Open chrome://extensions. Use edge://, brave:// or vivaldi://extensions in those browsers.
2. Switch on Developer mode.
3. Click Load unpacked and choose the .wield/extension folder in your home folder.
4. Check that the card shows ID mkgnkapppehppdfjgohaoclabmjgfkgn, then pin Wield from the puzzle-piece menu.

The popup should say Bridge connected.

#3. Check it

npx -y wield-mcp check

It ends with a line like ✓ Wield is ready. Chefkoch: 2,165 results in 0.2 s, through your own browser. If it doesn't, run npx -y wield-mcp doctor: it checks every link in the chain and says how to fix what's broken.

#4. Ask your agent

Restart your AI app, then ask something like:

• "Use Wield to find a train from Berlin to Munich tomorrow morning."
• "Search Kleinanzeigen for a used road bike in Hamburg under 400 €."
• "Which dermatologists in Berlin have a free appointment this week on Doctolib?"

The agent finds a recipe, runs it in your browser and answers from the data. For anything that changes data, your browser shows an Allow window first.

#Configuring a client by hand

Run npx -y wield-mcp init once even if you configure your app yourself: it installs the bridge your browser needs. Answer n for the apps you'd rather set up by hand. init prints the exact command for your computer; these are the general forms.

#Claude Code

claude mcp add --scope user wield -- npx -y wield-mcp

#Cursor

~/.cursor/mcp.json:

{ "mcpServers": { "wield": { "command": "npx", "args": ["-y", "wield-mcp"] } } }

#Codex

~/.codex/config.toml:

[mcp_servers.wield]
command = "npx"
args = ["-y", "wield-mcp"]

#Claude Desktop (without the bundle)

Settings → Developer → Edit Config, then add wield under mcpServers with the same command and args as Cursor.

#Any other MCP client

Wield is a standard stdio MCP server: command npx, arguments -y wield-mcp. To use your Pro or Team features, set WIELD_API_KEY in the server's environment (see Teams).