// MCP TOKEN COST

The Argo MCP server costs 10,960 tokens before the first call.

Connect Argo and its 61 tool definitions are loaded into the model's context on every request — 5.5% of a 200k window spent before your agent does anything.

QUICK ANSWER The Argo Mcp MCP server's tool definitions consume 10,960 tokens — 5.8× the median MCP server (1,905 tokens). A scoped grant exposing only the tools you use cuts that roughly in proportion.

MEASURED FROM SCHEMAS 61 tools · 10,960 tokens · 5.5% of 200k · 1.1% of 1M Method →

// CONTEXT WINDOW SHARE

What that buys 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 5.5%

1M WINDOW 1.1%

Corpus context: Argo ranks #157 of 3,213 measured MCP servers by definition cost. The median is 1,905 tokens, p90 is 7,952, and the heaviest (Fusionauth) is 183,337 — 92% of a 200k window on its own.

// PER-TOOL BREAKDOWN

Where the 10,960 tokens go.

Each row is one tool definition as a tools/list entry — name, description and input schema — counted with o200k_base. Average: 180 tokens per tool.

Tool	Category	Tokens	% of server
create_quest_mnemons	Write	722	6.6%
update_quest_mnemons	Write	662	6.0%
update_mnemons_content	Write	557	5.1%
create_npc_mnemons	Write	419	3.8%
create_player_mnemons	Write	373	3.4%
create_journal_mnemons	Write	314	2.9%
create_mnemon_relationship	Write	313	2.9%
create_session_summary_mnemons	Write	306	2.8%
update_npc_mnemons	Write	300	2.7%
create_location_mnemons	Write	264	2.4%
update_journal_mnemons	Write	260	2.4%
update_session_summary_mnemons	Write	252	2.3%
create_custom_mnemons	Write	246	2.2%
create_lore_mnemons	Write	243	2.2%
create_archive_mnemons	Write	242	2.2%
create_session	Write	241	2.2%
create_campaign	Write	237	2.2%
list_mnemons	Read	218	2.0%
update_player_mnemons	Write	215	2.0%
add_guild_calendar_event	Write	204	1.9%
update_lore_mnemons	Write	186	1.7%
update_archive_mnemons	Write	185	1.7%
update_campaign	Write	184	1.7%
update_custom_mnemons	Write	180	1.6%
update_location_mnemons	Write	178	1.6%
list_campaigns	Read	153	1.4%
forum_create_topic	Write	150	1.4%
update_session	Write	150	1.4%
set_guild_member_role	Write	145	1.3%
add_co_gm	Write	141	1.3%
invite_user_by_email	Write	137	1.3%
list_guilds	Read	126	1.1%
list_mnemon_relationships	Read	126	1.1%
add_campaign_to_guild	Write	124	1.1%
list_sessions	Read	123	1.1%
forum_search	Read	117	1.1%
get_mnemon	Read	112	1.0%
remove_co_gm	Destructive	108	1.0%
forum_list_topics	Read	108	1.0%
describe_mnemon_types	Read	103	0.9%
remove_guild_member	Destructive	101	0.9%
invite_guild_member	Write	101	0.9%
get_session	Read	91	0.8%
forum_reply	Write	91	0.8%
get_campaign	Read	87	0.8%
list_guild_members	Read	84	0.8%
delete_mnemon_relationship	Destructive	80	0.7%
get_guild	Read	80	0.7%
accept_friend_request	Write	79	0.7%
reject_friend_request	Write	79	0.7%
send_friend_request	Write	79	0.7%
list_co_gms	Read	78	0.7%
cancel_friend_request	Destructive	77	0.7%
forum_read_topic	Read	75	0.7%
forum_list_categories	Read	74	0.7%
forum_get_notifications	Read	51	0.5%
forum_get_user_posts	Read	48	0.4%
forum_get_latest_topics	Read	47	0.4%
list_sent_friend_requests	Read	46	0.4%
list_received_friend_requests	Read	45	0.4%
list_friends	Read	43	0.4%

// SCOPED GRANT

Most agents use a handful of these tools. They pay for all 61.

A PolicyLayer grant exposes only the tools you allow — ungranted definitions are filtered out of the tool list, so they never enter the context window. Estimates below assume typical-weight tools (180 tokens each).

Grant scope	Definition cost	Reduction
All 61 tools (no gateway)	10,960 tokens	—
3 granted tools	~539 tokens	−95%
5 granted tools	~898 tokens	−92%
10 granted tools	~1,797 tokens	−84%

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

//FAQ

Argo Mcp token-cost questions.

How many tokens does the Argo MCP server use?+

Its 61 tool definitions total 10,960 tokens — 5.5% 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 Argo Mcp 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 Argo Mcp's token usage?+

Expose fewer tools. A PolicyLayer grant scopes Argo Mcp 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 539 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 07-06-2026 from the PolicyLayer scan database over all 61 catalogued Argo Mcp tools. Counts refresh with every site build.

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

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

SCOPE YOUR GRANT →

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