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Add Spotto MCP to Claude as a Custom Connector

Overview​

Add Spotto to Claude once as a custom connector and you can use it in Claude on the web, in the desktop app and on mobile. There are no files to edit. It takes a few minutes.

You need:

  • A Spotto API key. To create one, see API Authentication.
  • Your region's MCP URL. Australia is https://mcp-au.spotto.ai/mcp. For the US or Europe, swap au for us or eu.

Step 1: Create an API key​

  1. In the Spotto Portal, go to Connectors -> API Keys and select Create API Key.
  2. Name it something you'll recognise later, such as "Claude".
  3. Pick the least role that does the job. Reader is enough to ask questions. A key on a parent company also reaches the child companies its role covers.
  4. Leave IP and country restrictions empty for now. See Claude can't connect after you add IP or country restrictions.
  5. Copy the key. It starts with apik_ and is shown only once.

Step 2: Add the connector in Claude​

Pro and Max plans​

  1. In Claude, open Customize -> Connectors.

  2. Select + Add, then Add custom connector.

  3. Enter these details and select Continue:

    FieldValue
    NameSpotto
    Remote MCP server URLhttps://mcp-au.spotto.ai/mcp (or your region's URL)

  4. Under Authentication, choose No sign in.

  5. Under Request headers, add an API key header named X-API-Key with your Spotto key as the value. If Claude offers a bearer token instead, paste the key there. Spotto accepts both.

  6. Select Add.

Team and Enterprise plans​

Only an Owner can add custom connectors:

  1. Go to Organization settings -> Connectors, select Add -> Custom -> Web, and enter the same details as above.
  2. Members then select Connect on Spotto in Customize -> Connectors.

The Owner enters the API key, so everyone who connects uses that key's access. For a shared connector, use a Reader key and the read endpoint (https://mcp-au-read.spotto.ai/mcp).

Step 3: Ask a question​

Start a new chat, make sure the Spotto connector is turned on in the chat's connector menu, then ask:

"What companies do I have access to in Spotto?"

If Claude answers with your companies, you're done. For more ideas, see Example Queries.

Read, write or both?​

The default URL (full) gives Claude read and write tools, so it can do things like dismiss or share recommendations when the key's role allows it. If you only want Claude to answer questions, use the -read URL. All regional URLs are in MCP Endpoint Profiles.

Troubleshooting​

Claude shows "Authentication failed" or the connector has no tools​

  • Check that the header name is exactly X-API-Key, and that the value is the full key starting with apik_.
  • Check that the URL's region matches the region your key was created in. An Australian key only works with mcp-au URLs.
  • Check that the key hasn't been revoked or rotated in the Portal.

Claude can't connect after you add IP or country restrictions​

Claude connects to Spotto from Anthropic's servers, not from your computer. So the key's restrictions are checked against Anthropic's address and location, not yours.

  • IP allow list: add Anthropic's outbound range 160.79.104.0/21. Anthropic publishes this range in its IP addresses documentation.
  • Country allow list: remove it from this key, because Anthropic's servers may be in a different country from you.

You can't find "Add custom connector"​

On Team and Enterprise plans, only Owners can add custom connectors. Ask an Owner to add Spotto, then connect to it from Customize -> Connectors.

You added Spotto to claude_desktop_config.json and nothing happened​

That file is only for local MCP servers that run on your computer. Spotto is a remote server, so it doesn't work there. Remove the spotto entry from the file, restart Claude, and add Spotto as a connector using the steps above.

Claude says it can't retrieve the tool list​

Change the connector URL to your region's -read endpoint, then reconnect.