Step 0: check that you can add a custom app
Google lets you add a custom app to Gemini when all of these are true (Google’s help center, checked Oct 7, 2026):
- You’re 18 or over and in the US.
- You use Gemini with a personal Google account. Work and school accounts can’t add custom apps.
- Keep Activity is on. Custom apps are unavailable while it’s off.
- Gemini is set to English.
Google’s help page doesn’t name a subscription. Some setup guides from August 2026 say custom apps need a Google AI Pro or Ultra plan, so if Custom apps doesn’t show for you, your plan may be the reason.
Outside the US, or on a work account? Claude works on every plan, including Claude Free.
The same Zyflow link works in Claude, ChatGPT and Gemini, so you can add Gemini later and find your records already there.
Step 1: copy your Zyflow link
Copy your Zyflow link from the box below. It’s the MCP server URL Gemini asks for.
https://app.zyflowcrm.com/mcp It’s the same link for everyone. The first time, your AI app asks you to sign in and approve one workspace.
Gemini reaches servers over the internet, so a custom app needs a public https link. Zyflow’s ends in /mcp. A server that only runs on your own computer won’t work.
Step 2: create a free Zyflow account or log in
Create a free Zyflow account, or log in, before you add the app: Gemini’s sign-in window asks you to log in to Zyflow. After sign-up, you land on Zyflow’s Connect page with Gemini’s steps open and the line “Waiting for Gemini to connect. This page updates by itself.” The line changes as soon as step 4 works.
Free plan. No card.
Already have an account? Log in from the sign-up page and you land in the same place.
Step 3: add Zyflow as a custom app
You add custom apps in Gemini on the web. Once added, Zyflow works in Gemini’s phone apps too.
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Go to gemini.google.com on a computer and open Settings, then Connected Apps. On some accounts it sits under Personal Intelligence, then Connected Apps. The direct link is gemini.google.com/apps.
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Under Custom apps, click Add a custom app link to get started, paste your Zyflow link, and click Next.
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Leave the extra settings under Advanced features empty. They’re for servers that need a client ID and secret, and Zyflow lets Gemini register itself.
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Check the box that says you understand and accept the security and privacy risks of connecting this custom app, then click Connect.
Gemini’s warning covers every custom app, because Google hasn’t reviewed them. Add only servers you trust.
Step 4: sign in, approve one workspace and save the app
Gemini opens Zyflow’s sign-in. You approve one workspace there, then save the app in Gemini.
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Log in to Zyflow. The screen asks you to connect Gemini to your Zyflow and says where you’ll go back to afterwards.
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If you have more than one workspace, pick the one Gemini may use. Under What it can do, keep Read and update, or choose Read only.
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Select the Connect button. The request expires after 10 minutes; if it does, start again from Gemini.
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Back in Gemini, check the app’s name, the actions it found and the time it last synced, then click Connect to save it. You can rename it here; keep Zyflow so @ finds it.
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On Zyflow’s Connect page, the line changes to “Gemini is connected.” and History records the connection.
Each person connects with their own Google account and their own Zyflow login, so their changes carry their name, such as “Gemini for Dana.” Each person needs to be a member of your Zyflow workspace. Zyflow Free covers one person. Solo, Team and Pro cover up to 3, 10 and 30 people.
How the tools and sign-in work: MCP server overview.
Test a write, then a read
Start a new chat, type @ and pick Zyflow, then ask for one change and one lookup.
Add Maya Chen at Northwind (maya@northwind.example) to Zyflow as a new customer.
What happens: Gemini shows what it will save and asks you to confirm. If Maya already exists, the save lands on her record, not a copy.
Log a call with Maya at Northwind: she wants the revised quote by Friday.
What happens: one change logs the call and sets the follow-up. Gemini reads back the date, such as Fri, 9 Oct.
Search Zyflow for Northwind.
What happens: a lookup. You get Maya, the call and the follow-up, each linked to its record.
Give me a link to upload Northwind’s logo to Zyflow.
What happens: Gemini doesn’t pass attachments to custom apps, so Zyflow makes an upload link instead. Open it, drop the file, and it lands on Northwind’s record. The link works for half an hour, on your phone too.
Gemini asks you to confirm before a custom app changes anything. After the change, Zyflow labels it “Gemini” in History, with an Undo.1
Live labels and Undo buttons appear in any open Zyflow tab. Every change is also in History.
After that, ask “What’s on my plate today?” any morning, on your computer or your phone, to see your follow-ups and what’s due.
Troubleshooting
Most problems come from who can add custom apps, or from details Gemini saved when you added the app. Find what you see in the first column.
| Symptom | Why | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| No Custom apps section | Your account can’t add custom apps: outside the US, under 18, a work or school account, Keep Activity off, Gemini not in English, or your plan | Check step 0. Claude works in more countries |
| Can’t add it on your phone | Custom apps are added on the web | Add Zyflow at gemini.google.com on a computer. Then it works on your phone |
| Gemini says it couldn’t connect to the server | The link is wrong, or the sign-in window was blocked | Copy the link again (it ends in /mcp) and allow pop-ups for gemini.google.com |
| Sign-in says the request expired | Zyflow’s sign-in request lasts 10 minutes | Start again from Gemini |
| Connected to the wrong workspace | Each connection reaches one workspace | Disconnect on the Connect page, then remove the app in Gemini and add it again |
| Zyflow doesn’t show up in a chat | Its switch is off under Custom apps | Turn it on in Connected Apps, then type @ and pick Zyflow |
| Gemini shows an old logo, name or tool list for Zyflow | Gemini keeps what it saw when you added the app | Open More details on the app to sync it again, or select Remove app and add it again |
| An attached file doesn’t reach Zyflow | Gemini doesn’t hand attachments to custom apps | Ask Gemini for an upload link from Zyflow, then drop the file on it |
| Gemini asks you to sign in again | Sign-in lapses after 90 days without use, or when you leave the workspace | Sign in and approve again. If you left the workspace, ask an owner or admin to add you back first |
Disconnect or switch workspaces
To cut Gemini off, open Zyflow’s Connect page, find Gemini under Connected apps and select Disconnect. Every token it holds stops working at once, and History records the disconnect. Members can disconnect their own apps; owners and admins can disconnect anyone’s.
In Gemini, the switch next to Zyflow under Custom apps pauses it. To end the connection from Gemini’s side, open More details, then Disconnect, or Remove app to take it off your list.
Questions about Gemini and MCP
Can I connect Gemini outside the US?
Not in the Gemini app yet. Google opens custom apps to personal accounts in the US, in English (checked October 2026). Claude connects to Zyflow on every plan, and Gemini CLI works with a paid Gemini API key. Read the Claude setup guide.
Does it work with Gemini in Google Workspace?
Not through the Gemini app: work and school accounts can’t add custom apps. Gemini Enterprise has its own way to add MCP servers, which we haven’t tested yet.
Does it work on my phone?
Yes. Add Zyflow once in Gemini on the web, and it works in the Gemini app on Android and iOS too.
Can Gemini save a file or picture I attach to Zyflow?
Not straight from the chat: Gemini doesn’t hand attachments to custom apps. Ask it for an upload link instead. Zyflow makes one for the folder or customer you name, you open it and drop the file, and Gemini can find it in Zyflow afterwards. The link only adds files, works for half an hour and needs no sign-in, so it’s easy on a phone.
Can I connect Gemini read-only?
Yes. On Zyflow’s sign-in screen, under What it can do, choose Read only before you connect. Gemini can then look things up but can’t change anything. To change it later, disconnect on the Connect page and connect again.
Is it safe to add a custom app to Gemini?
The risk sits with the servers you add, because Google hasn’t reviewed them, so add only servers you trust. With Zyflow, Gemini reaches the one workspace you approved, with your role, and never your password, billing, members or API keys. Zyflow gets only what Gemini sends to look something up or save it, not the rest of your chat. Read the security page.
Does connecting Gemini cost extra?
No. Gemini’s calls to Zyflow are never billed, on any plan, and there are no AI credits.3 Your Google plan and its own limits still apply.
One workspace per connection
You sign in and approve, like “Sign in with Google”. Your AI app never gets your password, and it can’t touch billing, members or keys.
Every AI change labeled
Export any time
