⏱️ 10 minutes · Output: claude mcp list shows ✔ Connected, and short questions like "whats due this week" just work.

Claude Code vs Claude Desktop: these are different apps with different config files. This guide is for Claude Code (the claude CLI and its app). Don't edit claude_desktop_config.json for this setup.

1Install and log in

bash

npm install -g @anthropic-ai/claude-code
claude --version

bash

claude          # opens the interactive session
/login          # type this at the Claude prompt, finish in the browser
/exit           # back to your shell

Test:

bash

claude -p "say hi"; echo "exit code: $?"

✅ A greeting and exit code: 0. If you see Not logged in, repeat the three steps above.

2Register the MCP server

Use full paths for everything. Claude may be launched from contexts (like SSH) with a different PATH.

bash

claude mcp add google-sheets \
  --scope user \
  --env CREDENTIALS_PATH=$HOME/.config/mcp-credentials/credentials.json \
  --env TOKEN_PATH=$HOME/.config/mcp-credentials/token.json \
  -- $HOME/.local/bin/uvx --with 'mcp<2' mcp-google-sheets

--scope user: available in every folder and project.
Everything after -- is the command that starts the server.

Check the confirmation line ends exactly in mcp-google-sheets to user config. Anything extra after the package name (a stray ¬, a space) breaks it.

bash

claude mcp list | grep google-sheets

✅ google-sheets: ... - ✔ Connected

Useful commands:

bash

claude mcp get google-sheets              # show config
claude mcp remove google-sheets -s user   # remove (then re-add)

3Permissions (required for `claude -p`)

claude -p runs non-interactively, so it can't ask you to approve a tool call. Unapproved tools are simply refused. Pre-approve the Sheets server in ~/.claude/settings.json.

If the file already exists, merge. Don't overwrite it. It may hold your model, theme and hooks.

bash

cp ~/.claude/settings.json ~/.claude/settings.json.bak 2>/dev/null
nano ~/.claude/settings.json

Add (or replace) the permissions key:

json

"permissions": {
  "allow": [
    "mcp__google-sheets"
  ],
  "deny": [
    "mcp__google-sheets__delete_sheet",
    "mcp__google-sheets__clear_sheet"
  ]
}

mcp__google-sheets approves every tool from that server (read and write).
deny blocks destructive tools even if something else would allow them.

Validate:

bash

python3 -m json.tool ~/.claude/settings.json > /dev/null && echo "JSON OK"
grep -A10 '"permissions"' ~/.claude/settings.json

Use grep or tail to check. head only shows the top of the file and makes it look like your block is missing.

Prefer read-only? Allow only read tools and do edits in interactive claude, where you approve each write:

json

"allow": ["mcp__google-sheets__get_sheet_data", "mcp__google-sheets__list_sheets"]

To see exact tool names: run claude, type /mcp, select google-sheets.

Full example: templates/settings.json.example

4Sheet context (`~/.claude/CLAUDE.md`)

Claude Code loads ~/.claude/CLAUDE.md into every session, in every folder, including claude -p. Put your sheet's details here once and questions like "how many subjects" or "whats due this week" work without naming the sheet.

Get your sheet ID from its URL:

code

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/<THIS_PART_IS_THE_ID>/edit

Create the file (edit the placeholders):

bash

mkdir -p ~/.claude
cp templates/CLAUDE.md.example ~/.claude/CLAUDE.md
nano ~/.claude/CLAUDE.md

What to fill in:

Section	Put
Trigger words	Words that mean "use my sheet": tracker, deadline, quiz, due, subject...
Sheet	Spreadsheet ID and exact tab names (copy emojis too, e.g. `🎨 Color Legend`)
Categories	Your subjects/projects, spelled exactly like the sheet
Layout	Header row number, first data row, what each column holds
Rules	Time zone, defaults for new rows, never-touch columns, answer style

Template: templates/CLAUDE.md.example

Tips: - Keep it short and specific. Concise rules are followed more reliably than long essays. - Add "Never mention unconnected connectors" if Claude keeps listing Slack/Notion/etc. - Tell it "If this file and the sheet disagree, trust the sheet" so updates in the sheet win. - When your term or project changes, you only edit this one file.

Check it's loaded: run claude, type /memory.

5Verify end to end

bash

claude -p --output-format json "how many rows are in my tracker" | python3 -m json.tool

Check these fields:

Field	Healthy value
`is_error`	`false`
`num_turns`	2 or more (it called a Sheets tool)
`permission_denials`	`[]`
`result`	Your answer

num_turns: 1 means no tool was called. Check context (Step 4) and permissions (Step 3).

Step 6 (optional): Tidy up

Hide unused plugin connectors (Slack, Notion, Asana, ...) that clutter answers and slow startup:

bash

claude plugin disable productivity     # or: claude → /plugin → disable

Faster answers for quick lookups: use a lighter model in your shortcut (Guide 4):

bash

claude -p --model sonnet "..."

➡️ Next: 4. Daily commands

Questions or corrections: [email protected]

1Install and log in

2Register the MCP server

3Permissions (required for claude -p)

4Sheet context (~/.claude/CLAUDE.md)

5Verify end to end

Step 6 (optional): Tidy up

3Permissions (required for `claude -p`)

4Sheet context (`~/.claude/CLAUDE.md`)