You can connect Local Dominator to Claude Desktop by adding our connector to Claude’s MCP settings. This gives Claude direct, read-only access to your SERP Tracker, Site Audit, Geogrid, AI Tracker, and Review Velocity data, so you can ask for reports and analysis in plain English instead of exporting CSVs or switching tabs.
🎯 Who is this for?
This is for agencies and marketers who already use Claude Desktop for research, reporting, or client work and want live Local Dominator data available inside it without leaving the app.
- Agencies managing multiple client accounts in Local Dominator
- Marketers comfortable editing one config file (no coding required beyond copy-paste)
📋 What you will need
You need Claude Desktop installed, Node.js to run the connector, and your Local Dominator API key. There’s nothing to download separately. Claude fetches and runs the connector automatically the first time it connects.
- Claude Desktop installed (claude.ai/download)
- Node.js version 18 or newer (nodejs.org, LTS version)
- Your Local Dominator API key, from your account’s API settings page.
-
No separate download needed.
Claude runs Local Dominator’s official connector directly from our hosted
connector file via
npx, so there are no files to create or manage yourself.
⏳ Time to complete
- ~ 10 minutes
How to Connect Claude Desktop
Follow these steps to connect Claude Desktop. Node.js runs the connector for you on demand, there’s nothing to download or install ahead of time.
Log into Local Dominator
Go to Account → API Settings, and copy your key.
Local Dominator API keys start with
ld_.
Keep your API key private. Treat it like a password—never share it in chat, email, or a screenshot.
In Claude Desktop, follow this navigation path:
This opens
claude_desktop_config.json
in your default text editor.
C:\Users\<your>\AppData\Roaming\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json
Add the following configuration inside the
mcpServers object.
{
"mcpServers": {
"local-dominator": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"https://localdominator.co/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/LOCAL-1.tgz"
],
"env": {
"LOCAL_DOMINATOR_API_KEY": "ld_your_actual_key_here"
}
}
}
}
Add the
"local-dominator"
block alongside your existing servers. Do not replace the entire
configuration file.
Replace
ld_your_actual_key_here
with your real Local Dominator API key, then save the file.
Fully quit Claude Desktop before reopening it.
Closing the window isn’t enough. Claude may continue running in the background. Choose Quit from the system tray before reopening it.
Confirm that the Local Dominator connector is running.
Follow this path in the application:
On the first run, npx fetches the
connector from the server. After it has been cached, it starts
instantly.
Open a new chat and send the following prompt:
Check my Local Dominator account status.
You should receive real credit balances across all your Local Dominator modules.
Some Claude Desktop installations—particularly the MSIX version—store the configuration file in a virtualized location instead of the standard path. This can cause Claude to ignore the MCP configuration even when your JSON is valid.
C:\Users\<your-username>\AppData\Local\Packages\Claude_pzs8sxrjxfjjd\LocalCache\Roaming\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json
- 1 Back up your existing configuration file.
- 2 Uninstall Claude Desktop.
- 3 Manually create this standard Claude folder:
C:\Users\<your-username>\AppData\Roaming\Claude
-
4
Place
claude_desktop_config.jsoninside the folder. - 5 Reinstall Claude Desktop.
What You Can Ask For
Once connected, Claude can pull and summarize live data on request. You don’t need to know tool names or campaign IDs in advance—just describe what you want.
All available tools are read-only. Actions that spend credits—such as triggering a new scan or audit—cannot run through this connector.
From Raw Grid Data to a Client-Ready Action Plan
The real value appears when you chain questions together instead of asking them one at a time. This workflow has been verified from beginning to end.
Check GeoGrid (Maps & Local Pack) for Sunrise Remodeling Co.
Claude pulls the scan and summarizes rankings by keyword and location.
What keywords are we showing lower than 10 on GeoGrids for Sunrise Remodeling?
Claude filters the pulled data into a table showing the keyword, average grid rank, best pin position, and overall status.
Identify what we need to address to improve our visibility with these keywords in the areas on the grid that we are failing.
Claude diagnoses the ranking pattern—for example, strong visibility at the center pin with a steep drop-off elsewhere—and proposes potential improvements:
- GBP category and service-area alignment
- Geotagged content
- Review keyword and location co-occurrence
- On-page schema
- Citation cleanup
Strategize an exact 20-point action plan we can take charge of today.
Claude generates a complete phased plan and can save it as a standalone document that you can hand off directly.
Troubleshooting and FAQ
Server doesn’t show a green badge
Fully quit Claude Desktop from the system tray—not just close the window—and reopen it.
“LOCAL_DOMINATOR_API_KEY is not set” error
The env block is missing or
malformed in
claude_desktop_config.json.
Check that it matches the example exactly.
mcpServers object.
First connection takes a while or seems stuck
This is normal on the very first run.
npx is downloading the
connector from our server.
It needs internet access to reach localdominator.co once; after that, it’s cached and starts instantly.
Server shows “failed” in Settings → Developer
Click View Logs to see the error:
Confirm Node.js version 18 or newer is installed by running:
node --versionAlso confirm that the following package URL in your config is spelled exactly right. A typo here is the most common cause.
https://localdominator.co/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/LOCAL-1.tgzTool calls ask for approval every time
This is expected default behavior for MCP tools. Claude will ask before each call unless you choose to always allow that tool during the current session.