Claude Desktop can connect to Keito through the Model Context Protocol (MCP), giving Claude a secure way to read project data, start and stop timers, create time entries, log LLM expenses, and prepare billing summaries from your Keito workspace.
If your team already uses Claude Desktop for client work, reviews, research, or agent-assisted coding, this closes an important gap: Claude can now help keep the commercial record of that work up to date instead of leaving someone to reconstruct it later.
The fastest setup is the hosted Keito connector:
https://mcp.keito.ai/mcpAdd that URL in Claude Desktop’s Connectors settings, sign in to Keito, enable the connector in a chat, and Claude can start using Keito tools with your Keito permissions.
Why connect Claude Desktop to Keito?
Claude Desktop is often where the work happens: a consultant drafting a client update, a developer planning a migration, or an operator checking what happened this week. Keito is where the billable record needs to end up.
The MCP connector gives Claude a controlled bridge into Keito so it can:
- Find the right client, project, and task before work starts.
- Start a timer when a Claude-assisted work session begins.
- Stop a timer and write useful notes at the end of the session.
- Create completed time entries for work that already happened.
- Pull time and expense reports for a client, project, or date range.
- Log LLM usage expenses against the same project as the work.
- Draft client-safe summaries from real time and cost data.
That does not mean Claude should write to Keito without supervision. Treat it like a capable assistant with access to operational data: ask for a dry run before creating entries, review tool approvals, and keep write tools disabled when you only need reporting.
Which setup should you use?
Use the hosted Keito connector unless Keito support has explicitly issued your organization a local .mcpb package.
| Situation | What to use | Setup |
|---|---|---|
| You want to connect Claude Desktop to Keito | Hosted remote connector | Add https://mcp.keito.ai/mcp in Claude Desktop Connectors. |
| Your team uses Claude Team or Enterprise | Hosted remote connector | Ask an Owner to add the same connector URL in organization settings. |
| You need a local desktop extension | Support-managed MCPB package | Contact Keito support. There is no public GitHub download for this release. |
The hosted connector is the self-serve path. It uses OAuth, receives fixes centrally, and does not require you to copy a Keito API key into Claude Desktop. Claude’s custom connector guidance says remote connectors are configured through Claude’s connector settings, and remote connectors are brokered through the user’s Claude account rather than a local JSON config file.
Keito does not publish a public MCPB download from GitHub. Local MCPB packages are support-managed for organizations that cannot use the hosted connector or need to distribute a specific desktop extension package internally.
Step-by-step: connect the hosted Keito MCP server
Open Claude Desktop and follow these steps:
- Go to Settings or Customize.
- Open Connectors.
- Click + and choose Add custom connector.
- Name the connector
Keito. - Use this connector URL:
https://mcp.keito.ai/mcp- Leave advanced OAuth client settings blank unless Keito support has given you a specific client ID and secret.
- Click Add.
- Select Keito and click Connect.
- Complete the Keito login and consent flow in your browser.
- Start a new Claude Desktop conversation.
- Use the +, Search and tools, or Connectors menu in the composer and enable Keito for the chat.
For Claude Team and Enterprise plans, an Owner may need to add the custom connector from organization settings before members can connect their own Keito accounts. Once the organization connector exists, each member still authenticates individually, so Claude only sees the Keito data that user can access.
Claude’s own docs also note that remote connector traffic comes from Anthropic’s infrastructure, not directly from your laptop. That is why the Keito hosted connector uses a public HTTPS endpoint.
Verify the connection
Use a low-risk read-only prompt first:
Use Keito to show my current user, company, and running timer.If the connector is working, Claude should call Keito and return your user/company context plus either a running timer or a clean “no running timer” result.
If Claude says it has no Keito tools, open the conversation’s tools menu and enable Keito. Adding a connector to your account does not always mean it is enabled in every chat.
What can Claude do with the Keito MCP connector?
The connector exposes a focused set of tools for time, expense, and reporting workflows.
1. Find the right work context
Before writing anything, ask Claude to inspect the available clients, projects, and tasks:
Use Keito to list clients matching "Valueleaf", then show the active projects and tasks for the best match. Do not create or update anything yet.This avoids a common billing mistake: logging work to the wrong project because a client has multiple active engagements.
2. Start and stop timers
When a session begins:
Start a Keito timer for client "Valueleaf Ltd", project "Website Platform", task "Development". Notes: "Claude Desktop MCP documentation."When you finish:
Stop my running Keito timer and add notes summarizing the work completed in this chat.This is useful for supervised Claude Desktop work where the user is actively driving the session. For fully automatic background capture of coding-agent sessions, use the Keito Agent Skill or Keito CLI agent mode instead.
3. Log work that already happened
If you forgot to start a timer:
Create a Keito time entry for 1 hour 15 minutes today on client "Valueleaf Ltd", project "Website Platform", task "Documentation". Notes: "Wrote Claude Desktop MCP setup and usage guide."For billing-sensitive work, ask Claude to prepare the entry first:
Prepare the Keito time entry you would create. Show project, task, date, duration, and notes. Do not write it until I confirm.4. Prepare weekly client reports
Keito MCP works well for turning operational data into client-ready updates:
Use Keito to summarize time and LLM expenses for Valueleaf Ltd from 2026-06-01 to today. Break the result down by project, person, billable status, and expense category. Then draft a short client update.Ask Claude to show the underlying totals before it writes the narrative. That gives you a quick sanity check before anything leaves the building.
5. Log LLM usage expenses
When you know the model and token usage, Claude can record the LLM cost alongside the project:
Log an LLM usage expense in Keito for project "Website Platform": model claude-sonnet-4-6, 30000 input tokens, 15000 output tokens. Notes: "Claude Desktop documentation session."Keito’s MCP server can calculate the amount from a price table for known models. That keeps the time entry and the model cost attached to the same client/project record.
Good prompts for real teams
Use these as starting points.
Daily timer check
Use Keito to check whether I have a running timer. If I do, show the client, project, task, start time, and notes.Draft timesheet review
Use Keito to pull my time entries for this week. Group them by client and project, then flag entries with missing notes, no task, or unusually long durations.Project billing review
Use Keito to report team time for project "Website Platform" from 2026-06-01 to 2026-06-17. Include billable hours, non-billable hours, and LLM expenses. Do not create or update anything.Client-safe update
Use Keito to pull this week's time and LLM expenses for Valueleaf Ltd. First show me the source totals. Then draft a client update that explains what changed, what is still in progress, and what will appear on the invoice.Controlled write workflow
Find the right Keito project for "Volvo". Then prepare a 45-minute time entry for today's documentation work. Show me the draft entry and wait for approval before creating it.Security and permissions
MCP gives Claude tools. That is powerful, but it should be treated as production access.
The hosted Keito connector uses OAuth, so Claude does not need your Keito password. Claude can only use the Keito account and permissions you authorize. If a user cannot access a project in Keito, the connector should not give Claude access to that project either.
Practical controls:
- Use read-only prompts for reporting and analysis.
- Ask for a draft before creating or updating entries.
- Review tool approval prompts carefully.
- Disable Keito tools in conversations where they are not needed.
- Avoid “always allow” for write tools unless the workflow is low risk and well understood.
- Disconnect the connector in Claude settings if a device or account should no longer have access.
For local MCPB installs issued by Keito support, treat the configured Keito API key as a production credential. Revoke it in Keito if the device is lost, shared, or no longer trusted.
Troubleshooting
I opened https://mcp.keito.ai/mcp in a browser and saw 401.
That is expected. MCP requests require OAuth. A browser hitting the endpoint directly is not an authenticated MCP client.
Keito is listed but says “not connected.”
Click Connect and complete the browser login. If it still fails, remove the connector and add it again.
Claude cannot find my project.
Ask Claude to list clients and projects first, then use the exact stored name. Many teams have similar client names or multiple projects for the same client.
Claude returns a broader report than expected.
Ask it to show the exact filters and date range used. For project-specific reporting, include the project name or project ID explicitly.
The local extension installed but no tools appear.
Restart Claude Desktop, open Settings → Extensions, and check that the API key, account ID, and API base URL are configured. Claude’s desktop extension guidance also recommends checking required configuration values and restarting when tools do not appear.
Team members cannot add the connector.
On Claude Team and Enterprise plans, an Owner may need to add the connector from organization settings first.
The practical rule
Use the hosted Keito MCP connector when you want Claude Desktop to help with live time, reporting, and billing workflows. Use the Agent Skill or CLI when you want automatic local coding-session capture. Use the MCPB extension only when Keito has provided your organization with a local Claude Desktop package.
The detailed setup guide is in the docs: Claude Desktop MCP Connector.
Connect Claude Desktop to Keito
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Claude Desktop need a Keito API key?
Not for the hosted connector. The hosted connector uses OAuth through Keito. The local MCPB extension does require a Keito API key and account ID.
Where can I download the local MCPB package?
For this release, Keito is not publishing a public MCPB download. Use the hosted connector for self-serve setup. If your organization needs a local MCPB package, contact Keito support.
Can Claude Desktop automatically track every coding session?
Not by itself. The connector acts when Claude invokes Keito tools in a conversation. For automatic local coding-session tracking, use the Keito Agent Skill or Keito CLI agent workflows.
Can Claude create and update time entries?
Yes, if the connector is enabled and your Keito user has the required permissions. For safety, ask Claude to draft entries and wait for approval before writing.
Can I use Keito MCP on Claude web as well as Claude Desktop?
Hosted remote connectors are configured through your Claude account, so they can be available across Claude surfaces that support connectors. Local MCPB extensions are specific to Claude Desktop.
Should I use claude_desktop_config.json for the hosted connector?
No. Use Claude Desktop’s Connectors settings for the hosted Keito URL. Local JSON configuration is a separate local-MCP mechanism and is not the setup path for Keito’s hosted remote connector.