// MCP TOKEN COST

The Ibmcloud MCP server costs 4,844 tokens before the first call.

Connect Ibmcloud and its 88 tool definitions are loaded into the model's context on every request — 2.4% of a 200k window spent before your agent does anything.

QUICK ANSWER The Ibmcloud MCP server's tool definitions consume 4,844 tokens — 2.5× the median MCP server (1,905 tokens). A scoped grant exposing only the tools you use cuts that roughly in proportion.

MEASURED FROM SCHEMAS 88 tools · 4,844 tokens · 2.4% of 200k · 0.5% 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 2.4%

1M WINDOW 0.5%

Corpus context: Ibmcloud ranks #1042 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 4,844 tokens go.

Each row is one tool definition as a tools/list entry — name, description and input schema — counted with o200k_base. Average: 55 tokens per tool.

Tool	Category	Tokens	% of server
ibmcloud_ks_cluster_create	Write	141	2.9%
ibmcloud_resource_service_instance_create	Write	138	2.8%
ibmcloud_cf_push	Write	132	2.7%
ibmcloud_iam_access_group_policy_create	Write	117	2.4%
ibmcloud_resource_service_key_create	Write	98	2.0%
ibmcloud_cf_scale	Execute	97	2.0%
ibmcloud_iam_service_api_key_create	Write	97	2.0%
ibmcloud_ks_worker_pool_create	Write	94	1.9%
ibmcloud_resource_service_instance_update	Write	91	1.9%
ibmcloud_cf_create_service	Write	90	1.9%
ibmcloud_target	Write	89	1.8%
ibmcloud_ks_worker_pool_resize	Write	82	1.7%
ibmcloud_cf_set_env	Write	80	1.7%
ibmcloud_login	Write	80	1.7%
ibmcloud_cf_bind_service	Read	77	1.6%
ibmcloud_iam_api_key_create	Write	75	1.5%
ibmcloud_cf_delete	Destructive	73	1.5%
ibmcloud_ks_flavors	Read	68	1.4%
ibmcloud_cf_unbind_service	Read	66	1.4%
ibmcloud_iam_access_group_user_add	Write	65	1.3%
ibmcloud_iam_user_invite	Write	64	1.3%
ibmcloud_resource_tag_attach	Write	64	1.3%
ibmcloud_billing_resource_group_usage	Read	63	1.3%
ibmcloud_cf_logs	Read	62	1.3%
ibmcloud_resource_service_instance_delete	Destructive	61	1.3%
ibmcloud_billing_org_usage	Read	61	1.3%
ibmcloud_ks_cluster_config	Write	61	1.3%
ibmcloud_iam_api_key_delete	Destructive	60	1.2%
ibmcloud_iam_service_id_delete	Destructive	60	1.2%
ibmcloud_resource_service_key_delete	Destructive	59	1.2%
ibmcloud_billing_resource_instances_usage	Read	59	1.2%
ibmcloud_ks_cluster_delete	Destructive	58	1.2%
ibmcloud_cr_image_rm	Destructive	57	1.2%
ibmcloud_cr_namespace_add	Write	57	1.2%
ibmcloud_iam_access_group_create	Write	57	1.2%
ibmcloud_iam_service_id_create	Write	57	1.2%
ibmcloud_plugin_install	Write	56	1.2%
ibmcloud_resource_service_instances	Read	55	1.1%
ibmcloud_iam_service_api_keys	Read	53	1.1%
ibmcloud_cr_images	Read	52	1.1%
ibmcloud_ks_zones	Read	52	1.1%
ibmcloud_iam_access_group_policies	Read	49	1.0%
ibmcloud_ks_worker_pools	Read	49	1.0%
ibmcloud_iam_access_group_users	Read	48	1.0%
ibmcloud_resource_service_instance	Read	48	1.0%
ibmcloud_iam_service_id	Read	47	1.0%
ibmcloud_ks_workers	Read	47	1.0%
ibmcloud_catalog_service_plans	Read	46	0.9%
ibmcloud_ks_clusters	Read	46	0.9%
ibmcloud_resource_search	Read	46	0.9%
ibmcloud_resource_service_key	Read	46	0.9%
ibmcloud_billing_account_usage	Read	45	0.9%
ibmcloud_iam_access_group	Read	45	0.9%
ibmcloud_cf_restart	Execute	44	0.9%
ibmcloud_cf_start	Execute	44	0.9%
ibmcloud_cf_stop	Execute	44	0.9%
ibmcloud_catalog_service	Read	44	0.9%
ibmcloud_cf_app	Read	44	0.9%
ibmcloud_cf_env	Read	44	0.9%
ibmcloud_ks_cluster	Read	44	0.9%
ibmcloud_resource_group_create	Write	44	0.9%
ibmcloud_catalog_search	Read	42	0.9%
ibmcloud_cf_marketplace	Read	41	0.8%
ibmcloud_resource_service_keys	Read	40	0.8%
ibmcloud_api	Write	40	0.8%
ibmcloud_iam_roles	Read	39	0.8%
ibmcloud_resource_tags	Read	39	0.8%
ibmcloud_cf_spaces	Read	38	0.8%
ibmcloud_cf_orgs	Read	30	0.6%
ibmcloud_cr_quota	Read	30	0.6%
ibmcloud_iam_users	Read	30	0.6%
ibmcloud_plugin_repo_plugins	Read	30	0.6%
ibmcloud_cf_apps	Read	29	0.6%
ibmcloud_cf_routes	Read	29	0.6%
ibmcloud_cf_services	Read	29	0.6%
ibmcloud_cr_namespaces	Read	29	0.6%
ibmcloud_iam_access_groups	Read	29	0.6%
ibmcloud_iam_api_keys	Read	29	0.6%
ibmcloud_iam_service_ids	Read	29	0.6%
ibmcloud_ks_versions	Read	29	0.6%
ibmcloud_account_list	Read	28	0.6%
ibmcloud_account_show	Read	28	0.6%
ibmcloud_plugin_list	Read	28	0.6%
ibmcloud_regions	Read	28	0.6%
ibmcloud_version	Read	28	0.6%
ibmcloud_config_list	Read	27	0.6%
ibmcloud_logout	Read	27	0.6%
ibmcloud_resource_groups	Read	27	0.6%

// SCOPED GRANT

Most agents use a handful of these tools. They pay for all 88.

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 (55 tokens each).

Grant scope	Definition cost	Reduction
All 88 tools (no gateway)	4,844 tokens	—
3 granted tools	~165 tokens	−97%
5 granted tools	~275 tokens	−94%
10 granted tools	~550 tokens	−89%

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

//FAQ

Ibmcloud token-cost questions.

How many tokens does the Ibmcloud MCP server use?+

Its 88 tool definitions total 4,844 tokens — 2.4% 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 Ibmcloud 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 Ibmcloud's token usage?+

Expose fewer tools. A PolicyLayer grant scopes Ibmcloud 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 165 tokens, a 97% 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 88 catalogued Ibmcloud tools. Counts refresh with every site build.

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

A PolicyLayer grant scopes Ibmcloud 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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