// MCP TOKEN COST

The Gateway MCP server costs 38,532 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 Gateway MCP server's 271 tool definitions consume 38,532 tokens — 19% of a 200k context window, and 18× the median MCP server (2,142 tokens). A scoped grant exposing only the tools you use cuts that roughly in proportion.

MEASURED FROM SCHEMAS tiktoken o200k_base · rank #39 of 5,402 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 19%

1M WINDOW 3.9%

Corpus context: Gateway ranks #39 of 5,402 measured MCP servers by definition cost. The median is 2,142 tokens, p90 is 11,749, and the heaviest (Ainumbers Mcp Apps) is 161,750 — 81% 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 38,532 tokens go.

Each row is one tool definition as a tools/list entry — name, description and input schema — counted with o200k_base. Average: 142 tokens per tool.

Tool	Category	Tokens	% of server
mortgage	Read	385	1.0%
vault_call_api	Execute	383	1.0%
rent_vs_buy	Read	336	0.9%
coach_opener	Write	312	0.8%
paver	Read	310	0.8%
human_task_post	Financial	303	0.8%
labor_burden	Read	291	0.8%
gen_id_portrait	Execute	276	0.7%
voice_transcribe	Read	273	0.7%
browse_open	Execute	268	0.7%
human_profile_set	Write	264	0.7%
coach_reply	Read	263	0.7%
market_bars	Read	262	0.7%
wishlist	Write	258	0.7%
gen_video	Execute	256	0.7%
budget	Read	250	0.6%
accretion_dilution	Financial	247	0.6%
gen_image	Execute	241	0.6%
concrete	Read	240	0.6%
net_worth	Read	238	0.6%
life_insurance	Read	234	0.6%
coach_profile_review	Read	231	0.6%
invoice_extract	Read	230	0.6%
agent_version_publish	Write	230	0.6%
vault_store	Write	226	0.6%
market_quote	Read	225	0.6%
framing	Read	224	0.6%
password_policy_check	Read	223	0.6%
request_handoff	Execute	222	0.6%
profit_loss	Read	219	0.6%
percentage	Read	216	0.6%
rrule_expand	Read	215	0.6%
vault_login	Execute	215	0.6%
gen_avatar_video	Execute	213	0.6%
coach_mission	Execute	211	0.5%
mortgage_points_breakeven	Read	211	0.5%
bid_estimator	Write	210	0.5%
tts_voice	Read	210	0.5%
geometry	Read	208	0.5%
register_agent	Write	207	0.5%
body_fat	Read	204	0.5%
submit_errand	Execute	202	0.5%
date_add	Read	201	0.5%
search	Read	198	0.5%
enterprise_value	Read	194	0.5%
insulation	Read	191	0.5%
regex_tester	Execute	191	0.5%
retirement	Read	189	0.5%
pomodoro_planner	Read	188	0.5%
college_savings	Read	187	0.5%
browse	Execute	186	0.5%
human_browse	Read	186	0.5%
token_cost	Read	186	0.5%
fire_number	Read	182	0.5%
check_inbox	Read	179	0.5%
post_bluesky	Write	179	0.5%
board_feet	Read	175	0.5%
paint	Read	175	0.5%
capture_lead	Write	174	0.5%
create_watch	Write	174	0.5%
store_artifact	Write	173	0.4%
options_chain	Read	172	0.4%
hourly_rate	Read	171	0.4%
tdee	Read	170	0.4%
financial_ratios	Read	167	0.4%
saas_metrics	Read	167	0.4%
invoice_generator	Read	166	0.4%
web_read	Read	166	0.4%
forget_memories	Destructive	165	0.4%
floor_joist	Read	165	0.4%
semver_compare	Read	165	0.4%
claim_donation	Financial	164	0.4%
asphalt	Read	163	0.4%
post_telegram	Write	163	0.4%
markup	Read	162	0.4%
store_memory	Write	161	0.4%
change_order	Read	160	0.4%
tvm	Execute	160	0.4%
investment_fee	Read	159	0.4%
cac_ltv	Read	158	0.4%
normal_prob	Read	158	0.4%
discover_tools	Read	157	0.4%
ab_test	Read	157	0.4%
rebar	Read	157	0.4%
search_memory	Read	157	0.4%
post_discord	Write	157	0.4%
savings_goal	Read	156	0.4%
modular	Read	153	0.4%
mulch	Read	153	0.4%
color_palette	Read	152	0.4%
haversine	Read	152	0.4%
fertilizer	Read	151	0.4%
query_corpus	Read	151	0.4%
send_message	Write	151	0.4%
text_diff	Read	150	0.4%
text_truncate_ellipsis	Destructive	149	0.4%
text_wordwrap	Read	149	0.4%
password_entropy	Read	148	0.4%
confirm_delivery	Write	147	0.4%
search_memory_facts	Read	147	0.4%
confidence_interval	Read	146	0.4%
raised_bed	Read	146	0.4%
research	Read	146	0.4%
safe_note	Read	146	0.4%
business_days	Read	146	0.4%
pet_calorie	Read	145	0.4%
calories_burned	Read	144	0.4%
compound_interest	Read	144	0.4%
bond_price	Read	143	0.4%
book_appointment	Write	143	0.4%
csv_json_convert	Write	143	0.4%
persona_set	Write	143	0.4%
whitespace_normalize	Read	142	0.4%
effective_rate	Read	141	0.4%
xml_json_convert	Write	141	0.4%
annuity	Read	140	0.4%
file_size_humanize	Read	139	0.4%
ingest_corpus	Write	139	0.4%
json_minify_prettify	Read	137	0.4%
loan	Read	137	0.4%
bmi	Read	136	0.4%
donate	Financial	136	0.4%
lookup_faq	Read	136	0.4%
semver_satisfies_range	Read	136	0.4%
summarize_memory	Read	136	0.4%
share_memory	Write	135	0.4%
data_transfer	Read	135	0.4%
depreciation	Read	135	0.4%
read_memory_changes	Read	135	0.4%
one_rep_max	Read	135	0.4%
grass_seed	Read	134	0.3%
breakeven	Read	133	0.3%
mac_address_format	Read	133	0.3%
bitwise	Execute	131	0.3%
triangle_solver	Read	131	0.3%
dice_notation_roll	Execute	130	0.3%
slug_generate	Read	130	0.3%
human_task_list	Read	129	0.3%
subnet	Read	129	0.3%
yaml_json_convert	Write	129	0.3%
agent_rollback	Read	128	0.3%
iso8601_duration_parse	Read	126	0.3%
bayes	Read	126	0.3%
query_string_convert	Read	126	0.3%
runway	Read	126	0.3%
amortization_schedule	Read	126	0.3%
set_focus	Write	126	0.3%
list_leads	Read	125	0.3%
indent_convert	Write	125	0.3%
uuid5	Read	124	0.3%
routing_number	Read	123	0.3%
retry_backoff	Execute	122	0.3%
bill_of_materials	Read	121	0.3%
margin	Read	121	0.3%
nato_phonetic_spell	Read	120	0.3%
garden_planting_calendar	Read	119	0.3%
json_pointer_extract	Read	119	0.3%
tip_split	Read	119	0.3%
browse_wait_for	Execute	118	0.3%
encoding	Read	118	0.3%
invoice_fraud_check	Read	118	0.3%
json_schema_validate	Read	118	0.3%
color_convert	Read	118	0.3%
draw_schedule	Write	118	0.3%
url_parse_normalize	Read	117	0.3%
invoice_match	Read	117	0.3%
hash_text	Read	116	0.3%
cron_next	Read	115	0.3%
isbn_check_digit	Read	115	0.3%
npv	Read	115	0.3%
browse_evaluate	Execute	114	0.3%
age_calculator	Read	113	0.3%
base_convert	Read	113	0.3%
checksum	Read	112	0.3%
ip_in_cidr	Read	112	0.3%
regression	Read	112	0.3%
dilution	Financial	111	0.3%
mime_from_extension	Read	111	0.3%
rate_limit	Read	111	0.3%
color_contrast	Read	109	0.3%
git_short_sha	Read	109	0.3%
heart_rate_zones	Read	109	0.3%
roi	Read	109	0.3%
agent_version_list	Read	108	0.3%
recall_memories	Read	108	0.3%
score_lead	Read	108	0.3%
timezone_convert	Read	108	0.3%
unit_convert	Read	108	0.3%
browse_solve_challenge	Execute	107	0.3%
phonetic_encode	Read	107	0.3%
browse_fill	Execute	106	0.3%
identity	Read	106	0.3%
vault_get	Read	106	0.3%
browse_type	Execute	105	0.3%
sales_tax	Read	105	0.3%
jwt_decode	Read	104	0.3%
percentile	Read	104	0.3%
ratio	Read	104	0.3%
vin_check_digit	Read	104	0.3%
hmac	Execute	103	0.3%
market_news	Read	103	0.3%
json_diff	Read	102	0.3%
browse_discover	Read	102	0.3%
port_range_parse	Read	101	0.3%
csv_profile	Read	101	0.3%
roman	Read	101	0.3%
text_case	Read	101	0.3%
morse_code_convert	Write	101	0.3%
arena_call	Execute	100	0.3%
combinatorics	Read	100	0.3%
luhn	Read	100	0.3%
number_to_words	Read	99	0.3%
simple_interest	Read	99	0.3%
resume	Read	99	0.3%
cagr	Read	98	0.3%
ideal_weight	Read	97	0.3%
line_ending_convert	Write	97	0.3%
card_brand_detect	Read	96	0.2%
matrix	Execute	96	0.2%
rule_of_72	Read	96	0.2%
web_search	Read	96	0.2%
browse_select	Execute	95	0.2%
browse_extract	Read	94	0.2%
duration_breakdown	Read	94	0.2%
browse_snapshot	Read	92	0.2%
epoch_convert	Read	92	0.2%
browse_navigate	Execute	91	0.2%
quadratic	Read	91	0.2%
tax_bracket	Read	90	0.2%
csv_markdown_table	Read	88	0.2%
date_diff	Read	88	0.2%
read_message	Read	88	0.2%
web_discover	Read	88	0.2%
crc32	Read	87	0.2%
expected_value	Read	87	0.2%
gcd_lcm	Read	87	0.2%
number_to_ordinal	Read	87	0.2%
statistics	Read	85	0.2%
unit_price_compare	Read	85	0.2%
irr	Read	82	0.2%
sig_figs	Read	82	0.2%
archive_message	Write	82	0.2%
browse_links	Read	81	0.2%
http_status_explain	Read	81	0.2%
toml_to_json	Read	80	0.2%
ansi_strip	Read	79	0.2%
browse_screenshot	Read	79	0.2%
browse_read	Read	78	0.2%
persona_get	Read	78	0.2%
browse_click	Execute	77	0.2%
markdown_to_html	Execute	77	0.2%
memory_stats	Read	76	0.2%
mark_message	Write	76	0.2%
resolve_focus	Write	76	0.2%
uptime_sla	Read	75	0.2%
weighted_average	Read	75	0.2%
levenshtein	Write	75	0.2%
html_to_markdown	Write	74	0.2%
get_tool_schema	Read	72	0.2%
prime_factors	Read	72	0.2%
vault_delete	Destructive	71	0.2%
cancel_watch	Destructive	70	0.2%
arena_games	Write	68	0.2%
browse_back	Execute	65	0.2%
browse_close	Execute	64	0.2%
text_stats	Read	64	0.2%
vault_list	Read	64	0.2%
list_memory	Read	62	0.2%
list_watches	Read	60	0.2%
market_snapshot	Read	60	0.2%
check_errand	Read	51	0.1%

// CUT THE COST

Your agent uses a handful of these tools. It pays for all 271.

You don't need all 271 of those definitions in the window. PolicyLayer is an MCP gateway that sits in front of Gateway: 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 271 tools (no gateway)	38,532 tokens	—
3 granted tools	~427 tokens	−99%
5 granted tools	~711 tokens	−98%
10 granted tools	~1,422 tokens	−96%

The risk dividend: 9 of these 271 tools are critical-risk (destructive or financial) and cost 1,416 tokens (4% 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 Gateway — 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 GATEWAY TOKEN COST →

Instant setup, no code required.

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

//FAQ

Gateway token-cost questions.

How many tokens does the Gateway MCP server use?+

Its 271 tool definitions total 38,532 tokens — 19% 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 Gateway 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 Gateway's token usage?+

Expose fewer tools. A PolicyLayer grant scopes Gateway 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 427 tokens, a 99% 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.

01

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.

02

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.

03

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 23-07-2026 from the PolicyLayer scan database over all 271 catalogued Gateway tools. Counts refresh with every site build.