Your First Tool

This guide walks you through using your first Universal Crypto MCP tool.

Prerequisites

• Installation complete
• Claude Desktop, Cursor, or another MCP-compatible client

Step 1: Start the Server

Make sure the MCP server is configured in your client. For Claude Desktop:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "universal-crypto": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["@nirholas/universal-crypto-mcp"]
    }
  }
}

Restart Claude Desktop after updating the config.

Step 2: Check Available Tools

Ask Claude to list available tools:

"What crypto tools do you have available?"

Claude will show you the 380+ tools organized by category:

• Market Data
• Trading
• DeFi
• Wallets
• Payments
• And more...

Step 3: Get a Price

Let's start with a simple price check:

"What's the current price of Bitcoin?"

Claude will use the get_price tool to fetch real-time data:

🪙 Bitcoin (BTC)
💰 Price: \$67,234.56
📈 24h Change: +2.3%
📊 Market Cap: \$1.32T
💹 Volume: \$28.5B

Step 4: Check Trending Coins

"What coins are trending right now?"

Claude will use the get_trending tool:

🔥 Trending Coins

1. PEPE - \$0.00001234 (+45%)
2. WIF - \$2.34 (+23%)
3. BONK - \$0.00003456 (+18%)
...

Step 5: Portfolio Check (with wallet)

If you've configured a wallet, check your portfolio:

"Show my portfolio across all chains"

Claude will scan your wallet across supported chains:

📊 Portfolio Summary

Ethereum:
  • 0.5 ETH (\$1,234.56)
  • 1,000 USDC (\$1,000.00)

Arbitrum:
  • 0.1 ETH (\$246.91)
  • 500 USDC (\$500.00)

Total: \$2,981.47

Step 6: Token Security Check

Before buying any token, check its safety:

"Is this token safe: 0x1234...?"

Claude will use security tools:

🛡️ Token Security Report

✅ Not a honeypot
✅ Liquidity locked
✅ Contract verified
⚠️ Top 10 holders own 45%

Risk Score: MEDIUM

Common Use Cases

Price Alerts

"Set an alert when Bitcoin goes above $70,000"

DEX Swaps

"Swap 0.1 ETH for USDC on Uniswap"

Lending Positions

"Check my Aave position on Ethereum"

Gas Prices

"What's the current gas price on Ethereum?"

Bridge Quotes

"Get a quote to bridge 100 USDC from Ethereum to Arbitrum"

Tools by Category

Market Data Tools

Tool	Description
get_price	Get current price
get_trending	Get trending coins
get_market_cap	Get market cap data
get_ohlcv	Get OHLCV candles
get_news	Get crypto news

Wallet Tools

Tool	Description
get_balance	Get wallet balance
get_portfolio	Multi-chain portfolio
get_nfts	Get NFT holdings
get_history	Transaction history

DeFi Tools

Tool	Description
get_swap_quote	Get swap quote
execute_swap	Execute a swap
get_lending_position	Check lending
deposit_lending	Deposit to lending

Security Tools

Tool	Description
check_token	Token security
check_honeypot	Honeypot detection
check_contract	Contract analysis
check_rug_pull	Rug pull detection

Tips

Be Specific

The more specific your request, the better:

✅ "Get the price of PEPE on Ethereum"
❌ "What's pepe worth"

Use Chain Names

Specify the chain when relevant:

"Check my balance on Arbitrum" "Swap USDC for ETH on Base"

Confirm Transactions

For any transaction, Claude will ask for confirmation:

⚠️ Confirm Transaction

Action: Swap 100 USDC → ETH
Expected Output: 0.0412 ETH
Gas Estimate: \$2.34
Slippage: 0.5%

Proceed? (yes/no)

Troubleshooting

"Tool not found"

Restart your MCP client after configuration changes.

"API key required"

Some tools require API keys. See Configuration.

"Wallet not connected"

Set up your wallet with PRIVATE_KEY or MNEMONIC environment variable.

Next Steps

• Deployment - Deploy to production
• Package Overview - Explore all packages
• x402 Payments - Set up AI payments