Paper MCP Server

What is Paper MCP Server about?

Paper MCP Server provides a Model Context Protocol (MCP) endpoint that lets AI coding assistants such as Cursor or Claude call Paper's trading API directly from their prompts. It bridges natural‑language interactions with market data, order execution, and portfolio analytics in a paper‑trading environment.

How to use Paper MCP Server?

1. Install – the most convenient way is with npx:

   npx -y @paperinvest/mcp-server --help
   

   (or install globally with npm i -g @paperinvest/mcp-server).
2. Configure – set the Paper API credentials in the environment before launching the server:

   export PAPER_API_KEY=your_api_key   # required
   # optional override
   export PAPER_API_BASE_URL=https://api.paperinvest.io
   

3. Run – start the server (default command paper-mcp-server is provided by the package). The process will listen on the default MCP port and be discoverable by IDE integrations.
4. Integrate – add a mcp.json file to Cursor or Claude Desktop as shown in the README. The file points to the paper-mcp-server command and supplies the same environment variables.

Key Features

• Real‑time NBBO quote retrieval (paper.quote(symbol)).
• Batch quote fetching for multiple symbols.
• Simulated order placement with market, limit, stop, etc.
• Portfolio query returning positions, unrealized/realized P&L.
• Ready‑made integration snippets for Cursor and Claude Desktop.
• Simple CLI usage via npx and environment‑based configuration.

Use Cases

• Algorithm prototyping – let an AI assistant suggest trades and instantly test them in a paper‑trading sandbox.
• Educational tooling – students can ask natural‑language questions about market data and receive programmatic responses.
• IDE‑assisted debugging – developers can fetch live quotes or order status without leaving their code editor.
• Rapid demo creation – generate interactive trading demos by chaining AI prompts with MCP calls.

FAQ

Q: Do I need a real brokerage account? A: No. The server works with Paper’s paper‑trading API, which simulates market activity.

Q: Which Node version is required? A: Node.js 16+ is recommended.

Q: Can I run the server locally behind a firewall? A: Yes. As long as the environment variable PAPER_API_KEY is set and outbound HTTPS to api.paperinvest.io is allowed, the server will function.

Q: How do I update the server? A: Run npm i -g @paperinvest/mcp-server again or use npx -y @paperinvest/mcp-server to fetch the latest version.

Q: What if I get "command not found"? A: Ensure the global npm prefix is in your PATH (npm prefix -g can help) or always invoke via npx as shown above.

Paper MCP Server (@paperinvest/mcp-server)

Official Model Context Protocol (MCP) server for Paper's trading platform. Lets AI coding assistants (Cursor, Claude, etc.) interact with the Paper Trading API to fetch quotes, place paper orders, and inspect portfolios.

Install

# Global install (recommended for CLI usage)
npm i -g @paperinvest/mcp-server

# Or run with npx
npx @paperinvest/mcp-server --help

Node.js 16+ recommended.

Configure

Set your Paper API credentials via environment variables (shell or .env).

export PAPER_API_KEY=your_api_key
# Optional override
export PAPER_API_BASE_URL=https://api.paperinvest.io

IDE Integrations

Cursor

File: ~/.cursor/mcp.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "paper": {
      "command": "paper-mcp-server",
      "env": {
        "PAPER_API_KEY": "your_api_key"
      }
    }
  }
}

Claude Desktop

macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "paper": {
      "command": "paper-mcp-server",
      "env": {
        "PAPER_API_KEY": "your_api_key"
      }
    }
  }
}

Tools Reference

• paper.quote(symbol) — Get real-time NBBO quote for a symbol
• paper.quotesBatch(symbols[]) — Get quotes for multiple symbols in one request
• paper.order({ ... }) — Place a simulated order (market/limit/stop, etc.)
• paper.portfolio(id) — Retrieve portfolio positions and P&L

See more tools and examples in the repository and on the MCP landing: https://paperinvest.io/mcp

Examples

Configs and demo scripts are in examples/:

• examples/.cursor/mcp.json — Cursor integration
• examples/claude/claude_desktop_config.json — Claude integration
• examples/scripts/get-quote.sh — Example prompt to fetch a quote
• examples/scripts/place-order.sh — Example prompt to place an order

Getting Started

1. Sign up at app.paperinvest.io
2. Generate an API key from your account settings
3. Add the configuration above with your API key
4. Restart Claude Desktop or Cursor

Troubleshooting

• Ensure paper-mcp-server is in your PATH (npm prefix -g may help).
• Verify PAPER_API_KEY is set in the same environment as your client.
• Restart Cursor/Claude after changing config.
• Check connectivity to https://api.paperinvest.io.

Links

• NPM: https://www.npmjs.com/package/@paperinvest/mcp-server
• GitHub: https://github.com/paperinvest/mcp-server
• MCP Landing: https://paperinvest.io/mcp
• API Docs: https://docs.paperinvest.io

Support

For support, visit paperinvest.io or email support@paperinvest.io

License

MIT © Paper Invest, Inc.