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Sudhanvaha

Expense Tracker MCP Server

by Sudhanvaha
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Python
Local

Expense Tracker MCP Server

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server for tracking personal expenses with SQLite database storage. This server integrates with Claude Desktop to provide expense management capabilities through natural language.

Features

  • ✅ Add, update, and delete expenses

  • ✅ List expenses by date range

  • ✅ Summarize expenses by category

  • ✅ Flexible deletion by multiple criteria

  • ✅ Predefined expense categories

  • ✅ SQLite database for persistent storage

  • ✅ Local and remote deployment options

Quick Start Options

Choose the setup method that works best for you:

Option 1: Direct Remote Server (Instant Setup - Claude Pro Only)

⚠️ Requires Claude Pro subscription - Direct URL connections are a Pro feature.

Connect directly to the deployed remote server without any local setup:

  1. Open Claude Desktop configuration file:

    • Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json

    • macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

    • Linux: ~/.config/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

  2. Add this configuration:

{ "mcpServers": { "expense-tracker": { "url": "https://boiling-aqua-trout.fastmcp.app/mcp" } } }

  1. Restart Claude Desktop

  2. Start tracking expenses immediately! 🎉

Note: This remote server is hosted on FastMCP Cloud. Your data is stored on the remote server.

Don't have Claude Pro? Use Option 2 below to connect via a local proxy server!

Option 2: Local Proxy to Remote Server (For Free Users & Customization)

✅ Works with Claude Free plan! Run a local MCP server that proxies requests to the remote server. This is the way to access remote MCP servers if you don't have Claude Pro.

Use cases:

  • Connect to remote servers on Claude Free plan

  • Add custom logging or middleware

  • Run locally while using remote data

  • Extend functionality with additional features

Setup Steps:

  1. Install uv (if not already installed):

Windows (PowerShell):

powershell -c "irm https://astral.sh/uv/install.ps1 | iex"

macOS/Linux:

curl -LsSf https://astral.sh/uv/install.sh | sh

  1. Create a new project:

mkdir expense-tracker-proxy cd expense-tracker-proxy uv init .

  1. Install FastMCP:

uv add fastmcp

  1. Create proxy server (main.py):

from fastmcp import FastMCP mcp = FastMCP.as_proxy( "https://boiling-aqua-trout.fastmcp.app/mcp", name="expense tracker remote proxy server" ) if __name__ == "__main__": mcp.run()

  1. Configure Claude Desktop:

{ "mcpServers": { "expense-tracker-proxy": { "command": "uv", "args": [ "--directory", "C:/Users/YOUR_USERNAME/path/to/expense-tracker-proxy", "run", "main.py" ] } } }

Important: Replace the path with your actual project directory.

  1. Restart Claude Desktop

Benefits of Proxy Approach:

  • Add custom logging or middleware

  • Modify requests/responses before forwarding

  • Run locally but leverage remote infrastructure

  • Easy to extend with additional features

Option 3: Full Local Installation (Complete Control & Privacy)

For those who want full control, privacy, and the ability to modify the core server logic.

Prerequisites

  • Python 3.10 or higher

  • uv package manager

  • Claude Desktop app

Installation

1. Install uv

Windows (PowerShell):

powershell -c "irm https://astral.sh/uv/install.ps1 | iex"

macOS/Linux:

curl -LsSf https://astral.sh/uv/install.sh | sh

2. Clone or Create Project

# Clone this repository git clone https://github.com/Sudhanvaha/expense-tracker-mcp-server.git cd expense-tracker-mcp-server # OR create from scratch mkdir expense-tracker-mcp-server cd expense-tracker-mcp-server uv init .

3. Install Dependencies

# Install required packages uv add fastmcp

4. Create the Server

Copy the full main.py code from this repository into your project.

5. Test the Server

# Run the server uv run main.py

6. Configure Claude Desktop for Local Server

  1. Open Claude Desktop configuration file (locations mentioned above)

  2. Add the MCP server configuration:

{ "mcpServers": { "expense-tracker-local": { "command": "uv", "args": [ "--directory", "C:/Users/YOUR_USERNAME/path/to/expense-tracker-mcp-server", "run", "main.py" ] } } }

Important: Replace the path with your actual project directory path.

  1. Restart Claude Desktop

Usage

Once configured (via any method), you can interact with the expense tracker through Claude using natural language:

Add Expense

"Add an expense: $50 for groceries on 2024-12-14" "Log $25.50 spent on transport today with note 'Uber to office'"

List Expenses

"Show me all expenses from December 1 to December 14, 2024" "List my expenses for last week"

Update Expense

"Update expense ID 5 to $75" "Change the category of expense 3 to 'entertainment'"

Delete Expense

"Delete expense with ID 5" "Remove all food expenses from last week" "Delete expenses in the transport category"

Summarize Expenses

"Summarize my expenses by category for December 2024" "What's my total spending on food this month?"

View Categories

"What expense categories are available?" "Show me the list of categories"

Available Tools

add_expense

Add a new expense to the tracker.

Parameters:

  • date (string): Date in YYYY-MM-DD format

  • amount (float): Expense amount

  • category (string): Expense category

  • subcategory (string, optional): Subcategory

  • note (string, optional): Additional notes

list_expenses

List all expenses within a date range.

Parameters:

  • start_date (string): Start date (YYYY-MM-DD)

  • end_date (string): End date (YYYY-MM-DD)

update_expense

Update an existing expense (only provided fields will be updated).

Parameters:

  • cid (int): Expense ID to update

  • date (string, optional): New date

  • amount (float, optional): New amount

  • category (string, optional): New category

  • subcategory (string, optional): New subcategory

  • note (string, optional): New note

delete_expense

Delete expenses based on various criteria.

Parameters:

  • id (int, optional): Delete by ID

  • date (string, optional): Delete by date

  • category (string, optional): Delete by category

  • subcategory (string, optional): Delete by subcategory

  • amount (float, optional): Delete by amount

  • note (string, optional): Delete by note

  • start_date & end_date (strings, optional): Delete by date range

summarize_expenses

Get expense summaries grouped by category.

Parameters:

  • start_date (string): Start date (YYYY-MM-DD)

  • end_date (string): End date (YYYY-MM-DD)

  • category (string, optional): Filter by specific category

Available Resources

expense://categories

Returns the list of available expense categories in JSON format.

Database Schema

CREATE TABLE expenses ( id INTEGER PRIMARY KEY AUTOINCREMENT, date TEXT NOT NULL, amount REAL NOT NULL, category TEXT NOT NULL, subcategory TEXT DEFAULT '', note TEXT DEFAULT '' );

File Structure

For Full Local Installation:

expense-tracker-mcp-server/ ├── main.py # MCP server code ├── expense.db # SQLite database (auto-created) ├── categories.json # Categories list (auto-created) ├── pyproject.toml # uv project configuration └── README.md # This file

For Proxy Setup:

expense-tracker-proxy/ ├── main.py # Proxy server code (5 lines!) └── pyproject.toml # uv project configuration

Default Categories

The server comes with these default categories:

  • food

  • transport

  • entertainment

  • utilities

  • healthcare

You can modify categories.json to add or remove categories (local installation only).

Deployment Options Comparison

Feature

Direct Remote (Pro)

Local Proxy (Free/Pro)

Full Local

Claude Plan

Pro only

Free & Pro

Free & Pro

Setup Time

2 minutes

5 minutes

15-20 minutes

Privacy

Remote storage

Remote storage

Complete privacy

Customization

None

Middleware only

Full control

Maintenance

Zero

Minimal

Manual updates

Internet Required

Yes

Yes

No

Code Required

No

5 lines

Full codebase

Cost

Pro subscription

Free

Free

Troubleshooting

Server not appearing in Claude Desktop

  1. Check the configuration file path is correct

  2. Ensure the command path points to your project directory (for local/proxy setup)

  3. Verify the remote URL is correct (for direct remote setup)

  4. Restart Claude Desktop completely

  5. Check Claude Desktop logs for errors

Remote Server Issues

If the remote server isn't responding:

  1. Check your internet connection

  2. Verify the URL: https://boiling-aqua-trout.fastmcp.app/mcp

  3. Try removing and re-adding the configuration

  4. Contact me via GitHub issues if the problem persists

Proxy Server Issues

If the proxy isn't working:

  1. Test the proxy server independently: uv run main.py

  2. Check if the remote URL is accessible

  3. Verify your FastMCP installation: uv add fastmcp

  4. Check Claude Desktop configuration paths

Database errors (Local Installation Only)

If you encounter database errors:

# Delete the database to reset rm expense.db # Restart the server to recreate the database uv run main.py

Import errors

# Reinstall dependencies uv sync

Development

Extending the Proxy Server

You can add custom logic to the proxy server:

from fastmcp import FastMCP mcp = FastMCP.as_proxy( "https://boiling-aqua-trout.fastmcp.app/mcp", name="expense tracker remote proxy server" ) # Add custom logging @mcp.tool() def log_expense_activity(): """Log all expense activities""" # Your custom logging logic here pass if __name__ == "__main__": mcp.run()

Modifying the Full Server

To modify the server:

  1. Edit main.py

  2. Test changes: uv run main.py

  3. Restart Claude Desktop to load changes

Deploying Your Own Remote Server

Want to deploy your own version on FastMCP Cloud?

  1. Sign up at FastMCP Cloud

  2. Follow their deployment instructions

  3. Update the URL in your Claude Desktop configuration or proxy code

  4. Share your server URL with others!

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Feel free to submit issues or pull requests.

Roadmap

  • Add budget tracking and alerts

  • Support for multiple currencies

  • Recurring expense templates

  • Export to CSV/Excel

  • Data visualization and charts

  • Multi-user support with authentication

  • Authentication for remote server access

Support

For issues related to:

Acknowledgments

Built with:

⭐ If you find this project helpful, please consider giving it a star on GitHub!

📧 Questions? Open an issue or reach out on LinkedIn

Install Server
A
security – no known vulnerabilities
F
license - not found
A
quality - confirmed to work

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