MCP server Official

AWS API MCP Server

MCP server that lets AI assistants run AWS CLI commands across all AWS services with validation and security controls.

Author: AWS Labs (Amazon Web Services)
Works with: Any MCP client, Claude Code, Cursor
License: Apache-2.0
Last release: Sep 30, 2026
Documented: Oct 2, 2026

What AWS API MCP Server is

The AWS API MCP Server acts as a bridge between AI assistants and AWS services, using AWS CLI commands to create, update and manage resources. It helps with command selection and exposes the latest AWS API features. The README notes it is superseded by the official AWS MCP server.

What it does

Where AWS API MCP Server runs and what it adds, from its documentation

Executes AWS CLI commands through natural language
Validates commands before running them
Supports all AWS services via the CLI
Optional read-only mode and mutation consent prompts
Restricts local file access to a working directory by default

When to use it

Good fit

General AWS interactions and exploring resources
Managing infrastructure from an MCP-enabled assistant

Not for

New setups where the README points to the official AWS MCP server as replacement
Sandboxed execution: the README states there is no sandboxing

How to install AWS API MCP Server

You need: AWS account with credentials; Python 3.10 or newer; uv optional

Configure AWS credentials (AWS_API_MCP_PROFILE_NAME or standard boto3 methods)
Ensure Python 3.10+ (and optionally uv) is installed
Add the uvx config to your MCP client
Optionally set READ_ONLY via READ_OPERATIONS_ONLY=true or REQUIRE_MUTATION_CONSENT=true
Restart the client

Configuration example (from the official docs)

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "awslabs.aws-api-mcp-server": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": [
        "awslabs.aws-api-mcp-server@latest"
      ],
      "env": {
        "AWS_REGION": "us-east-1"
      },
      "disabled": false,
      "autoApprove": []
    }
  }
}

Permissions and security

What it can access

Can run AWS CLI commands with the permissions of the configured credentials
Local files limited to the working directory by default (AWS_API_MCP_ALLOW_UNRESTRICTED_LOCAL_FILE_ACCESS=workdir)

Security notes from the maintainers

READ_OPERATIONS_ONLY=true compares commands against a list of known read-only operations
README states there is no sandboxing
AWS_API_MCP_TELEMETRY option controls additional telemetry (default true)

Review the source before granting an agent access to credentials or production systems. We document what the maintainers state; we do not audit code.