Getting Started with PromptingBox MCP

MCP (Model Context Protocol) is an open standard that lets AI tools connect to external services. With the PromptingBox MCP server, you can save, search, and manage your prompt library without ever leaving your AI tool of choice.

What is MCP?

MCP is a protocol developed by Anthropic that enables AI assistants to interact with external tools and data sources. Think of it as a bridge between your AI assistant and your personal prompt library. Instead of copying and pasting prompts between tabs, MCP lets you say something like “save this to pbox” and your prompt is instantly stored in your PromptingBox workspace.

MCP is supported by Claude (web, desktop, and Claude Code), Cursor, Windsurf, and a growing number of other tools. PromptingBox exposes over 20 MCP tools for complete prompt management: saving, searching, organizing into folders, tagging, versioning, and more.

Step 1: Install the MCP Package

The PromptingBox MCP server is published as an npm package. Install it globally so it is available system-wide:

This installs the promptingbox-mcp binary. You will need Node.js 18 or later installed on your machine.

Step 2: Get Your API Key

Log in to your PromptingBox account, go to Settings → API Keys, and create a new key. Copy it somewhere safe; you will need it for the next step.

Step 3: Configure in Your AI Tool

Configuration varies slightly by tool. Here are the most common setups:

Claude Desktop / claude.ai

Go to Settings → Integrations in Claude, and add a new MCP server. Use the following configuration:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "pbox": {
      "command": "promptingbox-mcp",
      "env": {
        "PROMPTINGBOX_API_KEY": "your-api-key-here"
      }
    }
  }
}

Cursor

Add the same configuration to your .cursor/mcp.json file at the root of your project:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "pbox": {
      "command": "promptingbox-mcp",
      "env": {
        "PROMPTINGBOX_API_KEY": "your-api-key-here"
      }
    }
  }
}

Claude Code CLI

Register the server with a single command:

claude mcp add -s local \
  -e PROMPTINGBOX_API_KEY=your-api-key-here \
  -- pbox promptingbox-mcp

Step 4: Start Using It

Once configured, you can interact with your prompt library using natural language. Here are some things you can say:

• •"Save this prompt to pbox" — saves the current prompt to your library
• •"Search pbox for email prompts" — finds matching prompts by keyword
• •"List my folders in pbox" — shows your folder structure
• •"Move this prompt to the Marketing folder" — organizes prompts
• •"Show version history for my code review prompt" — tracks changes

The MCP server handles everything: creating prompts, managing folders and tags, searching by keyword or semantically, and tracking version history. You get the full power of PromptingBox without switching windows.