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Quick Start Guide

Get your first MCP bundle working with ChatGPT, Claude, Cursor, or any MCP-compatible AI in just a few minutes.

Time to complete: 5–10 minutes

What You'll Accomplish​

By the end of this guide, you'll have:

  • A bundle enabled on your account
  • Provider credentials connected, verified, and working
  • Bundle showing "Ready - Credentials valid" status
  • Bundle connected to your AI assistant
  • Successfully called a tool from your AI

What is MCP? (60 seconds)​

MCP (Model Context Protocol) is a standard that lets AI tools discover and call external capabilities.

Instead of your AI being limited to what it was trained on, MCP lets it:

  • Access real-time data from APIs
  • Perform actions in external services
  • Extend its capabilities dynamically

A "bundle" is one MCP URL that exposes multiple related tools. Add the URL to your AI, and all the tools in that bundle become available.

Example: A "Marketing Automation" bundle might give your AI tools to list email campaigns, check replies, generate copy, and create contacts—all from one URL.

Prerequisites​

Before starting:

  • An MCPBundles account (Sign up free)
  • An AI tool that supports MCP (ChatGPT, Claude, Cursor, VS Code, etc.)
  • Credentials for any providers the bundle uses (API keys or OAuth)

Step 1: Choose or Create a Bundle​

Option A: Use an Existing Bundle​

  1. Go to Dashboard → Bundles
  2. Browse bundles by category (Marketing, Development, Analytics, etc.)
  3. Find one that fits your needs
  4. Click on it to view details
  5. Click "Add to My Account"

The bundle is now enabled but might show "Needs Credentials" if it requires providers you haven't connected yet.

Option B: Create Your Own Bundle​

  1. Go to Dashboard → Bundles
  2. Click "Create Bundle"
  3. Enter:
    • Name: Descriptive (e.g., "My Marketing Tools")
    • Description: What it does
    • Category: Pick the closest match
  4. Click "Create"
  5. Click "Add Tool" to add tools to your bundle
  6. When done, click "Publish"
  7. Click "Add to My Account" to enable it

New to bundles? See Understanding Bundles for details on how they work.

Step 2: Configure Provider Credentials​

Most bundles require credentials to access external APIs (Smartlead, GitHub, Slack, etc.). You'll add and verify these credentials directly from your bundle page in just a few clicks.

Bundle Credential Status

Check What's Needed​

  1. On your bundle page, look for the "Configuration Required" section
  2. You'll see a list of providers with their status:
    • "Not configured" (red text) = Needs credentials
    • "Verified" (green badge) = Ready to use
  3. If you see "Connection Error" at the top, some credentials need attention

Adding Credentials​

When you see a provider marked as "Not configured":

  1. Click the "Configure" button next to the provider
  2. A dialog opens showing available credentials (if you have any)
  3. Click "+ Add New Credential" to create a new one
  4. A panel slides in from the right side of your screen

Credential Binding Dialog

Important: The credential panel stays open throughout the entire process - you won't lose your place!

For OAuth Providers (GitHub, Slack, Sentry, etc.)​

Once the credential panel opens:

  1. Enter an optional credential name (e.g., "Production Account", "Work Slack")
  2. Click the large blue "Connect with [Provider]" button
  3. OAuth window opens → Log in to the provider
  4. Review and approve the requested permissions
  5. OAuth window closes → You automatically return to the credential panel
  6. Validation tool picker automatically opens 🎉

Credential Sidemenu

The credential panel reopens automatically - no need to navigate back!

For API Key Providers (Smartlead, OpenAI, etc.)​

Once the credential panel opens:

  1. Get your API key from the provider's website (usually in Settings → API Keys)
  2. Paste the API key into the credential panel
  3. (Optional) Enter a credential name
  4. Click "Create Credential"
  5. ✅ Credential saved successfully!

Now you can optionally select a validation tool to test it.

Choose a Validation Tool​

After adding your credential (OAuth or API key), you'll see a validation tool picker:

Validation Tool Picker

What is a validation tool? A simple, read-only tool that tests your credentials by making a real API call.

Pick a tool marked "Recommended" - these:

  • ✅ Require no inputs
  • ✅ Are safe (read-only operations)
  • ✅ Work quickly

Good examples:

  • get_user - Gets account info
  • list_campaigns - Lists your data
  • analytics_links - Gets analytics
  1. Click "Use as validator" on a recommended tool
  2. The picker closes
  3. You'll see the "Validate Now" button appear

Validate Your Credentials​

After selecting a validation tool:

Validate Now Button

  1. Click the large green "Validate Now" button
  2. Wait 1-3 seconds while the tool tests your credentials
  3. Watch for the result:
    • ✅ Success: Status changes to "VERIFIED" ✓
    • ❌ Failed: Error message explains what went wrong

If validation succeeds: Your credential is ready! The panel will close and your bundle page updates.

If validation fails:

  • Check your API key is correct (no extra spaces)
  • For OAuth: Try reconnecting and approve ALL permissions
  • See Troubleshooting for common issues

Confirm Bundle is Ready​

After adding credentials, check your bundle page:

Bundle Status

  • "Connection Error" = Some providers still need credentials
  • "Configuration Required" = Shows how many providers are configured
  • All providers showing "Verified" = ✅ Ready to use!

When all required providers show "Verified", your bundle is ready!

Step 3: Add Bundle to Your AI​

Before proceeding: Make sure your bundle shows "Ready - Credentials valid" status. If it's still showing "Setup Required" or "Connection Error", go back to Step 2 and verify any remaining providers.

Get Your Bundle URL​

  1. On your bundle page, confirm status is "Ready - Credentials valid" ✅
  2. Find the MCP URL section
  3. It looks like: https://mcp.mcpbundles.com/bundle/your-bundle-slug
  4. Click "Copy MCP URL"

Add to Your AI Tool​

Choose your AI platform:

ChatGPT:

  1. Settings → Connectors → Advanced Settings
  2. Enable Developer Mode
  3. Click "Create a new connector"
  4. Paste your bundle URL
  5. Save

Cursor:

  1. Open .cursor/mcp.json in your project
  2. Add: 
    {
      "mcpServers": {
        "your-bundle-name": {
          "url": "https://mcp.mcpbundles.com/bundle/your-bundle-slug"
        }
      }
    }
  3. Restart Cursor

Claude Desktop:

  1. Open Claude Desktop
  2. Settings → Custom Connectors
  3. Click "Add Connector"
  4. Paste your bundle URL
  5. Save

Claude Code (CLI):

claude mcp add --transport http my-bundle https://mcp.mcpbundles.com/bundle/your-bundle-slug
claude  # Start session
/mcp    # Authenticate tools

Other platforms: See Integration Guides for VS Code, Raycast, Windsurf, and more.

Step 4: Test Your Tools​

Let's confirm everything works by calling a tool from your AI.

Test in Bundle Studio First

Before testing in your AI, you can use Bundle Studio—an interactive tool testing environment right in your dashboard. Great for debugging or learning what a tool does before using it in production.

→ Learn about Bundle Studio

In Your AI:​

  1. Open a new conversation
  2. Ask your AI to list available tools: 
    What MCP tools do you have available?
  3. Your AI should show tools from your bundle
  4. Try calling one: 
    Use the list_campaigns tool to show my email campaigns
  5. Tool executes and returns results!

If Tools Don't Appear​

Check these in order:

  1. Bundle readiness shows "Ready - Credentials valid" (most common issue)
    • If "Setup Required" or "Connection Error": Go back to Step 2 and verify remaining providers
  2. All required providers show "VERIFIED" (green checkmark, not yellow "UNVERIFIED")
    • If any show yellow: Click into provider and complete validation
  3. Bundle is enabled on your account
    • Check dashboard to confirm bundle is added
  4. You restarted your AI client after adding the URL
    • Close and reopen ChatGPT/Cursor/Claude
  5. You're using the correct MCP URL
    • Should include /bundle/your-bundle-slug

Still stuck? See Troubleshooting for common issues.

What's Next?​

Now that you have a working bundle, explore more:

Learn the Concepts​

Expand Your Setup​

Get Help​

Real-World Examples​

Once you're set up, explore what you can build:

Marketing Automation:

  • "Check my Smartlead campaigns and create a performance report"
  • "Add these 5 contacts to HubSpot with their info"
  • "Send a Slack message to #marketing with today's metrics"

Developer Productivity:

  • "List my GitHub repos and summarize open PRs"
  • "Get the latest API schema and generate TypeScript types"
  • "Check build status and notify me if it fails"

Need Help?​

  • Email: help@mcpbundles.com
  • Docs: Browse the sidebar for detailed guides
  • Community: Coming soon

Congratulations! You're now using MCP bundles to extend your AI with real-world capabilities.