Install the MCP server

You need a Boardwalk API key first — mint one here. A free trial key works.

Option A — one-click, from Boardwalk

The connect page walks Claude Desktop and Claude Code through the connection and hands the key over for you. This is the fastest route if you are using a Claude client.

Option B — from your client's connector directory

Where your client has a connector or MCP directory, search it for Boardwalk. Directory availability varies by client and by review queue, so if you do not see us there yet, use option C — it is the same server.

Option C — manual configuration, which always works

This path depends on nothing but the server URL and your key. Add the block below to your client's MCP configuration file and restart it.

{
    "mcpServers": {
        "boardwalk": {
            "command": "npx",
            "args": [
                "-y",
                "mcp-remote",
                "https://mcp.boardwalkai.com/mcp"
            ],
            "env": {
                "BOARDWALK_API_KEY": "bwk_live_YOUR_KEY"
            }
        }
    }
}

For ChatGPT and other clients without MCP

Where a client cannot speak MCP, use the REST API directly with the same key. The quickstart is four calls, and the whole documentation tree as one markdown file gives a model everything it needs in a single fetch.

Check it worked

Ask your client: *"Using Boardwalk, describe what data you can see, then count the apartment projects in Utah in the last three months."* The first is a free reference call and the second is a free count, so a successful setup costs nothing to verify.