Agent access · Works with Claude Code and Codex

Your AI Agent, Your Local Budget

Hand a PDF statement to Claude Code or Codex and let it do the typing. FireBudget shows you what will change before anything is written, and the budget stays on your Mac.

Your AI agent + FireBudget

You: Import ~/Downloads/visa-sep-2026.pdf into Visa. Card payments came from Checking. Show me a preview first.

firebudget · list_accounts, list_categories, list_payees

firebudget · import_transactions (dry run)

Agent: Preview for Visa, 43 rows. Nothing has been written yet:

  • 40 new transactions, categorized from your payee history
  • 2 already in FireBudget, will be skipped
  • 1 card payment, linked to the Checking transfer on Sep 3
  • ⚠ Possible duplicate: Trader Joe’s −$18.40 on Sep 12. Keep both or skip?

You: Skip it, then reconcile. The statement says I owe $624.37.

firebudget · import_transactions · reconcile (preview, then commit)

Agent: Imported 39 transactions, marked cleared. Cleared balance matches −$624.37, so Visa is reconciled through Sep 30.

Example session with sample data, steps abbreviated. Works with Claude Code, Codex, and other MCP clients.

What it does

The Tedious Parts, Delegated

Import statements

Point your agent at a PDF bank or card statement. It maps each row to your accounts, payees, and categories, shows you a dry run, and imports when you agree.

Reconcile accounts

Give it the statement's closing balance. The agent clears the matching transactions and reconciles only when the cleared balance and the statement agree.

Tidy transactions

Clean up memos, fix payees and categories, or correct a date or amount across many rows at once, with a preview of every change before it is saved.

Answer questions

Ask about balances, last month’s biggest payees, or what is still uncategorized. The agent looks it up in your budget instead of guessing.

Safeguards

Nothing Changes Without a Preview

The agent works through FireBudget's own checks, not around them. The same rules that keep your balances correct in the app apply to everything it does.

  • Every import can run as a preview (a dry run) that writes nothing and returns exactly what a real run would.
  • Re-importing the same statement creates nothing. Rows already in FireBudget are matched.
  • Possible duplicates are flagged, and the import is refused until the agent explicitly accepts them. Agents are instructed to ask you first.
  • A credit card payment links to the existing checking transfer instead of being entered twice.
  • Every import is all-or-nothing. One bad row means nothing is written.
  • FireBudget takes a safety snapshot before each import and edit, listed under Settings → Backups.
  • Reconciled transactions stay locked unless you explicitly allow an edit.

Good to know

  • Your agent reads the PDF, not FireBudget, so check the preview. Reconciling to the statement's closing balance catches any misread amount.
  • Agents cannot delete transactions, move them between accounts, or convert them to transfers. Do those in FireBudget.
  • FireBudget has to be open. The agent connection stops when the app quits.
  • Claude Desktop chat, Cowork, and ChatGPT on the web are not supported yet.
  • The token keeps out other users and devices, not software already running under your own Mac account. Turn access off when you are not using it.

Privacy

You Decide What the Agent Sees

Off by default

Nothing listens until you turn on agent access in Settings, and you can turn it off at any time.

Only on your Mac

The connection is served from 127.0.0.1, so other devices on your network cannot reach it.

Token protected

Each agent needs the access token from Settings. Rotate it and old connections stop working immediately.

Your provider sees what you share

FireBudget sends nothing to an AI service itself. Your agent does read the statements and budget rows it works with, so its AI provider sees that data.

Supported agents

Bring the Agent You Already Use

Claude Code
The CLI and the Code tab in the Claude desktop app. One terminal command to add.
Codex
The Codex CLI, the ChatGPT desktop app, and the IDE extension. One entry in config.toml.
Other MCP clients
Anything that supports Streamable HTTP with a custom Authorization header.

Setup

Three Steps to Connect

  1. 1 Open Settings in FireBudget, find Agent access (MCP), and turn on Allow local AI agents to access this budget.
  2. 2 Pick the Claude Code, Codex, or Other tab and copy the ready-made snippet. It already includes your token.
  3. 3 Paste it into your agent, then ask in plain language.

Try asking

Plain Language Is Enough

  • Import ~/Downloads/checking-sep-2026.pdf into Checking. Show me a preview first.
  • Import this credit card statement into Visa. Card payments came from Checking.
  • Use the categories I used last time for the same merchants. Ask me before creating any new ones.
  • The Visa statement says I owe 624.37. Reconcile Visa.
  • Reconcile failed with a difference. Find which transactions explain it, but don't change anything until I confirm.
  • Which payees did I spend the most on last month, and in which categories?

Agent Access Questions

What to know before you connect an agent

What is MCP?
The Model Context Protocol is an open standard that lets AI agents use tools from other apps. FireBudget provides a small set of budgeting tools, such as listing accounts, importing transactions, and reconciling, and your agent decides when to use them.
Do I need an AI subscription?
You need an AI agent that supports MCP, such as Claude Code or Codex, which come with their own plans from Anthropic and OpenAI. FireBudget does not include or resell AI access, and agent access costs nothing extra.
Does FireBudget connect to my bank through the agent?
No. The agent works from statement files you already have, such as PDFs downloaded from your bank. FireBudget never asks for bank credentials.
Can the agent make a mess of my budget?
Imports and edits are checked before anything is written, run all-or-nothing, and are preceded by a safety snapshot you can restore from Settings → Backups. Agents also cannot delete transactions or change reconciled ones without an explicit override.
Is agent access included in the purchase?
Yes. It is part of the $39 one-time purchase, with no extra charge or add-on.

Included With FireBudget

Agent access is part of the $39 one-time purchase, alongside multi-month budgeting, recurring transactions, loan interest, and reports. Includes 2 years of free software upgrades.

Buy FireBudget See the whole app