WP-CLI (STDIO transport)

For local WordPress installs, an MCP client can talk to your site by launching WP-CLI as a subprocess instead of calling the network endpoint. This is the STDIO transport, and because nothing goes over the network, no credentials are transmitted.

Before you start: your MCP client launches this through Node, so you need Node.js 22 or newer installed. Check with node -v and upgrade if you are below 22.

The WP-CLI tab gives you copy-ready commands:

• List all servers — wp mcp-adapter list.
• Start this server — wp mcp-adapter serve --server=<slug> --user=admin (replace admin with any user login or ID). It runs until the client disconnects.
• STDIO config block — a JSON snippet to paste into your MCP client’s config file, under the server’s key.

STDIO vs HTTP — which to use

• STDIO — the client launches wp as a subprocess. Best for local development; no network exposure.
• HTTP (npx) — the client connects to the REST endpoint over the network. Best for remote or shared servers.

Tip: WP-CLI must be on your PATH, or replace wp in the config with the full path to the binary.