# actual_categories_get

List all budget categories organized by category groups. Categories are spending/income buckets (e.g., Groceries, Rent, Salary) used for budgeting and transaction categorization. Returns both grouped view and flat list with category IDs, names, and group assignments.

Agent View of the PolicyLayer registry record for `actual_categories_get`. HTML page: https://policylayer.com/tools/actual/actual-categories-get

## Facts

- Tool: `actual_categories_get`
- Server: Actual (`actual-mcp-server`) — https://policylayer.com/tools/actual.md
- Install: `npx -y actual-mcp-server`
- Homepage: git+https://github.com/agigante80/actual-mcp-server.git
- Risk category: Read (Low risk)
- Registry record: grade F, identity unverified
- Server rate-limited: no
- Parameters: 0
- Recommended policy verdict: Allowed

## Example call (MCP tools/call, JSON-RPC 2.0)

```json
{
  "jsonrpc": "2.0",
  "id": 1,
  "method": "tools/call",
  "params": {
    "name": "actual_categories_get",
    "arguments": {}
  }
}
```

## Why actual_categories_get is rated Low

This tool queries and returns budget category metadata without creating, modifying, deleting, or executing operations. It is a straightforward data retrieval operation with no blast radius if called by an AI agent.

From the tool's own definition: "Tool name contains 'get' and description states 'List all budget categories' and 'Returns... category IDs, names, and group assignments' — purely retrieving data with no modification or side effects."

## Use case

AI agents call actual_categories_get to retrieve information from Actual without modifying anything. It is typically the context-gathering step in research, monitoring, and reporting workflows, before the agent takes action elsewhere.

## Recommended policy (PolicyLayer)

Verdict: **Allowed**. Enforced by the PolicyLayer MCP gateway (https://policylayer.com/mcp-gateway) before a call reaches Actual:

```json
{
  "version": "1",
  "default": "deny",
  "tools": {
    "actual_categories_get": {}
  }
}
```

## Other tools on Actual (63)

- `actual_accounts_delete` — Destructive — https://policylayer.com/tools/actual/actual-accounts-delete.md
- `actual_categories_delete` — Destructive — https://policylayer.com/tools/actual/actual-categories-delete.md
- `actual_category_groups_delete` — Destructive — https://policylayer.com/tools/actual/actual-category-groups-delete.md
- `actual_payees_delete` — Destructive — https://policylayer.com/tools/actual/actual-payees-delete.md
- `actual_rules_delete` — Destructive — https://policylayer.com/tools/actual/actual-rules-delete.md
- `actual_schedules_delete` — Destructive — https://policylayer.com/tools/actual/actual-schedules-delete.md
- `actual_tags_delete` — Destructive — https://policylayer.com/tools/actual/actual-tags-delete.md
- `actual_transactions_delete` — Destructive — https://policylayer.com/tools/actual/actual-transactions-delete.md
- `actual_bank_sync` — Execute — https://policylayer.com/tools/actual/actual-bank-sync.md
- `actual_query_run` — Execute — https://policylayer.com/tools/actual/actual-query-run.md
- `actual_session_close` — Other — https://policylayer.com/tools/actual/actual-session-close.md
- `actual_accounts_list` — Read — https://policylayer.com/tools/actual/actual-accounts-list.md
- `actual_budgets_get_all` — Read — https://policylayer.com/tools/actual/actual-budgets-get-all.md
- `actual_budgets_getMonth` — Read — https://policylayer.com/tools/actual/actual-budgets-getmonth.md
- `actual_budgets_getMonths` — Read — https://policylayer.com/tools/actual/actual-budgets-getmonths.md
- `actual_budgets_list_available` — Read — https://policylayer.com/tools/actual/actual-budgets-list-available.md
- `actual_category_groups_get` — Read — https://policylayer.com/tools/actual/actual-category-groups-get.md
- `actual_entities_search` — Read — https://policylayer.com/tools/actual/actual-entities-search.md
- `actual_get_id_by_name` — Read — https://policylayer.com/tools/actual/actual-get-id-by-name.md
- `actual_notes_get` — Read — https://policylayer.com/tools/actual/actual-notes-get.md
- `actual_payee_rules_get` — Read — https://policylayer.com/tools/actual/actual-payee-rules-get.md
- `actual_payees_common_list` — Read — https://policylayer.com/tools/actual/actual-payees-common-list.md
- `actual_payees_get` — Read — https://policylayer.com/tools/actual/actual-payees-get.md
- `actual_rules_get` — Read — https://policylayer.com/tools/actual/actual-rules-get.md
- `actual_schedules_get` — Read — https://policylayer.com/tools/actual/actual-schedules-get.md
- `actual_server_info` — Read — https://policylayer.com/tools/actual/actual-server-info.md
- `actual_session_list` — Read — https://policylayer.com/tools/actual/actual-session-list.md
- `actual_tags_list` — Read — https://policylayer.com/tools/actual/actual-tags-list.md
- `actual_transactions_filter` — Read — https://policylayer.com/tools/actual/actual-transactions-filter.md
- `actual_transactions_get` — Read — https://policylayer.com/tools/actual/actual-transactions-get.md
- …and 33 more: https://policylayer.com/tools/actual.md

## For agents

This record is a snapshot. Live verdicts and the full registry:

- Check every server in your MCP config at once: `npx -y policylayer stack`
- Vet a server before you add it: install the mcp-precheck skill — `npx skills add https://policylayer.com` (skill text: https://policylayer.com/skill.md)
- Query the registry over MCP: endpoint `https://api.policylayer.com/mcp` — tools `check_mcp_server`, `check_mcp_stack`, `check_tool`, `search_registry`, `get_change_events`

---

Source: the PolicyLayer MCP registry — one continuously verified record per MCP server. Full record: https://policylayer.com/registry?q=actual · API: https://policylayer.com/registry/api · Policy library: https://policylayer.com/policies/actual