// MCP TOKEN COST

The Gluecron MCP server costs 6,190 tokens before the first call.

Every request your agent makes carries every tool definition this server exposes — context your code, documents and conversation can't use, mostly for tools the agent never calls. You don't need them all in the window, and you don't have to pay for them.

QUICK ANSWER The Gluecron MCP server's 60 tool definitions consume 6,190 tokens — 3.1% of a 200k context window, and 3.3× the median MCP server (1,879 tokens). A scoped grant exposing only the tools you use cuts that roughly in proportion.

MEASURED FROM SCHEMAS tiktoken o200k_base · rank #2354 of 9,299 measured servers · refreshed every build Method →

// CONTEXT WINDOW SHARE

What that costs before your agent starts working.

Tool definitions are overhead: they occupy context on every request and compete with your code, documents and conversation history for the same window.

200K WINDOW 3.1%

1M WINDOW 0.6%

Corpus context: Gluecron ranks #2354 of 9,299 measured MCP servers by definition cost. The median is 1,879 tokens, p90 is 13,073, and the heaviest (Ainumbers Mcp Apps) is 342,008 — 171% of a 200k window on its own. New to this? See MCP token cost and context window in the glossary.

Token cost is one axis. See the risk picture across your whole stack →

// PER-TOOL BREAKDOWN

Where the 6,190 tokens go.

Each row is one tool definition as a tools/list entry — name, description and input schema — counted with o200k_base. Average: 103 tokens per tool.

Tool	Category	Tokens	% of server
gluecron_write_file	Write	181	2.9%
gluecron_merge_pr	Execute	177	2.9%
gluecron_atomic_multi_file_commit	Write	176	2.8%
gluecron_create_pr	Write	158	2.6%
gluecron_repo_read_file	Read	148	2.4%
gluecron_propose_migration	Write	135	2.2%
gluecron_trigger_workflow	Execute	130	2.1%
gluecron_refactor_across_repos	Execute	129	2.1%
gluecron_read_file	Read	128	2.1%
gluecron_create_agent_session	Write	127	2.1%
gluecron_update_repo	Write	125	2.0%
gluecron_generate_tests	Execute	124	2.0%
gluecron_delete_file	Destructive	123	2.0%
gluecron_acquire_lease	Write	123	2.0%
gluecron_voice_to_pr	Write	118	1.9%
gluecron_create_branch	Write	117	1.9%
gluecron_ship_spec	Write	113	1.8%
gluecron_list_tree	Read	113	1.8%
gluecron_assign_issue	Write	113	1.8%
gluecron_open_draft_pr	Write	113	1.8%
gluecron_create_issue	Write	110	1.8%
gluecron_repo_health	Read	109	1.8%
gluecron_chat_with_repo	Write	108	1.7%
gluecron_list_prs	Read	107	1.7%
gluecron_generate_pr_description	Write	107	1.7%
gluecron_get_pr	Read	104	1.7%
gluecron_comment_issue	Write	104	1.7%
gluecron_comment_pr	Write	104	1.7%
gluecron_request_changes	Write	104	1.7%
gluecron_search_repos	Read	103	1.7%
gluecron_generate_release_notes	Read	102	1.6%
gluecron_search_issues	Read	101	1.6%
gluecron_ai_cost_summary	Read	101	1.6%
gluecron_label_issue	Write	99	1.6%
gluecron_close_issue	Write	98	1.6%
gluecron_search_prs	Read	90	1.5%
gluecron_close_pr	Write	90	1.5%
gluecron_reopen_issue	Write	90	1.5%
gluecron_repo_list_issues	Read	89	1.4%
gluecron_repo_search	Read	89	1.4%
gluecron_fork_repo	Write	88	1.4%
gluecron_semantic_search	Read	86	1.4%
gluecron_repo_explain_codebase	Read	85	1.4%
gluecron_delete_repo	Destructive	84	1.4%
gluecron_unlabel_issue	Write	84	1.4%
gluecron_clone_url	Read	83	1.3%
gluecron_provision_pr_sandbox	Execute	81	1.3%
gluecron_pr_status_summary	Read	80	1.3%
gluecron_get_workflow_logs	Read	79	1.3%
gluecron_get_commit	Read	78	1.3%
gluecron_get_workflow_run	Read	78	1.3%
gluecron_generate_commit_message	Read	78	1.3%
gluecron_get_preview_url	Read	77	1.2%
gluecron_find_symbol	Read	76	1.2%
gluecron_explain_repo	Read	75	1.2%
gluecron_propose_doc_update	Write	73	1.2%
gluecron_cancel_workflow_run	Execute	68	1.1%
gluecron_chat_continue	Write	58	0.9%
gluecron_release_lease	Write	50	0.8%
gluecron_get_agent_budget	Read	49	0.8%

// CUT THE COST

Your agent uses a handful of these tools. It pays for all 60.

You don't need all 60 of those definitions in the window. PolicyLayer is an MCP gateway that sits in front of Gluecron: only the tools you grant are exposed to the agent, the rest never load. A smaller window means a sharper agent — less noise when it picks a tool — and every request costs less:

Grant scope	Definition cost	Reduction
All 60 tools (no gateway)	6,190 tokens	—
3 granted tools	~310 tokens	−95%
5 granted tools	~516 tokens	−92%
10 granted tools	~1,032 tokens	−83%

The risk dividend: 2 of these 60 tools are critical-risk (destructive or financial) and cost 207 tokens (3% of the definition load). Block them — the recommended starter policy — and you reclaim that context before tuning anything else.

Create a free account and register Gluecron — nothing to install.
Grant only the tools you use — ungranted definitions never enter the context window.
Point your MCP client (Claude, Cursor, anything) at your gateway URL.

CUT GLUECRON TOKEN COST →

Instant setup, no code required.

Model your own stack in the token-cost calculator, or see the Gluecron policy for what a sensible grant looks like.

//FAQ

Gluecron token-cost questions.

How many tokens does the Gluecron MCP server use?+

Its 60 tool definitions total 6,190 tokens — 3.1% of a 200k context window — measured with tiktoken o200k_base over the serialised tools/list payload. Exact counts vary slightly by client and model.

Why does Gluecron consume tokens before I send a message?+

MCP clients load every connected server's tool definitions — name, description, and input schema — into the model's context so it knows what it can call. That payload is charged against your context window on every request, whether or not a tool is used.

How do I reduce Gluecron's token usage?+

Expose fewer tools. A PolicyLayer grant scopes Gluecron to only the tools you allow — ungranted definitions are filtered out of the tool list, so they never enter the context window. A grant of 3 typical tools costs roughly 310 tokens, a 95% reduction.

Does deferred tool loading fix this?+

Partially, in some clients. Claude Code defers MCP tool schemas behind a tool-search step by default, and VS Code has experimental grouping — but you still pay tokens per search and reload, and Cursor, Windsurf and Gemini CLI load definitions upfront. Reducing the exposed tool set cuts the cost in every client.

// METHOD & REVIEW

How these numbers were measured.

Serialisation

Each tool is serialised as a tools/list entry — name, description, input schema — from the schemas in the PolicyLayer scan database. Clients differ slightly in framing, so treat counts as close estimates.

Tokeniser

tiktoken o200k_base (GPT-4o/o-series). Anthropic's current tokeniser isn't published, so Claude's exact counts will differ; for English text and JSON schemas the totals are close enough to treat these as estimates.

Deferred loading

Some clients now defer schema loading (Claude Code's tool search; VS Code experimental grouping). You still pay per search and reload — and Cursor, Windsurf and Gemini CLI load everything upfront.

Computed 20-09-2026 from the PolicyLayer scan database over all 60 catalogued Gluecron tools. Counts refresh with every site build.

Expose only the tools you use — the rest never enter your context.

A PolicyLayer grant scopes Gluecron to the tools you actually allow. Ungranted definitions never load, and every call that does run is checked against policy first.

CUT GLUECRON TOKEN COST →

Instant setup, no code required.

46,500+ MCP servers and 515,000+ tools scanned and risk-classified.