Better-TG-CLI (Telegram)

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https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/d143f7c7-7d50-439c-b373-cbcbff5a6675

Better-TG-CLI is a Telegram CLI and MCP server for AI agents (Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, Claude Desktop, Gemini CLI) that works on your own Telegram account: agents read, search and send messages and press bot buttons, and you approve every send.

It is an unofficial, open-source client (MTProto via teleproto, TL layer 229). The command is telegram: about 60 commands for reading, searching, writing, bots, groups and exports, built so that agents can drive it cheaply and safely. It also ships as an MCP server (telegram mcp) and an agent skill.

$ telegram inbox -n 3

48 unread in 7 chats (showing 3) 1234567890 user unread=2 Alice @alice | see you at 7? -1001234567 supergroup muted unread=41 Rust Seattle @rust_sea | anyone tried 1.90? -1009876543 channel unread=5 Changelog | v2.4 is out $ telegram read @alice -n 1 --json {"chatTitle":"Alice","messages":[{"id":812,"date":"2026-09-27T10:02:11.000Z","sender":"Alice","senderId":"1234567890","text":"see you at 7?"}]}

[!WARNING]

Your account, your risk. This is an unofficial client that logs in as you. Telegram may

limit or freeze accounts that behave like bots. The risk is highest for new accounts, bulk

messaging, mass joins or invites, and anything that looks like spam. Use it the way you would

use Telegram yourself, keep writes off unless you need them, and read SECURITY.md

before letting an agent write. The authors are not responsible for restricted accounts.

Contents: Why Better-TG-CLI · Install · Log in · Usage · MCP server · FAQ · Development · Privacy · License

Why Better-TG-CLI

Made for agents:

• Current Telegram layer. Bot replies with rich (layer 228+) content show real text instead of (no text). You can press bot buttons (click) and walk bot menus.
• Token-efficient output. Off a TTY you get one compact line per item with the ID first, and JSON on one line with empty fields dropped. --max-text trims long posts. telegram help-all -g prints every flag, generated from the code.
• Exact reads. Real pagination for --since/--until, --unread, threads and channel comments, forum topics, get by ID, search filters by type, sender or date, and me / Избранное for Saved Messages.
• You approve every message. After login the agent asks you in the chat before each send, edit or delete, and shows the exact text; it sends only after your yes. Writing without asking (write-access on) needs your own confirmation in a terminal or a macOS dialog. Every write is logged to ~/.config/tg/audit.jsonl. Secrets live in the macOS Keychain, the Linux Secret Service or 1Password.
• Small and self-contained. The npm package is one 0.3 MB file with zero runtime dependencies. Homebrew installs a standalone binary with no Node.

It started as a fork of skillhq/telegram and has since been reworked throughout.

Compared with other Telegram MCP servers

Taken from each project's README and manifest in November 2026; open an issue if something here is out of date. What sets Better-TG-CLI apart is the write model (read-only, ask, on, with approvals bound to the exact text) and output made for agents.

Install

brew install thevilfer/tap/better-tg-cli   # standalone binary, macOS and Linux

npm install -g better-tg-cli # Node >= 20, any OS

On Windows (experimental), with Scoop or npm:

scoop bucket add thevilfer https://github.com/TheVilfer/scoop-bucket

scoop install better-tg-cli

The Windows telegram.exe is not code-signed, so SmartScreen may warn about the release download.

telegram update upgrades an existing install, whichever of these you used. On a terminal the CLI checks for new versions once a day. Agents and pipes never see that notice, and TG_NO_UPDATE_CHECK=1 turns it off.

Downloading a binary from Releases by hand on macOS? It is not notarized, so remove the quarantine flag once: xattr -d com.apple.quarantine ./telegram. Homebrew handles this for you.

Do not install @skillhq/telegram. It is the old upstream build on GramJS (layer 198).

Every channel ships the same version from one release:

Claude Code plugin

The skill as a plugin, kept up to date by Claude Code:

/plugin marketplace add TheVilfer/better-tg-cli

/plugin install better-tg-cli@better-tg-cli

The plugin is the skill alone, so install the CLI first (above) and log in once with telegram onboard in a terminal. Claude Code then runs telegram itself. Anthropic's plugin directory accepts MCP servers that run on your computer only from Verified organizations, so the MCP server is added on its own if you want it: claude mcp add telegram -- telegram mcp.

Codex plugin

The skill and the MCP server as a Codex plugin (also shows up in the ChatGPT desktop app):

codex plugin marketplace add TheVilfer/better-tg-cli

codex plugin add better-tg-cli@better-tg-cli

Grok Build plugin

Grok Build installs the plugin with the skill and the MCP server together:

grok plugin install TheVilfer/better-tg-cli --trust

or add the marketplace first, then install from the /plugins menu:

grok plugin marketplace add TheVilfer/better-tg-cli && grok plugin install better-tg-cli --trust

As an agent skill

The skill (skills/better-tg-cli) teaches any agent with a shell (Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, Gemini CLI, OpenCode and others) to use the CLI safely. It checks the setup, never logs in on its own, keeps writes behind your approval, and avoids ban-prone patterns. The CLI carries the skill and installs it itself, so it always matches your version:

telegram skill install                  # every supported agent found on this machine

telegram skill install -a claude-code codex telegram skill status # installed, outdated, linked or missing, per agent

It knows Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, Gemini CLI, GitHub Copilot, Grok Build, OpenCode, Goose, Droid, Windsurf and Pi (telegram skill status lists the folders). Run it again after telegram update to refresh the skill. A skill folder that is a symlink is left alone unless you pass --force. For other agents, use the skills CLI:

npx skills add TheVilfer/better-tg-cli          # pick agents interactively

npx skills add TheVilfer/better-tg-cli -g -a claude-code -a codex -y

Log in

Through your agent (easiest): ask it to set up Telegram, or run telegram onboard yourself. It opens a page on 127.0.0.1 where you get a login key from better-tg-cli.com (it comes back to the page by itself) or enter your own keys, scan a QR code and type your 2FA password. The agent only starts the command and waits: it never sees the login key, the QR code or the password. The page answers only on a random secret path and closes when you're done.

With your own API keys (the default):

1. Open https://my.telegram.org/apps, create an application, and copy its api_id and api_hash.
2. Run telegram auth --qr and enter them. Then, on your phone, go to Settings → Devices → Link Desktop Device and scan the QR code. Enter your 2FA password if you have one. Plain telegram auth asks for y