Things
Connects AI assistants to the Things.app task manager on macOS, allowing direct creation and management of tasks and projects.
Integrates with Things.app task management for macOS, enabling task and project creation with full metadata support, update operations including completion status, database export functionality, and summary generation through URL scheme and direct database access.
What it does
- Create new tasks and projects in Things.app
- Update existing tasks and completion status
- Schedule tasks for specific dates
- Export and view task database summaries
- Organize tasks with areas, tags, and deadlines
- Generate task reports and overviews
Best for
About Things
Things is a community-built MCP server published by wbopan that provides AI assistants with tools and capabilities via the Model Context Protocol. Integrate with the best to do list app for macOS—Things. Enjoy advanced task management, database export, and project cr It is categorized under productivity.
How to install
You can install Things in your AI client of choice. Use the install panel on this page to get one-click setup for Cursor, Claude Desktop, VS Code, and other MCP-compatible clients. This server runs locally on your machine via the stdio transport.
License
Things is released under the MIT license. This is a permissive open-source license, meaning you can freely use, modify, and distribute the software.
Things MCP Server
Control your Things.app tasks directly from Claude Code, Claude Desktop, Cursor, and other AI assistants using the Model Context Protocol (MCP).
What It Does
This MCP server lets AI assistants interact with your Things.app tasks on macOS. You can:
- Create new tasks and projects
- Update existing items
- View your task database with detailed summaries
- Schedule tasks for specific dates
- Organize with areas, tags, and deadlines
Quick Start
1. Get Things Authorization Token
For updating existing tasks, you need an authorization token:
- Open Things.app on macOS
- Go to Things → Preferences → General
- Check "Enable Things URLs"
- Copy the authorization token that appears
2. Configure Your AI Assistant
Claude Desktop
Add to ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json (macOS):
{
"mcpServers": {
"things": {
"command": "npx",
"args": ["@wenbopan/things-mcp"],
"env": {
"THINGS_AUTH_TOKEN": "your-token-here"
}
}
}
}
Cursor IDE
Create .cursor/mcp.json in your project or ~/.cursor/mcp.json globally:
{
"things": {
"command": "npx",
"args": ["@wenbopan/things-mcp"],
"env": {
"THINGS_AUTH_TOKEN": "your-token-here"
}
}
}
3. Restart Your AI Assistant
After configuration, restart your AI assistant to load the MCP server.
Use Cases
Daily Planning
"Show me my today's tasks and create a project for the new marketing campaign with initial tasks for research, design, and content creation."
Project Management
"Update the mobile app project to add design review and testing tasks, then schedule the design review for next Monday."
Task Organization
"Move all my unscheduled shopping tasks to the 'Personal' area and tag them with 'weekend'."
Progress Tracking
"Give me a summary of all active projects with their deadlines and completion status."
Quick Capture
"Create a task to call the dentist, schedule it for tomorrow, and set a deadline for end of week."
License
MIT
Contributing
Issues and pull requests welcome! Please ensure all tests pass before submitting.
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