AI Integration via MCP

Requires Timing Connect

Timing's MCP server lets you connect your Timing account to AI assistants that support the Model Context Protocol. Once connected, your AI assistant can interact with Timing directly from your conversation — letting you review your tracked activities, manage projects, and more, all using natural language.

Table of Contents

What You Can Do

With MCP, your AI assistant can access the following Timing capabilities on your behalf:

  • Review your activities — Get a hierarchical overview of what you've been working on, grouped by project and application. Great for daily summaries and time reviews.
  • Browse your projects — List all your projects, view their details, and explore their hierarchy.
  • Create and edit projects — Set up new projects or update existing ones without leaving your AI conversation.
  • Delete projects — Remove projects you no longer need.

Here are some example prompts you can try:

  • "Summarize what I worked on today"
  • "Show me all my projects"
  • "Create a project called 'Website Redesign' under 'Client Work'"
  • "What did I spend the most time on last week?"

Current Limitations

The MCP integration is actively being developed. The following features are not yet available via MCP:

  • Time entries — Creating, editing, or deleting time entries is not yet supported. You can view activities via the activity hierarchy, but managing time entries still requires the Timing app or Web API.
  • Timers — Starting and stopping timers is not yet available via MCP.
  • Rules — Creating or managing project rules is not yet supported.
  • Reports — Generating or exporting reports is not yet available.
  • Team management — Managing teams or viewing team members' times is not yet supported.
More tools are being added over time. If you have a specific use case in mind, please let us know — it helps us prioritize!

Supported AI Assistants

Timing's MCP server works with the following AI assistants:

Each provider uses different terminology: ChatGPT calls them "apps", Claude calls them "connectors", and Codex calls them "MCP servers". The setup instructions below use each provider's native terminology.

Prerequisites

Setup

Claude

Setup (Web)

  1. Click Customize on the toolbar, then Connectors.
  2. In the Connectors column, click + in the top right, then Add custom connector.
  3. Fill in the form:
    • Name: Timing
    • Remote MCP Server URL: https://web.timingapp.com/mcp
    • Leave the Advanced settings (OAuth Client ID and Secret) empty — these are not needed because Timing handles client registration automatically.
  4. Click Add.
  5. In the Connectors column, click Timing.
  6. Click Connect.
  7. You will be redirected to the Timing web app. Log in if necessary, then click Authorize.
  8. Once authorized, click Timing again in the Connectors column.
  9. Set Tool permissions to your preference.

Setup (Desktop)

Setting up the Timing MCP connector in Claude desktop follows the same steps as Claude web. The only difference is that when you click Authorize, you will be prompted to allow the Claude desktop app to open.

Using the Timing MCP Connector in Claude

  1. Click the + button in the lower left of the "How can I help you today" box.
  2. Go to Connectors and ensure Timing is enabled.
  3. Set Tool access to your preference.

Claude Code

If you have already set up the Timing MCP connector in Claude web or the Claude desktop app, it may also be available in Claude Code automatically. You can check by running claude and typing /mcp to see if timing is listed.

Setup

  1. Run claude mcp add --transport http timing https://web.timingapp.com/mcp in your terminal.
  2. Run claude, then type /mcp and press Enter.
  3. Use the arrow keys to navigate to timing and press Enter.
  4. Use the arrow keys to navigate to authenticate and press Enter.
  5. Your web browser will open. Log in if necessary, then click Authorize.
  6. Once authorized, close the browser window as prompted and switch back to your terminal.

The Timing MCP server will now be active in the current project. The Timing tools will be available automatically in your Claude Code sessions.

Scope

By default, MCP servers in Claude Code are added to the local scope (current project only). Use the --scope flag to change this. See the MCP installation scopes documentation for more information.

Removal

To remove the Timing MCP server, run claude mcp remove timing.

ChatGPT

Setup (Web)

  1. Go to chatgpt.com.
  2. Click your name in the lower left, then click Settings.
  3. Go to Apps, then Advanced settings.
  4. Enable Developer mode. A Create app button will appear at the top.
  5. Click Create app and fill in the form:
    • Name: Timing
    • MCP Server URL: https://web.timingapp.com/mcp
    • Authentication: OAuth (this should already be selected)
    • Check the box for "I understand and want to continue"
  6. Click Create.
  7. You will be redirected to the Timing web app. Log in if necessary, then click Authorize.
Developer mode must remain enabled to use the app. The app will be hidden if you disable it.

Setup (Desktop)

It is not currently possible to add MCP apps to ChatGPT desktop directly. Add the Timing MCP app via ChatGPT web, and it will automatically be available in the desktop app.

To confirm the app is available, open ChatGPT desktop and navigate to Settings > Apps. The Timing MCP app should be listed.

Using the Timing MCP App in ChatGPT

  1. Click the + button in the lower left of the "Ask anything" box.
  2. Go to More.
  3. Click Timing to enable it.

OpenAI Codex

Setup

  1. Run codex mcp add timing --url https://web.timingapp.com/mcp in your terminal.
  2. Your web browser will open. Log in if necessary, then click Authorize.
  3. Once authorized, close the browser window as prompted and switch back to your terminal.

The Timing MCP server will now be active globally across all projects. The Timing tools will be available automatically in your Codex sessions.

Per-Project Configuration

Codex does not currently support adding an MCP server to a specific project via the CLI, but you can do so by manually editing the config files:

  1. Set up and authenticate the Timing MCP server as described above.
  2. Open ~/.codex/config.toml in a text editor. Find the [mcp_servers.timing] section, copy it, and remove it from the file.
  3. In your project's root folder, open (or create) .codex/config.toml.
  4. Paste the copied section into this file and save.

The Timing MCP server will now only be available in that project.

Removal

To remove the Timing MCP server, run codex mcp remove timing.

Available Tools

The following tools are available through the MCP server. They accept the same parameters and return the same responses as their equivalent Web API endpoints.

Tool Description
get_activity_hierarchy Returns a hierarchical view of your tracked activities, grouped by project and application. Supports filtering by date range, project, and more.
list_projects Lists all projects accessible to you, along with their associated teams.
show_project Shows details of a specific project, including its parents and children.
create_project Creates a new project with the specified attributes.
update_project Updates an existing project.
delete_project Deletes a project and all of its children.
For detailed parameter documentation, see the full API reference. We also provide API documentation in the llms.txt format, optimized for AI code generation.

Privacy & Security

When you connect an AI assistant to Timing via MCP, the AI can access your time-tracking data within the scope of your conversation. Here's what to keep in mind:

  • OAuth authorization — Each AI assistant must be explicitly authorized by you before it can access your data. You can revoke access at any time from the API Keys section of the Timing web app.
  • Read and write access — Tools that modify data (creating, updating, or deleting projects) are marked as destructive. Depending on your AI assistant's settings, you may be asked to confirm before these actions are executed.
  • Data processing — Your data is processed by the AI provider (OpenAI, Anthropic, etc.) according to their respective privacy policies. Timing does not share your data with any additional third parties beyond the AI provider you choose to connect.

Troubleshooting

Authorization fails or loops

Make sure you are logged in to the Timing web app with an active Timing Connect subscription before clicking Authorize. If the authorization keeps looping, try clearing your browser cookies for web.timingapp.com and try again.

Tools are not showing up

Some AI assistants require you to explicitly enable the Timing integration for each conversation. Check the setup instructions for your specific AI assistant above.

Need help?

If you run into any issues, please contact us and we'll be happy to help.

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