How do I connect Claude to my CRM?
Mint a scoped token in the CRM, add its MCP server to Claude, then ask Claude which tools it can reach.
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The short answer
- Claude connects to a CRM through the CRM's MCP server: you add the server URL to Claude with a token as a Bearer header, and Claude discovers the tools.
- In Claude Code the whole connection is one command: claude mcp add, the server name, the HTTP transport, the URL and the Authorization header.
- The token decides what Claude can do, so scope it before you connect: read-only for research, writes only when a real task needs them.
- SalesCrew exposes 140+ MCP tools, and every external send Claude starts waits in an approval queue for a person by default.
Connect Claude to SalesCrew step by step
The same shape works for any CRM that publishes an MCP server over HTTP.
- 1
Mint a token
Open Settings, then API access (MCP). Give the token a label such as my laptop. Tick Allow writes only if Claude should create or update records, then click Generate.
- 2
Copy it once
The token is shown one time. Paste it somewhere safe for the next step, then clear it from your clipboard.
- 3
Add it to Claude Code
Run: claude mcp add salescrew --transport http <your MCP URL> --header "Authorization: Bearer <token>". The API access page shows the command with your URL filled in.
- 4
Or add it to Claude Desktop
Add a server named salescrew with type HTTP, your MCP URL, and the header Authorization: Bearer followed by the token.
- 5
Restart and test
Restart Claude and ask which tools it has from salescrew. It should list the tool families your token can reach.
- 6
Check the log
Settings, API access shows Last used updating. Every call Claude makes appears in the audit log with your token named as the actor.
Scope the token before you connect
Adding the connector is quick. The choice that matters comes first: what the token can do. An MCP server mirrors the CRM's own permission model, so a read-only token acts like a read-only user. An admin token acts like an admin at the keyboard, one that follows every instruction you type, including vague ones.
Start with the narrowest token that fits the job. Drafting follow-ups from deal notes needs read access to deals and contacts, and nothing more. Moving deals between stages needs writes. Add scope when a real task asks for it, not up front because it's easier.
SalesCrew tokens carry three scopes, the same ones that govern a person in the app: channel, profile and area. You can read how each one works in what an MCP token is and how to scope it.
Match the token to the task
Common jobs people give Claude in a CRM, and the narrowest SalesCrew token that does them.
| What you ask Claude to do | Token | What happens to a send |
|---|---|---|
| Summarise a deal before a call | Read-only | No send involved |
| Find stalled deals and list next steps | Read-only | No send involved |
| Log call notes and create follow-up tasks | Allow writes | No send involved |
| Draft replies to new inbox threads | Allow writes, inbox area | Draft waits for a person to send |
| Enroll a segment in a cadence | Allow writes, outreach area | Each external send waits in the approval queue |
Scopes and defaults as SalesCrew ships them, September 2026.
Where the token lives matters too
Claude Desktop keeps connector settings in a config file on your laptop. If that laptop is shared, lost or backed up to a loose folder, the token travels with it. Give each device its own labelled token, so you can revoke one without breaking the others.
For anything that emails a customer, keep a person in the loop. SalesCrew's approval queue holds every external send by default, so Claude can draft a hundred replies and nothing leaves until someone approves it.
Where other CRMs publish their MCP server for Claude
The same connect-and-test pattern, with each vendor's own server address and sign-in.
| CRM | MCP server | How Claude signs in | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| HubSpot | mcp.hubspot.com | OAuth 2.0 with PKCE; an admin connects the account first | developers.hubspot.com/mcp |
| Close | mcp.close.com/mcp | OAuth 2.0, or an API key plus a scope header | help.close.com/docs/mcp-server |
| Attio | mcp.attio.com/mcp | OAuth, scoped to the signed-in user | docs.attio.com/mcp/overview |
| Pipedrive | Listed on its MCP features page | OAuth, with setup guides for Claude and ChatGPT | pipedrive.com/en/features/mcp-server |
| SalesCrew (our product) | Your instance's MCP URL, shown on the API access page | Per-user MCP token as a Bearer header | Disclosure: SalesCrew is our product. |
Vendor facts checked September 2026. For more vendors, see which CRMs have an MCP server.
Treat an MCP token like a database password
Questions
- How do I use Claude with my CRM through MCP?
- Mint an MCP token in the CRM, then add the CRM's MCP server URL to Claude with that token as a Bearer header. Restart Claude and ask which tools it has. From then on Claude can call the CRM's tools within the token's scope.
- Does this work the same in Claude Desktop and Claude Code?
- The connection is the same: a server URL plus a token. Claude Code takes it as one terminal command, claude mcp add. Claude Desktop takes it as an HTTP server entry with the same URL and Authorization header.
- Can Claude see every record once it's connected?
- Claude sees only what the token allows. In SalesCrew a token carries the same channel, profile and area scopes as the person who minted it, and a token minted without writes can read but never change a record.
- How do I disconnect Claude from the CRM?
- Revoke the token in the CRM. The next call Claude makes returns a 401 and stops there. In SalesCrew you revoke under Settings, API access, or with the MCP tool mcp_token_revoke.