Nano Banana MCP: How to Use Google's Image Model in Claude, Cursor, Codex and ChatGPT

What is Nano Banana MCP?

Nano Banana is the nickname for Google's Gemini image models. The original Nano Banana is Gemini 2.5 Flash Image. Nano Banana 2 runs on the Gemini 3.1 Flash image model, and Nano Banana Pro on Gemini 3 Pro. They became popular for one reason: when you ask for a change, they change that and leave the rest of the picture alone.

An MCP server wraps those models as tools that an assistant can call. Once it is connected you stop copying images between tabs. You ask Claude or Cursor for an image, or attach one and describe an edit, and the result comes back in the chat, or straight into your project folder in a coding agent.

Which Nano Banana MCP server should you use?

The big decision is hosted versus local. A hosted connector runs on the provider's servers behind a URL and signs you in. A local server runs on your computer through npx and uses your own Gemini API key, which means Google bills you directly.

1. 01

   3D AI Studio

   by 3D AI StudioOur pick

   A hosted connector with Nano Banana 2.1, Nano Banana 2 and Nano Banana 2 Lite, plus GPT Image 2.5, background removal and 3D generation behind one URL. Nothing to install, so it is the only option here that also works in Claude on the web and on your phone, and in ChatGPT.

   • Sign in once, no API key, credits from your 3D AI Studio account
   • Edits with up to 14 input images
   • Every image is saved to your dashboard
   • Nano Banana is on paid plans; the free plan includes GPT Image 2.5 Flare
2. 02

   gemini-mcp

   by chrischallMost tools

   The broadest local server: image generation and editing, consistent image sets, multi-turn refinement, plus Gemini video and Lyria music. Writes files to disk by default and estimates your API spend per session.

3. 03

   nanobanana-mcp

   by YCSESimple

   A small server with generate, edit and multi-turn chat for Nano Banana 2 and Nano Banana Pro. You set the aspect ratio with a tool call before generating.

4. 04

   nano-banana-mcp

   by DevShiftTeamGoogle sign-in

   Has a setup wizard that can sign you in with Google OAuth instead of pasting a key. Defaults to Nano Banana 2.

5. 05

   nano-banana-2-mcp

   by daveremyClaude Code plugin

   A rewrite focused on Nano Banana 2 with 1K, 2K and 4K output, one to four images per call, and a file-path-only mode that keeps big images out of Claude Code's context window.

How do you set up Nano Banana in Claude, Cursor and ChatGPT?

With 3D AI Studio (no API key)

• Claude: Settings, Connectors, Add custom connector. Paste https://mcp.3daistudio.com/mcp, click Connect and sign in.
• ChatGPT: Settings, Connectors (turn on Developer mode under Advanced if there is no Create button), create a connector with the same URL and OAuth.
• Claude Code: claude mcp add --transport http --scope user 3daistudio https://mcp.3daistudio.com/mcp
• Cursor: add the entry below to ~/.cursor/mcp.json.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "3daistudio": {
      "url": "https://mcp.3daistudio.com/mcp"
    }
  }
}

Then ask for it by name: "use 3D AI Studio with Nano Banana to...". If you leave the model out, the assistant picks one, and for plain generation that is usually Nano Banana 2.1 anyway.

With a community server (your own key)

Get a key from Google AI Studio, then add the server to your client's config. This example uses nano-banana-2-mcp exactly as its README shows; the others follow the same pattern with a different package name and variable.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "nano-banana-2": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "nano-banana-2-mcp"],
      "env": {
        "GEMINI_API_KEY": "your-api-key-here"
      }
    }
  }
}

What is Nano Banana good at?

Editing. Generation is good too, but the edits are why people go looking for it. Here are three real ones made from the same kind of input: a single object on a white background.

“Put the subject in a fitting environment”Nano Banana Pro

“Put the subject in a fitting environment”Nano Banana Pro

“Convert this 3D model to a uniform matte material”Nano Banana Pro

Look at the tower: the windows, the iron bands and the stone base are untouched. Only the world around it is new. That is the behaviour you want when an image is going into a game, a product page or a 3D model, where small drift means redoing work.

• Consistent characters. Generate a hero once, then ask for the same character running, sitting or from behind.
• Combining images. Nano Banana 2.1 accepts up to 14 input images through 3D AI Studio: a character, an outfit and a background in one request.
• Fast drafts. Nano Banana 2 Lite is the cheapest image model in the connector, which makes it good for trying ten ideas before you commit to one.

Can you turn Nano Banana images into 3D models?

Yes, and this is where an image model and a 3D generator in the same connector pays off. Nano Banana is very good at the boring images that make a 3D model work: one subject, plain background, even lighting, and extra angles of the same object.

Ask for a front view, then "show me this from the left", and hand both to a 3D model as multi view input. Prism 3.1, P2 and Meshy 7.1 take two to four views of the same object, which gives a more accurate back side than a single image. Then ask the assistant to make it 3D.

Choose a reference image

Nano Banana prompts that work

Real edit prompts with their results. Short instructions work best; Nano Banana reads the image, so you do not have to describe what is already there.

Edit

Edit

Edit

Edit

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Frequently asked questions