mcp-fred
An MCP server that wraps the Federal Reserve Economic Data (FRED) API for AI agents.
Access GDP, unemployment, inflation, interest rates, and 800,000+ economic time series directly from your AI assistant.
Tools
| Tool | Description |
|---|---|
search_series | Search for economic data series by keyword |
get_series | Get metadata for a specific series (e.g. GDP, UNRATE) |
get_observations | Get data points with optional date range, units, and frequency |
get_categories | Browse the FRED category tree |
get_releases | Get economic data releases and schedules |
get_popular_series | Get recently updated/popular series |
Setup
1. Get a free FRED API key
- Go to https://fred.stlouisfed.org/docs/api/api_key.html
- Create a free account (or sign in)
- Request an API key — it's instant and free
2. Install and build
git clone https://github.com/PetrefiedThunder/mcp-fred.git
cd mcp-fred
npm install
npm run build
3. Configure your MCP client
Add to your MCP client config (e.g. Claude Desktop claude_desktop_config.json):
{
"mcpServers": {
"fred": {
"command": "node",
"args": ["/path/to/mcp-fred/dist/index.js"],
"env": {
"FRED_API_KEY": "your_api_key_here"
}
}
}
}
Examples
Once connected, ask your AI agent things like:
- "What's the current US unemployment rate?"
- "Show me GDP growth over the last 5 years"
- "Search for inflation-related series"
- "What economic data releases are coming up?"
- "Compare CPI and PCE price indices"
Rate Limits
The FRED API allows 120 requests per minute. The client enforces this automatically.
Development
npm run dev # Run with tsx
npm test # Run tests
npm run build # Compile TypeScript
License
MIT