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API-key authentication for the Upflow MCP server is being deprecated and will stop working at the end of June 2026. If you set up MCP via Claude Code CLI with an API key, switch to the OAuth flow before then — see Connect Claude. OAuth is simpler, supports every standard AI client (including Claude Desktop and ChatGPT), and removes the shared-key risk.This article is kept available until the deprecation date so existing integrations have a reference for the current setup. After 30 June 2026 it will be removed.
Estimated setup time: ~8 minutes. Use this guide to set up the Upflow MCP server in Claude Code (CLI) using API-key authentication.

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Limitations

This flow only supports the Claude Code CLI. It does not work with Claude Desktop, ChatGPT, or other AI clients that require OAuth.
  • MCP authentication relies on Upflow API credentials, which grant read-only admin access across the entire organization.
  • API credentials are scoped to a single organization. To connect to multiple organizations, you’ll need to repeat the setup for each one.

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Prerequisites

  • Connect with your CSM so we can confirm:
    • The current status of the MCP Server and that we can support your use case.
    • That your technical team understands the authentication constraints.
  • Once confirmed, the Upflow team will activate the feature so you can start using it.

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Step 1 — Collect your connection parameters

  1. In the Upflow app, go to Organization settings → Apps → API.
  2. Copy the following values:
    • Host
    • Key
    • Secret
  3. For the MCP host, take the Host value and append /mcp at the end.
    • Example: https://api.upflow.io → https://api.upflow.io/mcp
  4. For User email, use:
    • Your own email, or
    • Any email belonging to a member of the same organization.
You should now have:
  • Host (with /mcp at the end)
  • Key
  • Secret
  • User_email

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Step 2 — Add Upflow MCP to Claude Code

If you don’t have Claude Code yet, follow Claude Code’s quickstart to install it. You’ll need a Claude Code subscription. Install Claude Code by running this command in your terminal: 
curl -fsSL https://claude.ai/install.sh | bash
This will prompt you to add Claude Code to your path — copy and paste the command into your terminal. Then start Claude Code: 
claude
After setting up your preferences, you’ll be prompted to log in. Select Option 2 to open a browser tab and log in with your Google account. When done, quit Claude Code. Finally, run this command in your terminal (not inside Claude Code), replacing the <...> placeholders with the values from Step 1: 
claude mcp add --transport http <MCP_Name> <Host> \
  --header "X-API-Key: <Key>" \
  --header "X-API-Secret: <Secret>" \
  --header "X-API-User: <User_email>"
The convention for naming your MCP server is upflow-api-<Org_Name>. If you only need a single organization, you can use upflow-api.

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Step 3 — Verify the connection

Start Claude Code: 
claude
Then verify your MCP connection inside Claude Code: 
/mcp
You should see your MCP server with status 🟢 connected. Try one of these prompts:
  • Top debtors — Who are the top 5 debtors by outstanding balance?
  • Recent collections — How much have we collected since the beginning of the month?
  • Customer contact — Who is the main contact for [customer name]?

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Troubleshoot

Verify the MCP entry in Claude configuration Open the file /Users/<your_username>/.claude.json and check for the mcpServers entry.
  • If the file doesn’t exist, verify your Claude Code installation.
  • If there’s no mcpServers entry, retry Step 2.
MCP server already exists If the command in Step 2 returns an error, you may have already added the server. List existing MCP servers: 
claude mcp list
If you see a server with the same name, delete it: 
claude mcp remove <mcp_name>
Then run the Step 2 command again.