How to post to TikTok, Instagram and YouTube from VS Code

The short answer

1. Create a free ReelGenie account.
2. Add the ReelGenie server to .mcp.json or ~/.copilot/mcp-config.json and sign in.
3. Connect your TikTok, Instagram or YouTube account in ReelGenie.
4. Ask Copilot to make slides, or to upload images or a video you already made.
5. Check the private preview, then approve the account and time.
6. Check the result: published, a TikTok draft, or failed with the platform’s reason.

Can VS Code post to social media?

Not by itself. VS Code and GitHub Copilot have no TikTok, Instagram or YouTube login, and those platforms only let approved apps post. Copilot in VS Code supports MCP servers, which give it extra tools. With ReelGenie added, Copilot hands ReelGenie the finished files and caption, and ReelGenie posts them to the accounts you connected after you approve. You don’t need a developer app or API keys of your own for any of the three platforms.

1. Add ReelGenie to VS Code

Create a free ReelGenie account first. In VS Code, turn on AI features and open a local project folder. Then add the server. VS Code’s docs say new setups go in one of two files: .mcp.json at the root of your workspace to share the server with your team, or ~/.copilot/mcp-config.json to use it across your workspaces. A remote server uses "type": "http" and a url:

{ "mcpServers": { "reelgenie": { "type": "http", "url": "https://reelgenie.app/api/mcp/agent" } } }

You can also run MCP: Add Server from the Command Palette, choose HTTP (HTTP or Server-Sent Events) and enter the same address. If you already keep servers in .vscode/mcp.json, that file uses a top-level servers key instead of mcpServers. VS Code’s docs call it the deprecated editor-managed format and point new setups to the two files above.

Then sign in when VS Code asks. VS Code’s docs say to complete authorization when prompted, and to use Authenticate in the session’s server actions when it’s offered. You don’t copy any key or token. A ReelGenie page opens that lists what the agent can do, including publishing after your explicit approval. Choose Connect and return. Signing in covers every workspace in the ReelGenie account you choose, including new ones.

To use the tools, select Copilot in the chat’s Session Target dropdown. A server in .mcp.json doesn’t start while the folder is in Restricted mode, so trust the workspace first. If it won’t connect, run MCP: List Servers, select ReelGenie and choose Show Output to see why. Start Server, Stop Server and Restart Server are in the server’s ... menu, and the chat.mcp.access setting controls which MCP servers VS Code can use. VS Code’s docs don’t name a Copilot plan for MCP. Sources: VS Code’s Add MCP servers, MCP configuration reference and Manage and troubleshoot MCP servers docs, read on 15 November 2026.

Check the connection before making anything:

Check that the ReelGenie connection works and list my workspaces and connected social accounts.

Copilot calls reelgenie_health and list_connected_accounts for this. A script or an agent that can’t sign in can use a revocable token that a team admin creates on ReelGenie’s Agents page instead.

2. Connect TikTok, Instagram and YouTube

Copilot can’t sign in to your social accounts for you. Open ReelGenie’s Accounts page, choose the platform and sign in there. If no account is connected yet, Copilot passes on a link and this note from ReelGenie:

TikTok needs no change first. If Instagram or YouTube won’t connect, here is how to fix it. When the account shows as connected, go back to VS Code and tell it.

3. Make the post

Agree on the idea before anything is made:

Suggest three short carousel ideas about [topic] for my audience. Give the cover line for each and wait for me to choose.

Then pick how the post gets made. These are the real tool names Copilot calls:

• Text slides: create_slide_post lays out slides from your words in your workspace’s colours and saves them as a private post. Use it when you have the words and no images.
• Your own images: begin_finished_image_post reserves a post for 1 to 20 PNG, JPEG or WebP images in order, get_finished_image_upload_urls gives an upload address for each, and finalize_finished_image_post checks the uploaded files and makes the post ready for preview.
• A finished video: begin_finished_video_post, get_finished_video_upload_url and finalize_finished_video_post do the same for one MP4.

Copilot works in the folder you have open, so the files go straight from there to ReelGenie. They don’t pass through the chat, and ReelGenie keeps the exact files it will send.

Upload the slides in ./out, in order, with this caption as a private ReelGenie post and give me the review link. Don’t send anything yet.

4. Review and approve

Saving a post never sends it. ReelGenie returns a review link where you see the exact files in a phone frame, in order, with the full caption. If something is wrong, ask Copilot to fix the caption or replace one image while the post is still in review.

Your agent can ask for approval. Only a person can give it, in ReelGenie or in the chat.

• In the chat: Copilot calls check_post_delivery to run the checks first, then asks you one yes-or-no question that names the post, the accounts and the time. Only after your clear yes does it call approve_post.
• In ReelGenie: Copilot calls request_publish_approval, which prepares the request without approving or sending anything, and you approve on the review page.

Either way you approve every post before it goes live: the post, the account, the time and any platform options such as Instagram feed or Story, or YouTube public, unlisted or private.

Schedule this to my Instagram feed and TikTok for Tuesday at 9:00 my time. Ask me before you approve.

5. Check the result

Scheduled isn’t posted. Each account shows its own result, which Copilot reads with get_finished_post:

• Scheduled: delivery is planned and nothing has been sent yet.
• Draft ready: for most TikTok accounts, the post waits in your TikTok inbox. Open TikTok, add a sound and post. Direct Post is used only where TikTok allows it for the account.
• Published: the platform reports the post as live, with its link.
• Failed: the platform’s reason in plain words. diagnose_publish_failure explains what to fix.

Did my post go out on every account? If anything failed, tell me why and what to do.

If a scheduled post didn’t go out, here is how to check.

What it can’t do

• It posts only to TikTok, Instagram and YouTube.
• It can’t sign in to your social accounts. You connect them on ReelGenie’s Accounts page.
• ReelGenie doesn’t make photos or video. Use the slide tool, your own files or another tool.
• It won’t send anything that hasn’t been approved by a person.
• It can’t post to a personal Instagram account. Instagram allows professional accounts only.
• It can’t turn on TikTok Direct Post or make a video a YouTube Short. TikTok and YouTube decide those.

The free plan covers 30 posts a month across your team, 1 brand and 3 connected accounts. A post sent to several accounts counts once, and posts saved for review don’t count. Solo is US$19/month for unlimited posts. Compare plans.

Questions about posting from VS Code

Is there a VS Code MCP server for social media?

Yes. ReelGenie is a hosted MCP server at https://reelgenie.app/api/mcp/agent that GitHub Copilot in VS Code can use to post to TikTok, Instagram and YouTube. Add it to .mcp.json or ~/.copilot/mcp-config.json and sign in.

Can I use .vscode/mcp.json?

If you already keep servers there, add ReelGenie under its servers key with "type": "http" and the same url. VS Code’s docs call that format deprecated and recommend .mcp.json or ~/.copilot/mcp-config.json for new setups.

Do I need an API key or token?

No. VS Code signs in to ReelGenie with your account. A revocable token from the Agents page is only for scripts or agents that can’t sign in.

VS Code asks me before a tool runs. Is that the approval?

No. VS Code’s tool approvals only let a tool run. Saving a post keeps it private. Nothing is sent until you approve the exact post, account and time, in ReelGenie or in the chat.

Can Copilot publish without me?

No. Your agent can ask for approval. Only a person can give it, in ReelGenie or in the chat.

Does it make the images or video?

ReelGenie lays out text slides with create_slide_post. For anything else, bring finished images or an MP4 and Copilot uploads them as they are.

Is it free?

Yes, on ReelGenie’s forever-free plan: 30 posts a month, 1 brand and 3 connected accounts, with no card. Solo is US$19/month for unlimited posts. Your GitHub Copilot plan is separate.