AWS MCP Server

What it does

AWS provides open source MCP servers that connect AI coding agents to AWS documentation, contextual guidance, and best practices. These servers improve output quality by giving agents access to the latest AWS docs, workflow automation, and specialized domain knowledge. Individual servers (e.g., Powertools, Lambda) expose different tool sets.

Available tools

Tool availability depends on which AWS MCP server you use. Common patterns:

Server type	Example tools	What it does
Documentation	search_docs, get_guidance	Search AWS docs and retrieve guidance
Powertools	powertools_*	Access Powertools for AWS Lambda docs and patterns
Lambda runners	run_mcp_server	Run MCP servers in AWS Lambda

See AWS MCP documentation for the full catalog and tool listings.

Setup by tool

Cursor (Powertools example)

Create .cursor/mcp.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "aws-powertools": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "powertools-for-aws-mcp"]
    }
  }
}

Other AWS MCP packages may require different commands and env vars. Check each server's README.

Claude Code

Add the same configuration. Documentation-focused servers often require no API keys. Servers that interact with AWS resources need appropriate credentials (e.g., AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID, AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY or IAM roles).

VS Code / GitHub Copilot

Configure the desired AWS MCP server in your client. For Lambda-based deployment, see AWS guidance on running MCP servers in Lambda with OAuth and WAF.

When to use this

• AWS development: Agents reference current AWS docs and best practices
• Lambda development: Use Powertools MCP for tracing, logging, and validation patterns
• Architecture guidance: Get contextual recommendations for service selection and design
• Workflow automation: Integrate AWS guidance into agent-driven development loops

Security considerations

• Documentation servers typically do not need AWS credentials
• Servers that call AWS APIs require credentials; use IAM roles with least privilege
• For Lambda deployment, follow AWS guidance on OAuth, WAF, and multi-AZ setup
• Do not grant broad AWS permissions to MCP servers used by agents
• Audit which servers are enabled and what access they have