Build Smarter with the Microsoft 365 Agents Toolkit MCP Server - Microsoft 365 Developer Blog (original) (raw)

As AI agents become central to how we build and interact with modern productivity apps, developers need tools that are flexible, standard-based, and deeply integrated with AI. That’s where the Microsoft 365 Agents Toolkit MCP Server comes in.

This is a local Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that acts as a bridge between your AI coding agents and the Microsoft 365 Agents Toolkit. It enables developers for building apps and agents for Microsoft 365 and Microsoft 365 Copilot and give you better AI empowered developing experience through whole life cycle of apps and agents.

With this we enable a seamless integration with GitHub Copilot Chat (Agent Mode) and other AI powered coding tools—so you can build, test, and deploy apps faster.

Whether you’re building an agent for Microsoft 365 Copilot, extending a Teams app with AI, or experimenting with multi-agent orchestration, the Microsoft 365 Agents Toolkit MCP Server gives you the foundation to do it right.

Getting Started in VS Code

Step 1. Complete the Prerequisites

The Microsoft 365 Agents Toolkit MCP Server requires Node.js to install and run the server. If you don’t have it installed, follow the instructions here.
Install either the stable or Insiders release of VS Code: Stable release | Insiders release
Install the GitHub Copilot and GitHub Copilot Chat extensions

Step 2. Setup up Microsoft 365 Agents Toolkit MCP Server

For a step-by-step guide to install the Microsoft 365 Agents Toolkit MCP Server, follow these instructions:

Add the following configuration into .vscode/mcp.json under you current VS Code workspace manually, or install from command palette: Install from command palette for VS Code | Install from command palette for VS Code Insider

{ "servers": {
       "M365AgentsToolkit Server": {
           "command": "npx",
           "args": [
               "-y",
               "@microsoft/m365agentstoolkit-mcp@latest",
               "server",
               "start"
           ]
       }
   }
}

List The Tools in GitHub Copilot Chat for Quick Validation
- Go to GitHub Copilot in VS Code and switch to Agent mode
- Click ‘Refresh’ on the tool list

- Make sure you can find all tools from this MCP server

What Can You Build?

Here are some real-world examples of how developers are using the MCP Server:

Create Custom Engine Agents: Build agents with custom logic and AI services powered by the Microsoft 365 Agents SDK.
Bring your own agents: Use the Microsoft 365 Agents SDK to evolve your Teams app into a Copilot agent.
Add AI to Teams apps: Use the Teams AI Library to build apps for Teams powered by AI.
Extend declarative agents: Add new actions or Copilot Connectors to declarative agents.
Use Adaptive Cards: Render API responses directly in Teams or Copilot with rich UI.
Build apps for Microsoft 365: Add new features or build from scratch new apps for Teams and more.

Build with Us

The Microsoft 365 Agents Toolkit MCP server is part of our open approach to agent development. Whether you’re building Copilot agents, extending Teams apps with AI, or experimenting with new AI-first workflows, the Microsoft 365 Agents Toolkit MCP Server is designed to help you move faster and build smarter—right from your local dev environment.

Help shape the future of agent development by sharing your feedback. We’re building this together, openly, collaboratively, and with developers like you at the center:

Open an issue in the public repository.
Send an email to tcsupport@microsoft.com to chat with the product team.

We look forward to seeing what you’ll build with the Microsoft 365 Agents Toolkit MCP Server!

Author

Daniel Carrasco

Sr Product Marketing Manager

Daniel Carrasco leads the global pro-code marketing strategy for Copilot Studio. Leveraging his expertise in Artificial Intelligence, developer engagement, and B2B marketing, he empowers developers and technical decision makers to drive innovation.

Yan Jin

Principal product manager