Course 3 connected Claude Desktop and Cursor to a WordPress MCP server so a conversation could trigger a real ability call. This lesson is the coding-agent version of that same wiring: getting Claude Code (the terminal agent), Cursor (the editor agent), and Claude Cowork (the general-purpose desktop agent) all able to reach your WordPress site’s tools and, just as importantly, your local Studio site’s files. The mechanics differ enough between these three that it’s worth being precise about what each one actually supports.
A local Studio site from the previous lesson, Claude Code and Cursor installed, and, if you want to follow the Cowork section, a paid Claude plan (Cowork has no free tier) with the Claude Desktop app installed. If you already have a WordPress MCP server from Course 2 running against this or another site, keep its URL and Application Password handy.
Step 1: add the server to Claude Code
Claude Code’s MCP setup is a CLI command, not a settings screen. Add a remote server at the user scope so it’s available across every project you open Claude Code in:
# File: terminal
claude mcp add --scope user wordpress-site --transport http \
https://yoursite.com/wp-json/mcp/mcp-adapter-default-serverIf the server requires authentication, Claude Code walks you through it interactively. Start a session and run:
/mcpThis lists configured servers and lets you complete any pending authentication for one, including entering the Application Password credential your WordPress MCP endpoint expects.
--scope user makes the server available in every Claude Code session on your
machine. Use --scope project instead if you only want it available while working
inside this specific plugin or theme’s repository, useful if different client
projects each point at different WordPress sites.
Step 2: connect Cursor, same pattern as Course 3
Nothing changes here from how you connected Cursor to your MCP server earlier in this
track. Add it through Settings → MCP → Add Server, or drop the same JSON shape
into a project or global mcp.json:
// File: .cursor/mcp.json
{
"mcpServers": {
"wordpress-site": {
"url": "https://yoursite.com/wp-json/mcp/mcp-adapter-default-server",
"headers": {
"Authorization": "Basic YWdlbnQtYXNzaXN0YW50OmFiY2QgMTIzNCBlZmdoIDU2NzggaWprbCA5MDEy"
}
}
}
}The difference in this course is what you’ll actually ask it to do with that connection: not just calling abilities, but writing the plugin or theme code that calls them, with your local Studio site’s files open in the same editor window.
Step 3: understand what Claude Cowork can connect to
Claude Cowork lives inside the Claude Desktop app and is built for general, multi-step work across files and connected tools rather than terminal-based coding, Anthropic describes it as “Claude Code for the rest of your work.” That framing matters here because Cowork’s connection model isn’t identical to Claude Desktop’s classic MCP setup from Course 3.
| Surface | Local config file MCP servers | Remote custom connectors |
|---|---|---|
| Claude Desktop (chat) | Yes, via claude_desktop_config.json | Yes |
| Claude Cowork | No | Yes, same connector, shared with Desktop and claude.ai |
| Claude Code | N/A, uses claude mcp add instead | Yes, as a remote HTTP server |
Your WordPress MCP Adapter endpoint is a public-facing HTTPS URL by nature, so it qualifies as a remote connector, not a local config-file entry. Add it once as a custom connector in your Claude account’s connector settings, and the same connection becomes available to Claude Desktop chats, Cowork sessions, and claude.ai, without repeating the setup in three places.
Step 4: grant Cowork folder access separately from connector access
Connecting a WordPress MCP server gives Cowork the ability to call tools on your site. It says nothing about your local files. If you want Cowork to read or edit your plugin or theme code on disk, alongside calling MCP tools against your Studio site, you grant folder access as its own, separate step, from Cowork’s folder or working-directory settings inside the Desktop app.
Point Cowork at the specific plugin or theme directory you’re working on, not your entire Documents or Sites folder. Folder access and connector access are two different permission surfaces, and broad folder access is the more common way people give an agent more reach than they meant to.
Step 5: test it
Confirm the connection type actually matches what each surface expects.
Claude Code, in a project with the server added:
"List the tools available on the wordpress-site MCP server."
Cowork, with the connector enabled for the task:
"Using the WordPress connector, check what tools you have access to,
then look at the plugin files in this folder and tell me what they do."This is the single most common setup mistake here. A server you added by editing
claude_desktop_config.json directly shows up in Claude Desktop chat, and nowhere
else. Cowork, Claude Code, and claude.ai all need the remote custom connector added
through account-level connector settings instead.
Recap
Claude Code uses claude mcp add --scope user|project --transport http <url> plus
/mcp for interactive auth. Cursor is unchanged from Course 3, Settings or
mcp.json. Claude Cowork shares the custom connector model with Claude Desktop chat
and claude.ai, but does not read a local claude_desktop_config.json entry, and
folder access for your local Studio site’s files is a separate grant from connector
access. Get all three wired correctly now, since the rest of this course assumes an
agent that can both see your local code and call your WordPress site’s tools.
Resources & further reading
- Claude Code documentation, code.claude.com
- Claude Cowork, claude.com
- Get started with custom connectors using remote MCP, support.claude.com
- Use Claude Cowork safely, support.claude.com