diff --git a/mcp/.dev.vars.example b/mcp/.dev.vars.example
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..b61d97bfc
--- /dev/null
+++ b/mcp/.dev.vars.example
@@ -0,0 +1,4 @@
+# Uncomment and point at a self-hosted Honcho to bypass the managed API.
+# wrangler dev reads this file automatically when it exists as `.dev.vars`.
+# For deployed Workers, use: wrangler secret put HONCHO_API_URL
+# HONCHO_API_URL=http://127.0.0.1:28000
diff --git a/mcp/.gitignore b/mcp/.gitignore
index 51fb86912..492977a58 100644
--- a/mcp/.gitignore
+++ b/mcp/.gitignore
@@ -12,6 +12,7 @@ dist/
 .env
 .env.local
 .env.production
+.dev.vars
 
 # IDE files
 .vscode/
diff --git a/mcp/README.md b/mcp/README.md
index e7e3cd14a..ba90710b4 100644
--- a/mcp/README.md
+++ b/mcp/README.md
@@ -69,6 +69,28 @@ Built on:
 - **[@modelcontextprotocol/sdk](https://www.npmjs.com/package/@modelcontextprotocol/sdk)** — `McpServer` for tool registration
 - **[@honcho-ai/sdk](https://www.npmjs.com/package/@honcho-ai/sdk)** v2 — Honcho TypeScript SDK
 
+## Self-Hosted Honcho
+
+If you run Honcho yourself (for privacy, latency, or offline use), deploy the
+MCP Worker alongside your instance and set `HONCHO_API_URL` in its
+environment.
+
+**Local dev (`bun run dev`):** create `mcp/.dev.vars`:
+
+```
+HONCHO_API_URL=http://127.0.0.1:28000
+```
+
+**Deployed Worker:**
+
+```bash
+wrangler secret put HONCHO_API_URL
+# paste your URL when prompted
+```
+
+When `HONCHO_API_URL` is unset the Worker routes to `https://api.honcho.dev`,
+so this change is backward-compatible.
+
 ## Development
 
 ### Setup
diff --git a/mcp/src/config.ts b/mcp/src/config.ts
index bd440343b..58e4307e5 100644
--- a/mcp/src/config.ts
+++ b/mcp/src/config.ts
@@ -8,11 +8,21 @@ export interface HonchoConfig {
   workspaceId: string;
 }
 
+export interface Env {
+  HONCHO_API_URL?: string;
+}
+
 /**
- * Parse configuration from request headers.
+ * Parse configuration from request headers and Worker env bindings.
  * Throws on missing required fields so callers get clear errors.
+ *
+ * The Honcho API URL is read from the `HONCHO_API_URL` env var when set,
+ * allowing operators to run this Worker alongside a self-hosted Honcho
+ * instance (see the "Self-Hosted Honcho" section in README.md). It is
+ * intentionally not exposed as a request header: routing public requests
+ * to an internal URL would be a latency and security regression.
  */
-export function parseConfig(request: Request): HonchoConfig {
+export function parseConfig(request: Request, env: Env = {}): HonchoConfig {
   const authHeader = request.headers.get("Authorization");
   const trimmedAuthHeader = authHeader?.trim();
   if (!trimmedAuthHeader?.startsWith("Bearer ")) {
@@ -37,7 +47,7 @@ export function parseConfig(request: Request): HonchoConfig {
     apiKey,
     userName,
     assistantName: request.headers.get("X-Honcho-Assistant-Name")?.trim() || "Assistant",
-    baseUrl: "https://api.honcho.dev",
+    baseUrl: env.HONCHO_API_URL?.trim() || "https://api.honcho.dev",
     workspaceId: request.headers.get("X-Honcho-Workspace-ID")?.trim() || "default",
   };
 }
diff --git a/mcp/src/index.ts b/mcp/src/index.ts
index 15733beb0..4e8951989 100644
--- a/mcp/src/index.ts
+++ b/mcp/src/index.ts
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 import { createMcpHandler } from "agents/mcp";
-import { parseConfig, createClient } from "./config.js";
+import { parseConfig, createClient, type Env } from "./config.js";
 import { createServer } from "./server.js";
 
 const CORS_ORIGIN = "*";
@@ -16,7 +16,7 @@ const CORS_HEADERS = {
 export default {
   async fetch(
     request: Request,
-    env: unknown,
+    env: Env,
     executionCtx: ExecutionContext,
   ): Promise<Response> {
     if (request.method === "OPTIONS") {
@@ -25,7 +25,7 @@ export default {
 
     let config;
     try {
-      config = parseConfig(request);
+      config = parseConfig(request, env);
     } catch (e) {
       const message =
         e instanceof Error ? e.message : "Invalid request";