AI Clients

Gemini CLI

Gemini CLI reads MCP servers from its settings file. Add MCP Ads and your connected ad accounts become available from the terminal.

Add the server

Add a named entry pointing at the remote server URL, then restart the CLI.

~/.gemini/settings.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "mcp-ads": {
      "url": "https://mcp-ads.com/mcp-slim"
    }
  }
}

Note

Gemini CLI is developing quickly and its MCP configuration has changed between releases. If this key is not recognised, check the settings format for your installed version.

Authorise

The first tool call opens a browser window for the one-time OAuth authorisation. Gemini CLI also prints the URL in the terminal, so a headless machine can complete the sign-in from any browser.

Restart the CLI and check the server list
Gemini CLI reads settings.json at launch. Start a new session and run /mcp; mcp-ads should be listed as connected with its tool count. If it shows disconnected, see Troubleshooting.
Trigger the sign-in
Ask for anything that needs a tool. Approve the grant on mcp-ads.com and return to the terminal.
Verify it works
The first real tool call should return the platforms connected in your MCP Ads dashboard and the accounts on each. An empty list means the server is reachable but nothing is connected yet.
Try this first
```
Using mcp-ads, list the platforms I have connected and
the accounts on each.
```

Troubleshooting

The server is not listed after a restart: the file is at the wrong path or is not valid JSON. The user-level file is ~/.gemini/settings.json; a project-level .gemini/settings.json also works and is the one people edit by mistake when they meant the other. A trailing comma breaks the whole file silently.
The OAuth window is blocked: the CLI tries to open the system browser, which fails on a remote machine or when a popup blocker intervenes. Copy the printed URL into any browser and approve there.
"A server with this URL already exists": the same URL is present in both the user-level and project-level settings, or under two names in one file. Keep one entry and restart.
The key is not recognised: Gemini CLI's MCP settings have changed between releases. Run gemini --version and check the settings reference for that version; some builds expect httpUrl rather than url for remote servers.

Go further

Google Analytics 4

95 analytics tools, useful alongside Google Ads.

Tool reference

Every tool available once connected.

Common questions

Does connecting Gemini CLI give Google access to my ad data?

Tool results are returned into the conversation you are having with that model, the same as any other client. If that matters for your data policy, choose the client accordingly — the server behaves identically either way.

Can I use it with a Google Workspace account?

Yes. The Gemini CLI sign-in is separate from the Google identity you use to authorise Google Ads, GA4 and Search Console inside MCP Ads.

Do I have to authorise again in every project?

No. The grant belongs to the client, not the project. Once approved, any Gemini CLI session on that machine that reads the same server entry uses it, whether the entry lives in the user-level or a project-level settings file.

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