What is a Zapier connector?

A Zapier connector is an agent-native toolkit that gives AI agents direct access to an app.

A Zapier connector is an agent-native toolkit that gives AI agents direct access to an app. Connectors bundle executable code with structured schemas that help agents call the app reliably. Each connector combines the tools an app provides with the context an agent needs to use them correctly.

Connectors are portable across your AI stack and can be used with or without a Zapier account.

Every connector is a self-contained npm package that works in environments that support skills, MCP servers, or npm packages, including Claude Code, Cursor, Codex, and custom agent frameworks.

When a connector is installed, the agent invokes a single tool with a validated schema instead of generating raw API calls. This improves reliability, reduces implementation complexity, and helps ensure consistent behavior across agent frameworks.

Connectors can be combined to build multi-step automation workflows.

Zapier Connectors are a prototype. Interfaces can change in any release, and connectors are not recommended for production use yet. Before version 1.0, a breaking change ships as a minor version bump and a feature or fix ships as a patch. Pin with a caret (for example ^0.1.0) to avoid picking up a breaking change automatically.

Connector modes

A connector is distributed as a single npm package (for example, @zapier/notion-connector) and can be used in four different modes:

Mode	Command
Skill	npx skills add zapier/connectors --skill notion
MCP	npx @zapier/notion-connector mcp
CLI	npx @zapier/notion-connector run [tool]
Code	npm install @zapier/notion-connector

All connectors are also available as source on GitHub at github.com/zapier/connectors. Clone the repo if you prefer to work from source or want access to all connectors at once without installing each package individually.

Ways to use connectors

You can use connectors in two ways, depending on your needs.

Without a Zapier account

You can install and use connectors without a Zapier account. No sign-up required. Just install and start building.

With this option, you provide your own API credentials. The connector provides the tool logic and schemas, while authentication and execution happen in your environment. Since connectors are publicly available, you can install the corresponding packages or clone the repository and start using them immediately.

With a Zapier account

You can optionally connect through Zapier to take advantage of managed authentication and additional platform capabilities. When using this path, connectors also benefit from:

• Authentication and credential management
• Governance and observability (coming soon)

Install a connector

When using a connector as a skill, you have two options:

• Install the connector directly from the npm registry.
• Clone the connector repository. Your agent reads the connector’s SKILL.md to discover the available tools and how to run them. The repository is available at github.com/zapier/connectors/tree/main/apps.

For example, to install the Notion connector as a skill:

npx skills add zapier/connectors --skill notion

To install a connector globally (for example, Google Docs):

npx skills add zapier/connectors --skill google-docs --global

Use a connector

Skill

How it works: The agent reads the connector’s SKILL.md to discover the available tools and how to run them. Once installed, you do not invoke the connector directly. Just describe what you need in natural language, and the agent will use the connector when it is relevant to your request.

Authentication

Without a Zapier account, make sure the agent has access to the API credentials via an environment variable:

export NOTION_TOKEN="<your_token_here>"

With a Zapier account, create a Zapier connection and configure the connector to use your connection ID.

Example prompts

• “Give me all the Notion pages that talk about the company strategy.”
• “Pull onboarding notes from Notion, summarize them into a new Google Doc, and schedule a 10am MT review tomorrow on Calendar with the doc linked.”

Local MCP server

How it works: The connector runs as a local MCP server, exposing its tools so your AI client discovers them automatically through the MCP protocol. Once configured, describe what you need in your AI client and it will invoke the connector’s tools directly.

Setup:

From npm

Register in your client’s MCP configuration:

{
  "notion": {
    "command": "npx",
    "args": ["-y", "@zapier/notion-connector", "mcp"],
    "env": {
      "NOTION_TOKEN": "<your_token_here>"
    }
  }
}

With Zapier, make sure the agent can find or knows the connection ID to use.

From GitHub

Register in your client’s MCP configuration:

{
  "notion": {
    "command": "node",
    "args": ["/Users/<your-user>/.agents/skills/notion/cli.js", "mcp"],
    "env": {
      "NOTION_TOKEN": "<your_token_here>"
    }
  }
}

With Zapier, make sure the agent can find or knows the connection ID to use.

CLI

How it works: Run connector commands directly from your terminal.

From npm

Command structure:

npx @zapier/[app]-connector run [tool] '[json-input]' --connection [reference]

1. npx @zapier/[app]-connector: runs the connector from npm
2. run: execute a tool
3. [tool-name]: which tool (for example, search, createPage)
4. '[json-input]': JSON object with the tool’s parameters
5. --connection [reference]: how to authenticate

Example:

Search Notion for pages matching “roadmap”.

Without a Zapier account, use your own token:

npx @zapier/notion-connector run search '{"query":"roadmap"}' --connection env:NOTION_TOKEN

With a Zapier account, use a Zapier connection:

npx @zapier/notion-connector run search '{"query":"roadmap"}' --connection zapier:<connection-id>

From GitHub

Command structure:

node ~/.agents/skills/[app]/cli.js run [tool] '[json-input]' --connection [reference]

1. node ~/.agents/skills/[app]/cli.js: the connector CLI
2. run: run a tool
3. [tool-name]: which tool (for example, search, createPage)
4. '[json-input]': JSON object with the tool’s parameters
5. --connection [reference]: how to authenticate

Examples:

List all available tools and options:

node ~/.agents/skills/notion/cli.js --help

Search Notion for pages matching “roadmap” using a Zapier connection for authentication:

node ~/.agents/skills/notion/cli.js run search '{"query":"roadmap"}' --connection zapier:25b42592-beb0-46fe-a979-1a8b2dea348f

Code package

How it works: Import the connector as a standard npm package into your Node.js application. You call tools directly as functions in your code, giving you full control over execution, error handling, and orchestration.

Installation:

npm install @zapier/notion-connector

Example:

import { search } from "@zapier/notion-connector";

const results = await search(
  { query: "roadmap" },
  { connection: "NOTION_TOKEN" },
  // with Zapier:
  // { connection: "25b42592-beb0-46fe-a979-1a8b2dea348f" },
);