Here's a demonstration of the Telegram MCP capabilities in Claude:
Basic usage example:
As you can see, the AI can seamlessly interact with your Telegram account, retrieving and displaying your chats, messages, and other data in a natural way.
A full-featured Telegram integration for Claude, Cursor, and any MCP-compatible client, powered by Telethon and the Model Context Protocol (MCP). This project lets you interact with your Telegram account programmatically, automating everything from messaging to group management.
This MCP server exposes a huge suite of Telegram tools. Every major Telegram/Telethon feature is available as a tool!
Please note that tools requiring direct file path access on the server (send_file, download_media, set_profile_photo, edit_chat_photo, send_voice, send_sticker, upload_file) have been removed from main.py. This is due to limitations in the current MCP environment regarding handling file attachments and local file system paths.
Additionally, GIF-related tools (get_gif_search, get_saved_gifs, send_gif) have been removed due to ongoing issues with reliability in the Telethon library or Telegram API interactions.
git clone https://github.com/chigwell/telegram-mcp.git cd telegram-mcp2. Create a Virtual Environment
python3 -m venv .venv source .venv/bin/activate # On Windows: .venv\Scripts\activate pip install -r requirements.txt3. Generate a Session String
python3 session_string_generator.py
Follow the prompts to authenticate and update your .env file.
Copy .env.example to .env and fill in your values:
TELEGRAM_API_ID=your_api_id_here
TELEGRAM_API_HASH=your_api_hash_here
TELEGRAM_SESSION_NAME=anon
TELEGRAM_SESSION_STRING=your_session_string_here
Get your API credentials at my.telegram.org/apps.
If you have Docker and Docker Compose installed, you can build and run the server in a container, simplifying dependency management.
From the project root directory, build the Docker image:
docker build -t telegram-mcp:latest .
You have two options:
Option A: Using Docker Compose (Recommended for Local Use)
This method uses the docker-compose.yml file and automatically reads your credentials from a .env file.
.env File: Ensure you have a .env file in the project root containing your TELEGRAM_API_ID, TELEGRAM_API_HASH, and TELEGRAM_SESSION_STRING (or TELEGRAM_SESSION_NAME). Use .env.example as a template.docker compose up --build
docker compose up -d to run in detached mode (background).Ctrl+C to stop the server.Option B: Using docker run
You can run the container directly, passing credentials as environment variables.
docker run -it --rm \ -e TELEGRAM_API_ID="YOUR_API_ID" \ -e TELEGRAM_API_HASH="YOUR_API_HASH" \ -e TELEGRAM_SESSION_STRING="YOUR_SESSION_STRING" \ telegram-mcp:latest
-e TELEGRAM_SESSION_NAME=your_session_file_name instead of TELEGRAM_SESSION_STRING if you prefer file-based sessions (requires volume mounting, see docker-compose.yml for an example).-it flags are crucial for interacting with the server.Edit your Claude desktop config (e.g. ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json) or Cursor config (~/.cursor/mcp.json):
{
"mcpServers": {
"telegram-mcp": {
"command": "uv",
"args": [
"--directory",
"/full/path/to/telegram-mcp",
"run",
"main.py"
]
}
}
} 📝 Tool Examples with Code & Output
Below are examples of the most commonly used tools with their implementation and sample output.
@mcp.tool()
async def get_chats(page: int = 1, page_size: int = 20) -> str:
"""
Get a paginated list of chats.
Args:
page: Page number (1-indexed).
page_size: Number of chats per page.
"""
try:
dialogs = await client.get_dialogs()
start = (page - 1) * page_size
end = start + page_size
if start >= len(dialogs):
return "Page out of range."
chats = dialogs[start:end]
lines = []
for dialog in chats:
entity = dialog.entity
chat_id = entity.id
title = getattr(entity, "title", None) or getattr(entity, "first_name", "Unknown")
lines.append(f"Chat ID: {chat_id}, Title: {title}")
return "\n".join(lines)
except Exception as e:
logger.exception(f"get_chats failed (page={page}, page_size={page_size})")
return "An error occurred (code: GETCHATS-ERR-001). Check mcp_errors.log for details."
Example output:
Chat ID: 123456789, Title: John Doe
Chat ID: -100987654321, Title: My Project Group
Chat ID: 111223344, Title: Jane Smith
Chat ID: -200123456789, Title: News Channel
@mcp.tool()
async def send_message(chat_id: int, message: str) -> str:
"""
Send a message to a specific chat.
Args:
chat_id: The ID of the chat.
message: The message content to send.
"""
try:
entity = await client.get_entity(chat_id)
await client.send_message(entity, message)
return "Message sent successfully."
except Exception as e:
logger.exception(f"send_message failed (chat_id={chat_id})")
return "An error occurred (code: SENDMSG-ERR-001). Check mcp_errors.log for details."
Example output:
Message sent successfully.
The get_invite_link function is particularly robust with multiple fallback methods:
@mcp.tool()
async def get_invite_link(chat_id: int) -> str:
"""
Get the invite link for a group or channel.
"""
try:
entity = await client.get_entity(chat_id)
# Try using ExportChatInviteRequest first
try:
from telethon.tl import functions
result = await client(functions.messages.ExportChatInviteRequest(
peer=entity
))
return result.link
except AttributeError:
# If the function doesn't exist in the current Telethon version
logger.warning("ExportChatInviteRequest not available, using alternative method")
except Exception as e1:
# If that fails, log and try alternative approach
logger.warning(f"ExportChatInviteRequest failed: {e1}")
# Alternative approach using client.export_chat_invite_link
try:
invite_link = await client.export_chat_invite_link(entity)
return invite_link
except Exception as e2:
logger.warning(f"export_chat_invite_link failed: {e2}")
# Last resort: Try directly fetching chat info
try:
if isinstance(entity, (Chat, Channel)):
full_chat = await client(functions.messages.GetFullChatRequest(
chat_id=entity.id
))
if hasattr(full_chat, 'full_chat') and hasattr(full_chat.full_chat, 'invite_link'):
return full_chat.full_chat.invite_link or "No invite link available."
except Exception as e3:
logger.warning(f"GetFullChatRequest failed: {e3}")
return "Could not retrieve invite link for this chat."
except Exception as e:
logger.exception(f"get_invite_link failed (chat_id={chat_id})")
return f"Error getting invite link: {e}"
Example output:
https://t.me/+AbCdEfGhIjKlMnOp
@mcp.tool()
async def join_chat_by_link(link: str) -> str:
"""
Join a chat by invite link.
"""
try:
# Extract the hash from the invite link
if '/' in link:
hash_part = link.split('/')[-1]
if hash_part.startswith('+'):
hash_part = hash_part[1:] # Remove the '+' if present
else:
hash_part = link
# Try checking the invite before joining
try:
# Try to check invite info first (will often fail if not a member)
invite_info = await client(functions.messages.CheckChatInviteRequest(hash=hash_part))
if hasattr(invite_info, 'chat') and invite_info.chat:
# If we got chat info, we're already a member
chat_title = getattr(invite_info.chat, 'title', 'Unknown Chat')
return f"You are already a member of this chat: {chat_title}"
except Exception:
# This often fails if not a member - just continue
pass
# Join the chat using the hash
result = await client(functions.messages.ImportChatInviteRequest(hash=hash_part))
if result and hasattr(result, 'chats') and result.chats:
chat_title = getattr(result.chats[0], 'title', 'Unknown Chat')
return f"Successfully joined chat: {chat_title}"
return f"Joined chat via invite hash."
except Exception as e:
err_str = str(e).lower()
if "expired" in err_str:
return "The invite hash has expired and is no longer valid."
elif "invalid" in err_str:
return "The invite hash is invalid or malformed."
elif "already" in err_str and "participant" in err_str:
return "You are already a member of this chat."
logger.exception(f"join_chat_by_link failed (link={link})")
return f"Error joining chat: {e}"
Example output:
Successfully joined chat: Developer Community
@mcp.tool()
async def search_public_chats(query: str) -> str:
"""
Search for public chats, channels, or bots by username or title.
"""
try:
result = await client(functions.contacts.SearchRequest(q=query, limit=20))
return json.dumps([format_entity(u) for u in result.users], indent=2)
except Exception as e:
return f"Error searching public chats: {e}"
Example output:
[
{
"id": 123456789,
"name": "TelegramBot",
"type": "user",
"username": "telegram_bot"
},
{
"id": 987654321,
"name": "Telegram News",
"type": "user",
"username": "telegram_news"
}
] Getting Direct Chats with Contacts
@mcp.tool()
async def get_direct_chat_by_contact(contact_query: str) -> str:
"""
Find a direct chat with a specific contact by name, username, or phone.
Args:
contact_query: Name, username, or phone number to search for.
"""
try:
# Fetch all contacts using the correct Telethon method
result = await client(functions.contacts.GetContactsRequest(hash=0))
contacts = result.users
found_contacts = []
for contact in contacts:
if not contact:
continue
name = f"{getattr(contact, 'first_name', '')} {getattr(contact, 'last_name', '')}".strip()
username = getattr(contact, 'username', '')
phone = getattr(contact, 'phone', '')
if (contact_query.lower() in name.lower() or
(username and contact_query.lower() in username.lower()) or
(phone and contact_query in phone)):
found_contacts.append(contact)
if not found_contacts:
return f"No contacts found matching '{contact_query}'."
# If we found contacts, look for direct chats with them
results = []
dialogs = await client.get_dialogs()
for contact in found_contacts:
contact_name = f"{getattr(contact, 'first_name', '')} {getattr(contact, 'last_name', '')}".strip()
for dialog in dialogs:
if isinstance(dialog.entity, User) and dialog.entity.id == contact.id:
chat_info = f"Chat ID: {dialog.entity.id}, Contact: {contact_name}"
if getattr(contact, 'username', ''):
chat_info += f", Username: @{contact.username}"
if dialog.unread_count:
chat_info += f", Unread: {dialog.unread_count}"
results.append(chat_info)
break
if not results:
return f"Found contacts matching '{contact_query}', but no direct chats with them."
return "\n".join(results)
except Exception as e:
return f"Error searching for direct chat: {e}"
Example output:
Chat ID: 123456789, Contact: John Smith, Username: @johnsmith, Unread: 3
You can use these tools via natural language in Claude, Cursor, or any MCP-compatible client.
🧠 Error Handling & RobustnessThis implementation includes comprehensive error handling:
mcp_errors.logThe code is designed to be robust against common Telegram API issues and limitations.
git clone https://github.com/<your-github-username>/telegram-mcp.git
git checkout -b my-feature
.env or session string..env.example as a template and keep your actual .env file private..gitignore.mcp_errors.log..venv is created and selected..env for valid test accounts/groups.This project is licensed under the Apache 2.0 License.
Maintained by @chigwell and @l1v0n1. PRs welcome!
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