MCP Fredapi MCP Server

MCP-FREDAPI provides access to economic data from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis (FRED) through the Model Context Protocol. This integration

Local serverstdioPython

What is the MCP Fredapi MCP server?

MCP Fredapi MCP server is a locally run integration for AI assistants that speak the Model Context Protocol. MCP-FREDAPI provides access to economic data from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis (FRED) through the Model Context Protocol. This integration allows AI assistants like Claude to retrieve economic time series data directly when used.

What the assistant can call

Once MCP Fredapi is connected, these are the calls the assistant has available:

  • get_fred_series_observations — When using Claude in Cursor, you can access this tool directly with:

Setting it up

The server ships on PyPI as the, so your MCP client can launch it on demand — there is no separate build step. Add the server block to your client's configuration, restart it, and the tools register themselves.

Configuration and credentials

You will need one environment variable: FRED_API_KEY. The server will not start without them, which is usually why the tools fail to appear on a first run. Keep credentials in your client's env block or a secrets manager rather than in a file you might commit.

Choosing this one

Plenty of developer tooling servers cover similar ground. The differences that matter in practice are scope of access and how much setup stands between you and a working tool call. MCP Fredapi's toolset — get_fred_series_observations — is a fair guide to whether it matches your workflow. It is maintained by Jaldekoa; worth a glance at recent repository activity before you build anything load-bearing on it.

We check each listing at SyncDev against the project's documentation before it goes live — if something here drifts out of date, it is a bug worth reporting.

Before you rely on it

  • It runs with your machine's permissions. That is convenient and also the reason to think about what you point it at before you approve a tool call.
  • Missing credentials fail quietly in some clients — if no tools show up, check the environment block first.
  • MCP clients confirm each tool call by default. Leave that on until you have watched what the mcp fredapi mcp server does with a few real requests.

Available tools

ToolWhat it does
get_fred_series_observationsWhen using Claude in Cursor, you can access this tool directly with:

How to install the MCP Fredapi MCP server

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "fredapi": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": ["the"],
      "env": {
        "FRED_API_KEY": "your-value"
      }
    }
  }
}

Add to claude_desktop_config.json, then restart Claude Desktop.

Configuration

VariableDescriptionRequired
FRED_API_KEYCredential the server authenticates with.Yes

Example prompts to try

  • Use MCP Fredapi to get fred series observations.

Frequently asked questions

It connects MCP Fredapi to MCP-compatible AI assistants such as Claude and Cursor, exposing 1 tool (get_fred_series_observations) that the assistant can call on your behalf. Instead of copying data back and forth by hand, the assistant works with MCP Fredapi directly.