You know Claude AI's Integrations feature? It lets you hook up external apps like Zapier, Jira, Gmail, and Slack directly. I recently connected it with Zapier and now everything from email summaries to calendar management and project tasks just... happens automatically. The setup was way easier than I expected.
What apps can you actually connect?
There are basically two types of connections you can make.
Apps that connect directly: Atlassian Jira (project and issue tracking), Confluence (document collaboration), Intercom (customer support), Asana (task management), Square (payments), Sentry (error monitoring), PayPal, Linear (issue tracking), Plaid (financial data), Cloudflare (infrastructure).
They're apparently adding Stripe, GitLab, and Box soon too.
Apps through Zapier: Once you connect Zapier's MCP server to Claude, you get access to over 5,000 apps. I'm using stuff like Google Workspace (Gmail, Drive, Docs, Sheets), Slack, Microsoft Outlook/Teams, HubSpot (CRM and sales automation), Notion, Trello, Monday.com, Airtable, Salesforce, Dropbox, Box, Mailchimp, Calendly, and Google Calendar.
Setting up Zapier MCP with Claude
Here's how I set it up. Took me about 10 minutes total.
First, log into Zapier and go to the Zapier MCP dashboard. Click + New MCP Server and select Claude as the MCP client. Name your server something simple like Zapier MCP and hit Create MCP Server.
Next, in your new MCP server, click + Add tool. I started with Gmail – typed Gmail in the app name and picked actions like search email and send email. After authorizing Gmail access, some fields appeared. Claude can auto-fill some of these, so I left those alone and clicked Save. You can keep adding apps this way – Google Calendar, Slack, whatever you need.
Then go to the Connect tab in your Zapier MCP dashboard. Click Copy URL to grab the integration URL. This is what links Claude and Zapier together.
Now in Claude.ai, click your profile (the initials) at the bottom left. Go to Settings, then Integrations. Click Add more and a popup appears. Enter Zapier MCP as the server name and paste that URL you copied. Read the security notice, agree, and click Add.
Finally, start a new chat in Claude. Click the search and tools icon (magnifying glass + wrench) at the bottom. You'll see Zapier MCP listed. Click Connect then Allow and you're done.
What it's actually like using it
Once everything's connected, you just talk to Claude normally and stuff happens. Commands I use all the time:
- Show me important emails from today
- Schedule a marketing meeting tomorrow at 2pm
- What Jira tickets am I assigned this week?
- Find project messages in Slack and summarize them
- Analyze this month's sales data from Google Sheets
The best part? In the morning I just say Summarize important stuff that came in after I left yesterday and Claude checks Gmail, Slack, and Jira all at once. Used to take me 15 minutes clicking through each app. Now it's instant.
Is it secure though?
Claude's external app connections have several security layers built in. From what I've checked:
Data gets encrypted during transfer (TLS protocol) and storage (AES encryption). Access is controlled through API keys or OAuth authentication, with multi-factor authentication available. They only collect minimal necessary data and won't use it for model training without permission. Everything follows GDPR and CCPA privacy laws. Plus there's firewall and network isolation protecting external access, regular security audits, and updated malware protection.
Things I learned along the way
The Integrations feature only works on Claude's Max, Team, or Enterprise plans. Free plan doesn't have it, so check your plan first.
Pay attention to permissions when connecting each app. Only approve what you actually need. You can always change permissions later in the Zapier dashboard.
Save commands you use repeatedly. I keep templates like create weekly task report or prep meeting materials handy.
Use the action toggle feature in Zapier MCP dashboard. Turn off functions you're not using to keep things clean.
Test new app connections with simple commands first. Try send test email in Gmail before doing anything complex. Makes troubleshooting easier if something's off.
Been using Claude Integrations for about a month now and my workflow's completely changed. If you're constantly jumping between apps to gather and organize info, this is kind of essential. Setup's not hard either, so maybe give it a shot?