---
title: Add Cascades to Claude Desktop
description: "Add Cascades to Claude Desktop: config, install command and the scopes your API key needs for the Cascades MCP server."
canonical_url: "https://cascades.crscreditapi.com/docs/mcp/install/claude-desktop"
doc_version: "1.0.0"
last_updated: "2026-10-09T14:37:54Z"
source: docs/mcp/tools.json
---

# Add Cascades to Claude Desktop

1. Open Claude Desktop → Settings → Developer → *Edit Config*. That opens `claude_desktop_config.json` (macOS: `~/Library/Application Support/Claude/`, Windows: `%APPDATA%\Claude\`).
2. Merge the JSON below into the file (keep any other servers you already have).
3. Quit and reopen Claude Desktop. The hammer icon lists the nine `cascades_*` tools.

`claude_desktop_config.json`:

```json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "cascades": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@crscreditapi/cascades-mcp-server"
      ],
      "env": {
        "CASCADES_API_KEY": "{{API_KEY}}",
        "CASCADES_PROD_BASE_URL": "https://cascades.crscreditapi.com"
      }
    }
  }
}
```

## Notes

- `CASCADES_PROD_BASE_URL` is the host **without** `/api/v1` (`https://cascades.crscreditapi.com`); the server adds the prefix.
- The key needs `workflows:read`, `workflows:write`, `executions:read`, `executions:write`. A key missing a scope gets `403 insufficient_scope` on the affected tool only.
- Sandbox keys can only run in test mode: `execution_mode: "live"` is billable, needs a production-approved account, and is rejected for docs-issued keys.
- Claude Desktop launches the server with its own PATH; if `npx` is not found, replace `"command": "npx"` with the absolute path from `which npx`.

## Test with MCP Inspector

```bash
CASCADES_API_KEY={{API_KEY}} CASCADES_PROD_BASE_URL=https://cascades.crscreditapi.com \
  npx @modelcontextprotocol/inspector npx -y @crscreditapi/cascades-mcp-server
```

## Other clients

- [Claude Code](https://cascades.crscreditapi.com/docs/mcp/install/claude-code.md)
- [Cursor](https://cascades.crscreditapi.com/docs/mcp/install/cursor.md)
- [VS Code](https://cascades.crscreditapi.com/docs/mcp/install/vscode.md)
- [Windsurf](https://cascades.crscreditapi.com/docs/mcp/install/windsurf.md)
- [ChatGPT](https://cascades.crscreditapi.com/docs/mcp/install/chatgpt.md)

## Sitemap

See the full [sitemap](https://cascades.crscreditapi.com/sitemap.md) for all pages.