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Connect Claude or ChatGPT to Spark Shipping with MCP

Let Claude or ChatGPT look up your orders, products, suppliers and sync jobs, read-only.

What the MCP connector is

The Spark Shipping MCP connector lets an AI assistant look at your Spark Shipping data when you ask it a question. It uses the Model Context Protocol (MCP), an open standard for connecting assistants like Claude and ChatGPT to the tools you already use.

The connector is read-only. The assistant can look things up, but it cannot change anything. It is in beta and is included on every Spark Shipping plan.

Before you start

You need:

  • A Spark Shipping login. Team members use their own login.
  • An account with an assistant that supports custom connectors. For Claude, that means Claude.ai (Pro, Max, Team or Enterprise) or Claude Code. For ChatGPT, check that your plan allows custom connectors.
  • The connector URL: https://mcp.sparkshipping.com/mcp

Set up in Claude.ai (web and desktop)

  1. In Claude, go to Settings, then Connectors.
  2. Click Add custom connector.
  3. Name it Spark Shipping.
  4. Paste https://mcp.sparkshipping.com/mcp as the URL and click Add.
  5. Click Connect. Claude sends you to Spark Shipping to sign in. If you use two-factor authentication, enter your code.
  6. If you belong to more than one organization, pick the one you want to connect.
  7. Review the permission screen. It shows that access is read-only and that customer details are redacted.
  8. Click Authorize. You return to Claude.
  9. Open a chat and turn the Spark Shipping connector on for that chat.
Tip: Once you add the connector on the web, it also works in the Claude mobile app.

Set up in Claude Code

  1. Run this command in your terminal: 
    claude mcp add --transport http spark-shipping https://mcp.sparkshipping.com/mcp
  2. Inside Claude Code, type /mcp and choose the Spark Shipping server to sign in.
  3. Your browser opens so you can sign in to Spark Shipping and authorize the connection.
Note: The sign-in redirects back to your own computer, so you may see a browser tab with a localhost address. That is expected. You can close the tab once Claude Code confirms the connection.

Set up in ChatGPT

ChatGPT desktop app

  1. Open Settings, then Plugins.
  2. Click Add, then Add MCP server.
  3. Enter the name Spark Shipping and set Type to Streamable HTTP.
  4. Paste https://mcp.sparkshipping.com/mcp as the URL. Leave the bearer token and header fields empty. Click Save.
  5. The server appears in the MCPs list. When it offers Authenticate, click it. Your browser opens so you can sign in to Spark Shipping and click Authorize.
  6. In a chat, type "/mcp" to confirm Spark Shipping is connected, then ask your question.

ChatGPT on the web

  1. Go to chatgpt.com/plugins, click the + button, then Add custom MCP server.

  2. Enter the name Spark Shipping. Under Connection, paste https://mcp.sparkshipping.com/mcp as the Server URL.

  3. Set authentication to OAuth, acknowledge the warning, and click Create as a plugin.

  4. Install the plugin. When prompted, sign in to Spark Shipping and click Authorize.

  5. In the prompt box, type @ and choose Spark Shipping.

Note: ChatGPT menus change often. If a label looks different, look for Plugins, MCPs or Apps in Settings. Custom MCP servers need a paid ChatGPT plan, and in Business or Enterprise workspaces an admin may have to allow creating plugins with MCPs.

What you can ask

 

Ask in plain language. The assistant picks the right tool for you.

Orders

  • "Show me the orders from my Shopify store this week that are in an error status."
  • "Which vendor was order 12345 sent to, and is there tracking?"
  • "List the shipments from the last three days with carrier and tracking number."

Inventory and suppliers

  • "Which suppliers are connected to my main store?"
  • "Show me the stock and cost for SKU ABC-123 in the Keystone catalog."

Products

  • "Which supplier items are mapped to product SKU ABC-123, and what does each cost?"
  • "Which vendors can fulfill this product right now?"

Sync jobs

  • "Show the latest inventory jobs for my Turn14 vendor."
  • "Read the log for that job and tell me if anything went wrong."

Tools the assistant can use

Tool What it reads
find_sites Your stores and sales channels, by name. Start here to get a site id.
get_site One store or sales channel by id.
list_vendors The suppliers and dropshippers connected to a store.
get_vendor One supplier or dropshipper by id.
list_vendor_catalog_skus A supplier's catalog, with stock, cost, MSRP, MAP and brand.
get_product One product, by id or SKU, with its supplier items and suggested price.
list_product_vendor_skus The supplier items mapped to a product, with cost and stock.
list_orders A store's orders, with items, fulfillment requests, shipments and messages.
get_order One order by its Spark Shipping id.
list_shipments A store's shipments: carrier, method, tracking number and vendor.
list_fulfillment_requests Which vendor each order was sent to, and when.
list_jobs Background sync runs for a store or a vendor.
get_job One sync run: type, queue, and start and end times.
get_job_log The log lines for a sync run, like the ones you see in Spark Shipping.

Tips for better answers

  • Name the store you mean. If you have several, the assistant needs to know which one.
  • Give ids or SKUs when you have them.
  • Jobs do not have a status. If a sync looks wrong, ask the assistant to read the job log. Errors show up there.
  • Job logs are kept for 3 days.

What the assistant can and cannot see

  • It is read-only. Nothing is created, edited or deleted. The assistant cannot place orders or change stock or prices.
  • Only the organization you picked.
  • Only the stores your Spark Shipping login can already open.
  • Customer details are hidden. Customer names, addresses, emails, phone numbers and order notes show as REDACTED.
  • Supplier credentials are never shown.

Managing and disconnecting

In Spark Shipping, go to Profile, then Connected apps. You will see every connection with the date it was last used. Click Disconnect to end one. Also remove the connector in Claude or ChatGPT.

Access expires after one hour and refreshes on its own while the connector stays connected. If an admin removes you from the team, or the account is canceled, the connection stops right away.

Troubleshooting

"Couldn't reach the MCP server"

Check that the URL is exactly https://mcp.sparkshipping.com/mcp, with no slash at the end. Then try again.

Sign-in loops or says "not available on this account yet"

The beta is being rolled out in stages. Contact support and we will help.

"Choose one of your own organizations"

You picked an organization you are not a member of. Reconnect and choose one of yours.

The assistant says it has no access to a store

The store may not be in the organization you connected, or your login may not have access to it. Reconnect and pick the right organization.

Rate limit message

The assistant made more than 240 requests in one minute. Wait a minute and try again.

Answers look out of date

The assistant reads live data from Spark Shipping. But each store still follows its own sync schedule, so a change in your store may not have arrived yet.

Privacy and security

  • Sign-in uses OAuth 2.1 with PKCE.
  • Access tokens are short-lived.
  • The connection is read-only.
  • Customer details are redacted.
  • Requests are rate limited, and every call is logged.

Spark Shipping does not send your data to Anthropic or OpenAI. The assistant you connect reads data with your permission, and that provider's data policy applies to what it receives.

Need help?

 

If you get stuck, send us a support request.