Add a tool to an agent

You can add tools to your agent from the Build tab. Tools let your agent perform actions, connect to external services, and retrieve real-time data during conversations.

Note

Features in this article are powered by the GitHub Copilot harness, which uses Copilot Credits for usage-based billing. Learn more about Copilot Credits in Overview of billing for agents powered by the GitHub Copilot harness.

Usage-based billing applies to using, building, testing, and evaluating agents. These actions might consume Copilot Credits.

Prerequisites

Add an existing tool from the Build tab

  1. Sign in to Copilot Studio and open your agent.

  2. In the agent navigation bar, select the Build tab.

  3. In the components panel, select the Tools button.

  4. In the Add a tool dialog, browse or search for the tool you want to add. Use the Featured, Model Context Protocol (MCP), Connectors, or Workflows tabs to filter by tool type.

  5. Select the tool to view its details, including a description and the actions it provides.

  6. Select Add to add the tool to your agent.

Configure a tool after adding it

After adding a tool, you might need to:

  • Authenticate: Some tools require you to sign in or provide credentials before they can be used. Follow the authentication prompts when they appear.
  • Select actions: For connectors that provide multiple actions, you can select which specific actions to make available to your agent.
  • Review the description: Ensure the tool's description accurately reflects what it does. The agent's orchestration runtime uses the description to determine when to invoke the tool.

Add a new custom tool

If the tool you need isn't available in the browser, you can add a custom tool. Currently, the agents powered by the GitHub Copilot harness supports adding the following as custom tools:

  • MCP tools from an existing Model Context Protocol (MCP) server. This allows you to connect to custom services, databases, or APIs that expose capabilities as tools through the MCP standard.
  • Workflows that you create in Copilot Studio's flow designer. This allows you to define multi-step processes that your agent can execute on demand.

Tips for effective tool descriptions

Tip

The tool's name and description are critical for accurate tool invocation. The enhanced orchestration runtime uses these to decide when to invoke a tool, so:

  • Use clear, specific names that describe the tool (for example, "Create support ticket" rather than "Ticket tool")
  • Write descriptions that explain when the tool should be used and what it returns
  • Avoid vague or overlapping descriptions between tools
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