Read Buttondown subscribers, emails, analytics and automations; add subscribers; write email drafts. Hosted by usefulapi — connect from Claude, Cursor, or any MCP client.
Team and Enterprise: an Owner adds the connector for the organization first.
Run this command, then run /mcp in Claude Code to log in:
Add to Cursor or add this to ~/.cursor/mcp.json:
{
"mcpServers": {
"buttondown": {
"url": "https://buttondown.usefulapi.io/mcp"
}
}
}Add to VS Code or add this to .vscode/mcp.json:
{
"servers": {
"buttondown": {
"type": "http",
"url": "https://buttondown.usefulapi.io/mcp"
}
}
}Other MCP clients (Windsurf, Cline, Zed and more): add the URL as a remote MCP server (Streamable HTTP). The client then opens the login page in your browser. Do not add an Authorization header: see Before you connect.
The login page asks for your Buttondown API key.
Find your key at buttondown.com/keys. A key with write access to subscribers, emails and tags makes every tool work; a read-only key works for the read tools. Your key is used only to call the Buttondown API on your behalf; it is never shown to anyone.
Add only the URL. Do not add an Authorization header or an API key to the client config. The server signs you in with OAuth: the login page asks for your Buttondown API key. If the config has such a header, remove it: some clients then send that header instead of the login token, and every call fails with 401.
| Tool | Type | What it does |
|---|---|---|
buttondown_get_account | read | Get account The Buttondown account this API key belongs to: username and e-mail address. GET /accounts/me. |
buttondown_list_newsletters | read | List newsletters List the newsletters on the account with name, username, domains, sender, locale and timezone. The newsletter's API key, custom CSS and e-mail templates are never returned. GET /newsletters. |
buttondown_get_newsletter | read | Get newsletter One newsletter by id (settings and identity only; no API key, CSS or templates). GET /newsletters/{id}. |
buttondown_list_subscribers | read | List subscribers List or search subscribers (newest first by default) with e-mail, type (regular, unactivated, unsubscribed, premium, ...), tags, notes, metadata, source, open/click rates and dates. Filter by e-mail text, type, tag, signup date or domain. GET /subscribers. |
buttondown_get_subscriber | read | Get subscriber One subscriber by id or by e-mail address: type, tags, notes, metadata, source, engagement and lifecycle dates. GET /subscribers/{id_or_email}. |
buttondown_add_subscriber | write | Add a subscriber WRITE: add ONE subscriber by e-mail address. No subscriber type is set, so Buttondown applies the newsletter's normal sign-up rules (double opt-in: the subscriber is typically created as unactivated and Buttondown e-mails THAT ONE address a confirmation message; opt-in is never bypassed, nor is the firewall). Only add people who asked to subscribe. Creating a subscriber (and its tags) can also start the newsletter's own automations, which may e-mail that one subscriber. An existing e-mail is left untouched (error, no overwrite). Optional tags (a tag that does not exist is created, which needs a plan with tags), a private note and metadata. Buttondown limits creation to 100 subscribers per day. POST /subscribers. |
buttondown_update_subscriber | write | Update a subscriber's tags, notes or metadata WRITE: change ONE subscriber's tags, private note or metadata. Tags are merged (add_tags / remove_tags change only those names; the others stay). A given note or metadata replaces the existing value (destructive for that field). The subscriber's type (unsubscribe, block, ...) and e-mail address cannot be changed here, and this tool sends nothing itself; but a tag, note or metadata change can start the newsletter's own automations (for example a tag-triggered welcome sequence), which may e-mail that one subscriber. PATCH /subscribers/{id_or_email}. |
buttondown_list_emails | read | List emails List emails (drafts, scheduled and sent), newest first by default, with subject, status, publish date, slug, archive URL and analytics summary. The body is left out unless include_body is set. Filter by status, subject text or date. GET /emails. |
buttondown_get_email | read | Get email One email by id with its full body, subject, status, publish date, slug, archive settings and analytics summary. GET /emails/{id}. |
buttondown_get_email_analytics | read | Get email analytics Delivery and engagement numbers for one sent email: recipients, deliveries, opens, clicks, failures, unsubscriptions, complaints, replies, page views. GET /emails/{id}/analytics. |
buttondown_create_email_draft | write | Create an email draft WRITE: create a DRAFT email (status always "draft"). Nothing is sent or scheduled and no subscriber is e-mailed; to send it, the user must open the draft in Buttondown and send it there. This server has no tool that sends or schedules email. Body is Markdown or HTML. POST /emails. |
buttondown_update_email_draft | write | Edit an email draft WRITE: edit the subject, body, description, slug or preview image of an email that is still a DRAFT (replaces those fields; the previous text is lost unless Buttondown's email history is used). Refuses any email that is not a draft, and never changes status or publish date, so nothing is sent or scheduled. PATCH /emails/{id}. |
buttondown_list_tags | read | List tags List subscriber tags with name, color, descriptions and whether subscribers can edit them. GET /tags. |
buttondown_get_tag_analytics | read | Get tag analytics Subscribers created, open rate and click rate for one tag. GET /tags/{id}/analytics. |
buttondown_create_tag | write | Create a tag WRITE: create a subscriber tag (needs a Buttondown plan with tags). An existing tag with the same name is returned as an error and not changed. POST /tags. |
buttondown_list_automations | read | List automations List automations (welcome sequences and other triggered e-mails) with name, status, trigger, actions and filters (webhook URLs in actions are shown by host only). Read-only: automations are not started or changed. GET /automations. |
buttondown_get_automation | read | Get automation One automation by id with its trigger, actions and filters. GET /automations/{id}. |
buttondown_get_automation_analytics | read | Get automation analytics Performance numbers for one automation. GET /automations/{id}/analytics. |
buttondown_list_surveys | read | List surveys List surveys with question, answers, status and response count. GET /surveys. |
buttondown_list_survey_responses | read | List survey responses List survey responses (who answered what), optionally for one survey, email or subscriber. GET /survey_responses. |
buttondown_list_segments | read | List segments List saved subscriber segments with name, description and filters. GET /segments. |
buttondown_list_forms | read | List forms List sign-up forms with title, slug, status, tags and subscriber counts. GET /forms. |
buttondown_list_snippets | read | List snippets List reusable content snippets with identifier, name, mode and how often each is referenced. GET /snippets. |
buttondown_list_webhooks | read | List webhooks List configured webhooks with status and subscribed event types. The signing key is never returned and the URL is shown by host only. GET /webhooks. |
buttondown_list_events | read | List email events List delivery events (delivered, opened, clicked, bounced, unsubscribed, ...), newest first, optionally for one email or subscriber. GET /events. |
buttondown_usage_status | Usage status (free-tier meter) Report the caller's current free-tier usage this month: calls used, monthly limit, remaining, and whether the cap is reached. Read-only; does not count against the meter. | |
buttondown_request_feature | Request a missing feature Tell usefulapi that the user needs something the Buttondown tools cannot do yet (a missing tool, field or filter). Call it only when the user asks for something none of the tools can do, and tell the user that you send the request. Do not call it for errors or for normal requests. Do not include personal data, credentials or customer records. Stored with the product name and the client type (for example Claude or Cursor), without the user's account. At most 5 requests per day. Does not count against the meter. | |
buttondown_upgrade | Upgrade to Pro (unlimited) Subscribe to the Pro plan for UNLIMITED Buttondown tool calls (the free tier caps monthly usage). Choose monthly ($9/month) or yearly ($90/year — 2 months free) billing. Returns a Stripe Checkout link to open in your browser; after payment your account upgrades automatically. Does not count against the meter. | |
buttondown_cancel_subscription | Cancel the Pro subscription Cancel the caller's Buttondown Pro subscription at the end of the paid period (no refund for the current period; unlimited calls continue until then, then the free tier applies). Requires confirm: true. Run buttondown_upgrade later to undo the cancel before the period ends. Does not count against the meter. |
| Plan | Price | Limit |
|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | 100 tool calls / month |
| Proper user | $9/mo · $90/yr | Unlimited |
Pro covers this Buttondown server only. Subscribe with buttondown_upgrade (it returns a Stripe Checkout link). Cancel any time with buttondown_cancel_subscription: Pro continues to the end of the paid period, with no refund for the current period, and running buttondown_upgrade before then undoes the cancel. Or write to [email protected].
No. usefulapi is an independent service. It is not affiliated with or endorsed by Buttondown. The server calls the Buttondown API with your own Buttondown access, so it sees only the data that your account can see.
The login page asks for your Buttondown API key. See Before you connect for where to find it.
No. Add only the URL. Do not add an Authorization header or an API key to the client config. The server signs you in with OAuth: the login page asks for your Buttondown API key. If the config has such a header, remove it: some clients then send that header instead of the login token, and every call fails with 401.
The login stores them encrypted in the authorization grant of your connection. The server uses them to call the Buttondown API for you and to derive a private account id for usage metering. usefulapi does not show them on any page or in any reply. To stop all access, remove the connector and change or delete these credentials in Buttondown.
Yes, if you approve it. 5 of the 25 Buttondown tools can create or change data. The other 20 are marked read-only. Most MCP clients ask you to approve a tool call before it runs.
The Free plan gives 100 tool calls / month. Pro costs $9/mo or $90/yr, with unlimited tool calls, for this Buttondown server only. Run buttondown_usage_status to see how many calls you used.
Ask the AI to run buttondown_upgrade: it returns a Stripe Checkout link. To cancel, run buttondown_cancel_subscription. Pro continues to the end of the paid period.
Tell the AI what you wanted to do. It can send the request with buttondown_request_feature. We store the text with the server name, the type of AI client and the tool you tried, not with your account, and read every request when we plan new tools. You can send up to 5 requests per day.
Any client that supports remote MCP servers (Streamable HTTP) with OAuth login: Claude (web and desktop), Claude Code, Cursor, VS Code, Windsurf and others.
This is a Model Context Protocol endpoint — meant to be connected from an AI client, not opened in a browser. An invalid_token response at the URL is the auth gate working as designed; clients authenticate automatically.