Public API and AI assistants (MCP)
Read your inventory from your own tools with an API key, or connect an AI assistant such as Claude to ask questions and draft orders.
2 min read
Create an API key
- Go to Settings → Integrations & developers → API keys and choose Create key (Pro plan; owners by default).
- Give it a Name, tick its Scopes and choose when it Expires (never, 30 days, 90 days or 1 year).
- Copy the key (
ifk_live_…): it is shown once.
A key acts as the person who created it and stops working if that person leaves the organization or loses access to API keys. Revoke stops a key within a minute. Up to 25 active keys per organization.
Call the API
Send the key as Authorization: Bearer <key> to https://api.inventoryflo.app/api/public/v1. The full reference is the OpenAPI document.
| Scope | Gives access to |
|---|---|
items:read | Items and variants |
stock:read | Stock levels, locations, low stock, expiring lots |
movements:read | Stock movements |
suppliers:read | Suppliers |
purchase-orders:read | Purchase orders |
stock-counts:read | Stock counts |
purchase-orders:write-draft | Create draft purchase orders |
stock-counts:write-draft | Start counts and record counted quantities |
webhooks:manage | Manage webhook subscriptions |
- Lists are paged with a cursor: up to 100 rows per page (50 by default). Pass the
nextCursoryou receive back ascursor. - Limits per key: 120 requests a minute on Pro, 300 on Business. Over the limit you get
429with aRetry-Afterheader. - Write access is limited to drafts: the API never posts stock movements, sends orders or completes counts.
Connect an AI assistant (MCP)
AI assistants (MCP) lets an assistant that supports the Model Context Protocol read your inventory and prepare drafts. The server address is shown on Settings → Integrations & developers → AI assistants (MCP): https://api.inventoryflo.app/mcp.
- Claude (web or desktop): Settings → Connectors → Add custom connector, paste the address.
- Claude Code:
claude mcp add --transport http inventoryflo https://api.inventoryflo.app/mcp, then run/mcpto sign in. - Other assistants: add a remote server using Streamable HTTP.
The assistant sends you to InventoryFlo to approve the connection; you can untick scopes there. Only someone allowed to manage API access can approve.
The assistant can search items, read stock levels, low stock, expiring lots, movements, suppliers, purchase orders and counts, and it can create a draft purchase order, start a stock count and record counted quantities. It cannot complete, send or delete anything. Connected apps lists connections with Disconnect, and Recent tool calls shows what each one did. MCP calls do not use your AI document reads.