Add the Alpaca MCP server to Claude Code

Config last verified Jun 1, 2026

The exact config to run Alpaca in Claude Code — paste it in, restart, and the tools load.

Prerequisites

Claude Code installed.
ALPACA_API_KEY — Your Alpaca API key.
ALPACA_SECRET_KEY — Your Alpaca API secret key.

Setup

1. Open `~/.claude.json`

2. Add this configuration

Add to ~/.claude.json

~/.claude.json

json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "alpaca": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": [
        "alpaca-mcp-server"
      ],
      "env": {
        "ALPACA_API_KEY": "<ALPACA_API_KEY>",
        "ALPACA_SECRET_KEY": "<ALPACA_SECRET_KEY>",
        "ALPACA_PAPER_TRADE": "<ALPACA_PAPER_TRADE>"
      }
    }
  }
}

Or via CLI

bash

claude mcp add alpaca -- uvx alpaca-mcp-server

3. Restart Claude Code and confirm the Alpaca tools load.

Gotchas

Claude Code stores MCP servers under an "mcpServers" object in ~/.claude.json. It also reads a project-scoped .mcp.json and supports adding servers from the command line with "claude mcp add". Each entry must declare either a "type" or a "command"; Claude Code refuses an entry that has neither. Remote servers connect natively over Streamable HTTP with OAuth.

← Back to the Alpaca MCP server