Sign in to Garmin first if you have not (Getting started).

Option A: install the extension

  1. Download garmin-mcp-<version>.mcpb from the latest release.
  2. Open the file. Claude Desktop asks whether to install the “Garmin” extension; confirm.
  3. In the extension settings you can switch Download missing data automatically off if you want Claude to ask before fetching. It is on by default.

The extension runs npx -y garmin-mcp-server for you, so Node.js 22 or newer still has to be installed.

Option B: edit the configuration file

Open Claude Desktop → Settings → Developer → Edit Config. That opens claude_desktop_config.json; add the garmin entry:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "garmin": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "garmin-mcp-server"]
    }
  }
}

To change a setting, add an env block, for example:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "garmin": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "garmin-mcp-server"],
      "env": { "GARMIN_AUTO_FETCH": "false" }
    }
  }
}

Restart and check

Quit Claude Desktop completely (menu Claude → Quit) and start it again. In a new conversation, the tools icon next to the message box lists garmin with 20 tools.

If npx is not found, Claude Desktop does not see your shell’s PATH. Put the full path to npx in command (run which npx in a terminal to find it), or install Node.js with the official installer.

Try it

Summarise my last training week.
How did my HRV and resting heart rate trend over the summer?
What is planned for this week?

Troubleshooting

Settings → Developer → Open Logs Folder contains mcp-server-garmin.log with the server’s messages. See Troubleshooting.