mcp-whatsapp-web

MCP WhatsApp Web (TypeScript)

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server for WhatsApp Web, implemented in TypeScript. This project is a TypeScript port of the original whatsapp-mcp repository.

With this MCP server, you can:

• Search and read your personal WhatsApp messages (including media)
• Search your contacts
• Send messages to individuals or groups
• Send and receive media files (images, videos, documents, audio)

Features

• TypeScript Implementation: Fully typed codebase for better developer experience and code reliability
• WhatsApp Web Integration: Uses whatsapp-web.js for direct connection to WhatsApp Web
• MCP Server: Implements the Model Context Protocol for seamless integration with AI assistants
• Media Support: Send and receive images, videos, documents, and audio messages
• Multiple Transport Options: Supports stdio and Streamable HTTP transports — even both at once from a single process (start with stdio and set MCP_HTTP_PORT to additionally expose http://127.0.0.1:<port>/mcp, or run HTTP-only with --http)
• Flexible Authentication: QR code (as an MCP image tool), pairing code (request_pairing_code tool, or automatically printed to stderr at startup via WHATSAPP_PAIRING_PHONE_NUMBER), and an optional OAuth flow for HTTP clients (MCP_OAUTH=true) where the browser authorization page shows the WhatsApp QR code — unlinking WhatsApp revokes tokens so clients automatically re-authenticate

Architecture

This MCP server consists of:

• TypeScript MCP Server: Implements the Model Context Protocol to provide standardized tools for AI assistants to interact with WhatsApp
• WhatsApp Web Service: Connects to WhatsApp Web via whatsapp-web.js, handles authentication, and manages message sending/receiving
• Tool Implementations: Provides various tools for contacts, chats, messages, media, and authentication

Prerequisites

• Node.js >= 20.0.0
• npm or yarn
• Google Chrome or Microsoft Edge (auto-detected; only needed for sending videos/GIFs — everything else works with the Chromium that puppeteer downloads automatically)

FFmpeg is bundled automatically via the ffmpeg-static npm package — no manual installation needed. You can point the FFMPEG_PATH environment variable at your own binary to override it.

Installation

Manual Installation

• Clone this repository

  git clone https://github.com/mario-andreschak/mcp-whatsapp-web.git
  cd mcp-whatsapp-web
  

• Install dependencies

  npm install
  

• Build the project

  npm run build
  

• Configure environment variables (optional)

  Copy the example environment file and modify as needed:

  cp .env.example .env
  

  You can adjust logging levels, pin the WhatsApp Web version, or override the auto-detected browser (BROWSER_EXECUTABLE_PATH) and ffmpeg binary (FFMPEG_PATH) if needed. WHATSAPP_HEADLESS=false shows the browser window (debugging aid), and WHATSAPP_SESSION_DIR relocates the session/browser-profile directory (useful for running multiple instances or isolated test runs).

Installation with FLUJO

FLUJO provides a streamlined installation process:

• Navigate to the MCP section in FLUJO
• Click "Add Server"
• Copy and paste this GitHub repository URL: https://github.com/mario-andreschak/mcp-whatsapp-web
• Click "Parse", "Clone, "Install", "Build" and "Update Server"

FLUJO will automatically handle the cloning, dependency installation, and building process for you.

Usage

Starting the MCP Server

npm start

This will start the MCP server using stdio transport by default, which is suitable for integration with Claude Desktop or similar applications.

Important: After starting the server for the first time, you must authenticate with WhatsApp by using the get_qr_code tool and scanning the QR code with your phone. See the Authentication section for detailed instructions.

Development Mode

npm run dev

This starts the server in development mode with TypeScript watch mode and automatic server restarts.

Debugging with MCP Inspector

npm run debug

This launches the MCP Inspector tool, which provides a web interface for testing and debugging your MCP server. The inspector allows you to:

• View all available tools and their schemas
• Execute tools directly and see their responses
• Test your server without needing to connect it to an AI assistant
• Debug tool execution and inspect responses

Connecting to Claude Desktop

• Create a configuration file for Claude Desktop:

  {
    "mcpServers": {
      "whatsapp": {
        "command": "node",
        "args": [
          "PATH_TO/dist/index.js"
        ]
      }
    }
  }
  

  Replace PATH_TO with the absolute path to the repository.

• Save this as claude_desktop_config.json in your Claude Desktop configuration directory:

  • macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
  • Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json
  • Linux: ~/.config/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

• Restart Claude Desktop

Connecting to Cursor

• Create a configuration file for Cursor:

  {
    "mcpServers": {
      "whatsapp": {
        "command": "node",
        "args": [
          "PATH_TO/dist/index.js"
        ]
      }
    }
  }
  

  Replace PATH_TO with the absolute path to the repository.

• Save this as mcp.json in your Cursor configuration directory:

  • macOS/Linux: ~/.cursor/mcp.json
  • Windows: %USERPROFILE%\.cursor\mcp.json

• Restart Cursor

Authentication

The first time you run the server, you'll need to authenticate with WhatsApp:

• Start the MCP server
• Important: You must use the get_qr_code tool to generate a QR code
  • In Claude or other AI assistants, explicitly ask to "use the get_qr_code tool to authenticate WhatsApp"
  • The assistant will call this tool and display the QR code image
• Scan the QR code with your WhatsApp mobile app
  • Open WhatsApp on your phone
  • Go to Settings > Linked Devices > Link a Device
  • Point your phone camera at the QR code displayed

Your session will be saved locally in the whatsapp-sessions directory and will be reused automatically on subsequent runs. If you don't authenticate using the QR code, you won't be able to use any WhatsApp functionality.

Authentication Status and Logout

You can check your current authentication status and manage your session:

• Use the check_auth_status tool to verify if you're currently authenticated
• If you need to authenticate with a different WhatsApp account or re-authenticate:
  • Use the logout tool to log out from your current session
  • Then use the get_qr_code tool to authenticate with a new QR code

This is particularly useful when:

• You want to switch between different WhatsApp accounts
• Your session has expired or been invalidated
• You're experiencing connection issues and need to re-authenticate

Available MCP Tools

Authentication

• get_qr_code- Get the QR code for WhatsApp Web authentication
• check_auth_status- Check if you're currently authenticated with WhatsApp
• logout- Log out from WhatsApp and clear the current session

Contacts

• search_contacts- Search for contacts by name or phone number
• get_contact- Get information about a specific contact

Chats

• list_chats- List available chats with metadata
• get_chat- Get information about a specific chat
• get_direct_chat_by_contact- Find a direct chat with a specific contact

Messages

• list_messages- Retrieve messages with optional filters
• get_message- Get a specific message by ID
• send_message- Send a text message to a chat

Media

• send_file- Send a file (image, video, document) to a chat
• send_audio_message- Send an audio message (voice note)
• download_media- Download media from a message

Browser Process Management

This MCP server uses Puppeteer to control Chrome browsers for WhatsApp Web connectivity. The server includes a robust browser process management system to prevent orphaned Chrome processes.

Automatic Browser Cleanup

The server automatically:

• Tracks Chrome browser processes using a PID tracking system
• Cleans up orphaned processes on startup
• Properly closes browser processes during shutdown
• Maintains a record of browser PIDs in .chrome-pids.json

Manual Browser Cleanup

If you notice orphaned Chrome processes that weren't automatically cleaned up, you can use the included cleanup utility:

npm run cleanup-browsers

This utility will:

• Scan for Chrome processes that might be related to WhatsApp Web
• Display a list of potentially orphaned processes
• Ask for confirmation before terminating them
• Clean up the PID tracking file

Development

Project Structure

• src/index.ts- Entry point
• src/server.ts- MCP server implementation
• src/services/whatsapp.ts- WhatsApp Web service
• src/tools/- Tool implementations for various WhatsApp features
• src/types/- TypeScript type definitions
• src/utils/- Utility functions

Scripts

• npm run build- Build the TypeScript code
• npm run dev- Run in development mode with watch
• npm run lint- Run ESLint
• npm run format- Format code with Prettier
• npm run cleanup-browsers- Detect and clean up orphaned Chrome browser processes
• npm test - Run the unit test suite (fast, no browser needed)
• npm run test:watch - Run unit tests in watch mode during development
• npm run test:e2e - Build, then run end-to-end tests (spawns the real server incl. a headless browser)

Troubleshooting

Authentication Issues

• If the QR code doesn't appear, try restarting the server
• If you're already authenticated, no QR code will be shown (use check_auth_status to verify)
• If you need to re-authenticate, use the logout tool first, then request a new QR code
• WhatsApp limits the number of linked devices; you may need to remove an existing device
• If you receive a message saying "No QR code is currently available," but you're already authenticated, this is normal behavior - use check_auth_status to confirm your authentication status

Connection Issues

• Make sure you have a stable internet connection
• If the connection fails, try restarting the server
• Check the logs for detailed error messages

Browser Process Issues

• If you notice high CPU usage or memory consumption, there might be orphaned Chrome processes
• Run npm run cleanup-browsers to detect and clean up orphaned processes
• If the server crashes frequently, check for orphaned processes and clean them up
• On Windows, you can also use Task Manager to look for multiple Chrome processes with "headless" in the command line
• On Linux/macOS, use ps aux | grep chrome to check for orphaned processes

License

MIT

This project is a TypeScript port of the original whatsapp-mcp by lharries.