The Payhawk MCP connects your Payhawk account to your AI Assistant, so you can ask about your live Payhawk data and act on it in Claude, ChatGPT, or Codex, using your own login and permissions.
The Payhawk MCP is not yet listed in the Claude or ChatGPT app directories, so you need to add it manually by using the MCP server URL your Payhawk contact provides you with. When Payhawk is published to the directories, you will add it in one click and the manual steps will no longer be needed.
Before you start
To connect the Payhawk MCP, you need:
An active Payhawk account. Sign in with the same credentials you use for the Payhawk Web Portal.
The Payhawk MCP server URL (https://mcp.payhawk.com/mcp, also available in the following sections).
For Claude: the ability to add a custom connector. These work on every Claude plan (Free, Pro, Max, Team, and Enterprise), but on a Team or Enterprise workspace only a Claude Owner can add one.
For ChatGPT and Codex: Developer Mode turned on. Developer Mode is an OpenAI requirement for custom MCP servers for now, not a Payhawk setting. When Payhawk is published to the OpenAI Apps directory, you won't need it.
Connecting to Claude
Claude supports the Payhawk MCP on the web, in the desktop app, and in the mobile app. Set it up on Claude web or desktop, though: adding a connector from the Claude mobile app is still in beta, but once Payhawk is added it works in the mobile app too.
First, check whether you can add connectors yourself.
Custom connectors work on every Claude plan (Free, Pro, Max, Team, and Enterprise; Free allows one), so the plan is rarely the blocker.
On a personal Free, Pro, or Max account, you can add Payhawk yourself.
On a Team or Enterprise workspace, only a Claude Owner can add a custom connector, so ask yours to add Payhawk once and then connect to it individually. Being a Payhawk Administrator makes no difference here; this is a Claude permission, not a Payhawk one.
If you add it yourself (Free, Pro, Max):
In Claude, go to Customize > Connectors on the web or the desktop app.
Click +, then Add custom connector.
Paste the https://mcp.payhawk.com/mcp Payhawk MCP server URL and click Add.
Click Connect and sign in with your Payhawk credentials when prompted.
If your Claude Owner adds it (Team, Enterprise):
The Owner goes to Organization settings > Connectors, clicks Add, hovers Custom, and picks Web.
The Owner pastes the https://mcp.payhawk.com/mcp Payhawk MCP server URL and clicks Add.
Everyone else goes to Customize > Connectors, finds Payhawk, clicks Connect, and signs in with their own Payhawk login. Each person signs in as themselves, so everyone keeps their own Payhawk permissions.
Payhawk now appears in your Claude tools.
Connecting to ChatGPT
Turn on Developer Mode one time in ChatGPT on the web. After that, the connector also works in the ChatGPT desktop app.
To connect Payhawk to ChatGPT:
In ChatGPT on the web, go to Settings > Apps and turn on Developer Mode.
Click Add to create a custom connector.
Paste the https://mcp.payhawk.com/mcp Payhawk MCP server URL and save the connector.
Sign in with your Payhawk credentials when prompted.
Open the ChatGPT desktop app where Payhawk is now available. You can't add or turn the connector on or off from the desktop app, which is why step 1 happens on the web.
Currently, a manually added MCP runs in the ChatGPT desktop app only. It doesn't run in chats on chatgpt.com until Payhawk is published to the OpenAI Apps directory.
Connecting to Codex
In Codex (the coding agent by OpenAI), add Payhawk the same way you add any MCP server, by using the same Payhawk MCP server URL and your Payhawk login. The Developer Mode requirement above applies during the beta. UI components, such as flight or approval widgets, don't render in Codex; you get the answer as text.
After you connect Payhawk to your AI Assistant
Once you are connected, you can ask about expenses, invoices, card transactions, suppliers, and budgets, and you can also ask your AI Assistant to take actions, such as recoding expenses, approving items, freezing cards, and creating requests. Every change shows a preview first and waits for your explicit confirmation.
For more hands-on information, see the article about getting the best out of the Payhawk MCP.