Getting Started: Connect Your First AI App to WordPress with Saddle

Connecting an AI assistant to your WordPress site with Saddle takes three steps: install the plugin, create a connection, and paste the generated setup into your AI app. This guide walks through each step and shows how to confirm the connection works.

How do I install Saddle?

1. In your WordPress dashboard, go to Plugins → Add New and search for Saddle, or upload the plugin ZIP.
2. Click Install, then Activate.
3. A new Saddle menu appears in your dashboard — this is where connections, permissions, and settings live.

How do I create a connection for an AI app?

1. Go to Saddle → Connections.
2. Create a new connection and give it a recognizable name (for example, “Claude Code — my laptop”). Each app you connect gets its own connection and its own key, so you can revoke one without affecting the others.
3. Saddle generates a setup snippet containing your site’s MCP endpoint and a sign-in key. Copy it — this is what your AI app needs.

Treat the key like a password: anyone who has it can use the connection at whatever access level you’ve granted it.

How do I add my site to Claude Code or Claude?

• Claude Code — add the connection as an MCP server using the setup snippet from Saddle → Connections. Once added, Saddle’s tools appear automatically in your session.
• Claude (web and desktop) — add your site as a custom connector in Claude’s settings, pasting the endpoint and key from the same snippet.
• Other MCP clients — any app that supports remote MCP servers can connect with the same endpoint and key.

How do I know the connection works?

Ask your AI assistant something simple, like “check my site via Saddle”. It should call Saddle’s site-info tool and report your site name, WordPress version, and content counts. If it does, you’re connected.

You can also open Saddle → Connections → Connection details & health and run the built-in connection check, which verifies the endpoint is reachable and the key is accepted.

What should I set up next?

• Review Permissions and Access Levels to decide what the AI is allowed to do.
• Learn how the deletion approval gate protects your content.
• If a step fails, see Troubleshooting and FAQ — the two most common connection errors have one-click fixes.