diff --git a/cmd/mcp/mcp.go b/cmd/mcp/mcp.go
index 35a9610a3b6694b783cb9aedfb03aaa15ecf7122..984cc0403e4231e1e56c57869a15b27e198d4327 100644
--- a/cmd/mcp/mcp.go
+++ b/cmd/mcp/mcp.go
@@ -8,6 +8,7 @@ package mcp
 import (
 	"errors"
 	"fmt"
+	"os"
 
 	"git.secluded.site/lune/internal/client"
 	"git.secluded.site/lune/internal/config"
@@ -87,9 +88,10 @@ func runMCP(cmd *cobra.Command, _ []string) error {
 		return err
 	}
 
-	token, err := client.GetToken()
-	if err != nil {
-		return fmt.Errorf("getting access token: %w", err)
+	// Try keyring first, fall back to env var if keyring fails or is empty
+	token, _ := client.GetToken() // ignore keyring errors (e.g., no dbus in containers)
+	if token == "" {
+		token = os.Getenv("LUNE_ACCESS_TOKEN")
 	}
 
 	if token == "" {