slim-down as an MCP Server for Claude and other AI agents

Why an MCP server?

With MCP, an AI agent no longer has to build HTTP requests: it simply sees convert and convert_file as tools, the same way it would call local files or other built-in functions. That makes slim-down directly usable in a conversation with Claude, without separate integration code.

How do you set it up?

1. Create a free account and grab your personal API key from My Account.
2. Add slim-down to your MCP client config (e.g. claude_desktop_config.json) with the /mcp URL and your API key as an Authorization: Bearer header.
3. Ask Claude to convert a document — the agent automatically calls the convert or convert_file tool and gets back clean Markdown (or a Word/Excel file).

Claude.ai & Claude Desktop — no API key needed

This is the easiest route: instead of pasting a key, you sign in with your slim-down account. In Claude, go to Settings → Connectors, choose "Add custom connector" and enter this URL:

https://slim-down.nl/mcp

Claude then sends you to slim-down to sign in and approve access. After that you'll see the convert and convert_file tools in your conversation. You can revoke access at any time from Connectors.

Claude Code — a single command

This is the fastest route and works on every operating system. Open a terminal, replace <YOUR_API_KEY> with your own key (found under My Account), and run:

claude mcp add --transport http slim-down https://slim-down.nl/mcp \
  --header "Authorization: Bearer <JOUW_API_SLEUTEL>"

Then type /mcp in Claude Code to check that the server is connected. You'll see the convert and convert_file tools listed.

Claude Desktop — via a bridge

In claude_desktop_config.json, Claude Desktop only reads local servers, not direct URLs. The mcp-remote helper bridges that gap: it runs locally and talks to our server on Claude Desktop's behalf. You'll need Node.js for this.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "slim-down": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y", "mcp-remote",
        "https://slim-down.nl/mcp",
        "--header", "Authorization: Bearer <JOUW_API_SLEUTEL>"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Already have an "mcpServers" block in your file (for another tool, say)? Don't overwrite the file — just add the "slim-down": { ... } line inside that existing block.

Save the file, then fully quit Claude Desktop and restart it — servers are only loaded on startup.

Where do I find claude_desktop_config.json?

Doesn't this file exist on your computer yet? No problem — just create it yourself at the path below.