Connect Claude and Other AI Agents to TradingFlow (MCP)
Connect Claude with your TradingFlow account, or Cursor, Codex and OpenClaw with an API key. Confirm the connection, ask a first question, and know what the agent can and cannot do.
You can ask Claude or another AI agent about TradingFlow's options data from inside that agent. They connect through MCP (Model Context Protocol), a standard way for AI apps to call outside tools. The agent reads data; it cannot trade or change your account.
You need a valid TradingFlow trial or paid plan, and the access is checked again on every call. Nothing needs installing on TradingFlow's side: every agent connects to one address, https://app.tradingflow.com/api/mcp.
If you would rather stay inside the app, use TradingFlow AI instead.
Choose your path
| Your agent | How it connects | Go to |
|---|---|---|
| claude.ai, Claude Desktop, mobile, Cowork | Sign in with your TradingFlow account, no key | Add to Claude |
| Claude Code | Sign in with your TradingFlow account, no key | Claude Code |
| Cursor, Codex, OpenClaw, or another MCP client | API key | Connect with an API key |
Add to Claude
- In TradingFlow, open Connect an AI agent (your avatar at the top right, then Connect an agent) and choose Add to Claude. TradingFlow is also listed in Claude's connector directory.
- Read the short disclaimer and agree. Nothing is created in TradingFlow at this step.
- Claude's Add custom connector dialog opens with TradingFlow filled in. Claude warns that the connector came from an external link, which is expected. Check that the URL is exactly
https://app.tradingflow.com/api/mcp, then choose Continue. - Keep the sign-in settings Claude detects and choose Add.
- Choose Connect, sign in with your TradingFlow account, and choose Allow.
You should see the connector page showing Disconnect and eight read-only tools. The full walkthrough with screenshots shows each step.
Claude Code
In your terminal, register the server, then sign in. The second command opens your browser.
claude mcp add --transport http tradingflow https://app.tradingflow.com/api/mcpclaude mcp login tradingflowRun claude mcp get tradingflow. You should see Connected. Inside a session, /mcp lists the tools.
Connect with an API key
Cursor, Codex and OpenClaw use an API key instead of signing in: a secret string that lets an app act for your account.
The quick way. On Connect an AI agent, choose Copy prompt under Cursor, Codex, and OpenClaw. If you have no copyable key yet, a dialog asks you to agree before one is created. Paste the prompt into your agent; it reads the setup instructions and connects itself.
The manual way. Replace YOUR_TRADINGFLOW_API_KEY with your key.
Cursor, in .cursor/mcp.json:
{
"mcpServers": {
"tradingflow": {
"url": "https://app.tradingflow.com/api/mcp",
"headers": {
"x-api-key": "YOUR_TRADINGFLOW_API_KEY"
}
}
}
}Codex:
export TRADINGFLOW_API_KEY="YOUR_TRADINGFLOW_API_KEY"
codex mcp add tradingflow \
--url https://app.tradingflow.com/api/mcp \
--bearer-token-env-var TRADINGFLOW_API_KEYOpenClaw, in openclaw.json:
{
"mcp": {
"servers": {
"tradingflow": {
"url": "https://app.tradingflow.com/api/mcp",
"transport": "streamable-http",
"headers": {
"x-api-key": "YOUR_TRADINGFLOW_API_KEY"
}
}
}
}
}Treat a key like a password. It can be copied only from the browser tab that created it, and it cannot be recovered later, so create a new one if you lose it.
Confirm it is connected
An agent can report success while nothing is registered, so check for yourself:
| Client | Check | You should see |
|---|---|---|
| Claude | The connector page | Disconnect and the tool list |
| Claude Code | /mcp inside a session | tradingflow listed as connected, with its tools |
| Cursor | Settings → Tools & Integrations → MCP | tradingflow enabled, with its tools |
| Codex | codex mcp list | tradingflow with the URL above |
| OpenClaw | openclaw mcp doctor tradingflow --probe | The tools it found |
To test the address itself, run this. It needs no key.
curl -s https://app.tradingflow.com/api/mcpYou should see {"name":"tradingflow-mcp","status":"ok",…}.
Ask your first question
In a new chat, name TradingFlow so the agent uses it. In Claude, also check that TradingFlow is turned on under + → Connectors.
Using TradingFlow, build me a picture of today's unusual options activity. Find the largest premium trades across the market, group them by symbol, and tell me which ones look like new positioning rather than closing flow.
You should see the agent call TradingFlow's tools before it answers. An answer with no tool calls did not use your data, so ask it to try again. Claude asks before each tool call unless you change the connector's Tool permissions.
Check which session the answer covers. Values change during the day, and a large trade can be a hedge or part of a spread, as Options and Flow Concepts explains.
What the agent can and cannot do
- Can read: option trades and their totals, contract ranking, daily and intraday candles, symbol search, standard metrics, and one read-only SQL query tool. These are the eight default tools.
- Cannot: place trades, move money or change your account.
- Recipes, only if you opt in: an API key created with recipe writing can list your recipes, load them and propose edits, and a save needs a separate confirmation. Claude's sign-in connection does not get this.
- Limits: 60 tool calls per minute for each key or connection, and at most 10 recipe saves per minute.
TradingFlow is a research and analytics tool, not financial advice. Ask the agent to show its data and limits rather than treating its output as a recommendation.
Disconnect or revoke
- Claude: use Disconnect in Claude's connector settings.
- Claude Code: run
claude mcp logout tradingflow. - API keys: choose Manage keys on the Connect page to revoke one. It stops working for every agent that uses it.
If something does not work
| What you see | What it means | What to do |
|---|---|---|
MCP_PAID_ACCESS_REQUIRED | The account has no current plan | Check Billing in TradingFlow |
MCP_ENTITLEMENT_UNAVAILABLE | The access check could not run | Try again shortly |
| The Connect page says MCP is not available for this account | The account is outside the MCP rollout | Contact support |
| Could not load your MCP settings | The page failed to load your settings; this is not a denial | Choose Try again |
| A refusal with a wait time | You went over a per-minute limit | Wait for the next minute |
The MCP server reference lists every tool, limit and error code.
What to do next
- Learn what the data means in The Data Feed.
- Check an agent's answer against Symbol Research or Option Trades.