Connect an AI assistant to EnvelopeBudget—with read-only access

A useful budget question rarely fits in one number. “Can I fund a trip this fall?” depends on account balances, envelope targets, recent spending, upcoming obligations, and the difference between money you have and money you already gave a job.

You can explain all of that to an AI assistant by hand. Or the assistant can read the same structured budget context—with your permission—and help you review it.

EnvelopeBudget now has a remote Model Context Protocol (MCP) server for that second option. Version 1 is deliberately read-only.

What EnvelopeBudget MCP can do #

Connect a compatible client and the assistant can use tools to:

• List budgets you are authorized to access
• Review accounts, envelopes, balances, and targets
• Search bounded pages of transactions
• Summarize spending and cashflow across bounded date ranges
• Review the current AI disclosure and existing categorization jobs or suggestions

That is enough context for questions such as:

Compare this month's spending by envelope with my current envelope balances. Where should I adjust next month's funding?

Or:

Show uncategorized transactions from the last 14 days. Do not include memo text.

The server also includes prompts for reviewing a budget, triaging a transaction inbox, and planning monthly envelope funding.

What it cannot do #

MCP v1 cannot create or edit transactions. It cannot move money, change an envelope target, modify an account, start an AI categorization job, record consent, or approve or reject a suggestion.

If the assistant recommends a change, you make that change in EnvelopeBudget. The model gets the context; you keep the controls.

This is not a vague promise attached to a general-purpose API key. The MCP server registers read-only tools, validates bounded inputs, and keeps financial writes outside its tool catalog.

How access works #

The production endpoint is:

https://envelopebudget.com/mcp

It uses Streamable HTTP and a dedicated EnvelopeBudget developer API key in an Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY header.

OAuth is not supported in version 1. A client that only supports OAuth login, cannot attach a static header, or only supports legacy SSE cannot connect directly.

The server is listed in the official MCP Registry as com.envelopebudget/mcp, version 1.0.0. The Registry entry publishes discovery metadata; it does not grant access or host your financial data.

Set it up in three steps #

1. In EnvelopeBudget, open Developer → API Keys and create a dedicated key. Give it an expiration date and copy it when shown.
2. Add https://envelopebudget.com/mcp to a compatible client, using the client's password prompt, environment interpolation, or secret store when available.
3. Restart or reconnect the client, list your budgets, and begin with a bounded question.

We have configuration examples for Cursor, VS Code, Claude Desktop through mcp-remote, Hermes Agent, and other Streamable HTTP clients in the EnvelopeBudget MCP setup guide. Client formats change, so the guide also links you to current client documentation.

Treat the connection like financial access #

MCP responses may contain sensitive budget and transaction data. Your chosen client and AI provider can process the data returned by tools, so review that provider's policies before connecting.

A few practical rules:

• Never paste your API key into a prompt, issue, screenshot, or source-controlled file.
• Use a dedicated, expiring key and revoke it immediately if exposed.
• Memo text is omitted unless you explicitly request it.
• Imported payee and memo text should be treated as untrusted content.
• Budget membership and role still determine which data the key can read.
• Rotate or delete the key in EnvelopeBudget when you want to disconnect a client.

Amounts are returned as integer milliunits with currency metadata. 1000 milliunits equals one currency unit. That detail prevents floating-point surprises, but it is worth including when you ask an assistant to show its math.

Start with a review, not an automation #

The first release is meant to make budget reviews easier, not to hand control of your finances to a model. Ask for a summary. Compare a plan with actual spending. Look for uncategorized transactions. Have the assistant explain its reasoning.

Then decide what to do in EnvelopeBudget.

See what EnvelopeBudget MCP can review and how to connect it, go directly to the client setup guide, or use the public documentation and issue tracker.