Connect Packstack to your AI assistant

Let Claude, ChatGPT or any MCP-compatible assistant read your real trips and gear — and, with a subscription, edit them — while you plan.

Packstack has an MCP server. MCP (Model Context Protocol) is the open standard AI assistants use to connect to apps. Once connected, your assistant can look at your actual gear closet, your trips and what's packed in each one, do the arithmetic with real weights, and — if you subscribe — make changes for you. No copying and pasting lists back and forth.

What it looks like

You: Give my Isle Royale trip a shakedown.

Assistant: Your base weight is 14.7 lb for Jerad and 17.3 lb for Anne. Three things first: you're each carrying a Half Dome 2 Plus — sharing one drops 5.3 lb from the group. Jerad has no sleeping pad or water treatment listed. And there are duplicate kettles in both packs — want me to remove them?

The server address

Every assistant asks for this once. It's the same for everyone; there's nothing to configure.

Packstack MCP server URL

Connect from Claude

Works on claude.ai, the desktop app and mobile — connect once and it's available everywhere.

  1. Open Settings → Connectors.
  2. Choose Add custom connector, paste the server URL above, and confirm.
  3. Claude opens a Packstack page. Sign in if asked, review what's being requested, and click Allow.
  4. Back in Claude, start a chat and turn the Packstack connector on for that chat if it isn't already. Try "what are my trips?"

In Claude, the three built-in reviews (/shakedown, /plan_pack, /lighten) appear as slash commands once the connector is on.

Connect from Claude Code

claude mcp add --transport http packstack https://api.packstack.io/mcp

The first call opens your browser for the same Packstack consent screen.

Connect from ChatGPT

  1. Turn on Developer mode under Settings → Connectors (Advanced), if you haven't.
  2. Choose Create, give it a name ("Packstack"), paste the server URL, and pick OAuth for authentication.
  3. Complete the Packstack consent screen when prompted.

Connect from Cursor, Windsurf and other MCP clients

Add a remote (HTTP) MCP server with the URL above. Any client that supports OAuth for remote servers will walk you through the same consent screen; the flow is standard, so you don't need an API key.

What it costs

Reading is free for every Packstack account. Making changes — adding gear, building packs, editing trips — is part of the Packstack subscription. If you're on the free plan, you can still connect: your assistant can review everything, and it will point you to app.packstack.io if you ask it to edit.

Disconnecting

Go to Settings → Connected apps in the Packstack web app and choose Disconnect. Access is cut off immediately. You can also remove the connector from the assistant's side.

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