Log InSign Up Free

AI Expense Tracker Setup for Claude Code, Codex, and OpenClaw

If you want to use an AI agent for expense tracking, the annoying part is usually setup.

The usual flow looks like this:

  1. Open the app
  2. Create an API key
  3. Copy the key
  4. Paste it into your terminal agent
  5. Explain which endpoint to call
  6. Hope the agent uses the right workspace

That is workable, but it is not agent-native.

Expense Budget Tracker now exposes a public discovery endpoint for terminal agents such as Claude Code, OpenAI Codex, or OpenClaw:

https://api.expense-budget-tracker.com/v1/

The user gives the agent that one link, then answers two questions:

  • Which email should be used for login?
  • What is the 8-digit code that just arrived in the inbox?

After that, the agent provisions its own ApiKey, saves it outside chat memory, loads the account, lists workspaces, saves one as the default for that key, and can start importing or querying transactions.

The project is open source on GitHub:

The one link to give your agent

This is the exact URL:

https://api.expense-budget-tracker.com/v1/

That endpoint returns a machine-readable discovery document. The agent can read:

  • where auth bootstrap lives
  • which action to call first
  • which auth header to use later
  • which steps come next for workspace setup and SQL access

This is the core idea: instead of hardcoding onboarding instructions in a prompt, the product tells the agent how to connect.

Example prompt for Claude Code

Connect to Expense Budget Tracker using https://api.expense-budget-tracker.com/v1/.
Ask me for the account email, wait for the 8-digit code from my inbox, finish the setup,
save the returned ApiKey outside chat memory, then import transactions from ~/Downloads/chase-march-2026.csv and verify the final balance.

Example prompt for Codex

Use https://api.expense-budget-tracker.com/v1/ to connect to my Expense Budget Tracker account.
When you need login information, ask me for the email and then the 8-digit code.
After setup, save the key, inspect /schema, and show me my latest 20 transactions and total grocery spend this month.

Example prompt for OpenClaw

Connect yourself to Expense Budget Tracker through https://api.expense-budget-tracker.com/v1/.
After login, save my personal workspace as the default for this key and import the CSV file I uploaded.
Use existing categories when possible, and tell me if any balance does not match.

How the AI expense tracker setup works

Here is the full HTTP flow behind that setup.

1. Read the discovery endpoint

The agent starts here:

curl https://api.expense-budget-tracker.com/v1/

The response tells it to begin with send_code, includes the bootstrap URL on the auth domain, and points to the published OpenAPI and schema endpoints.

2. Send the user email

The agent sends the email address to the auth service:

curl -X POST https://auth.expense-budget-tracker.com/api/agent/send-code \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"email":"user@example.com"}'

If the request succeeds, the response contains an otpSessionToken and instructions to call verify_code.

3. Ask the user for the 8-digit email code

The user checks the inbox and sends the code back to the agent.

4. Verify the code and get an ApiKey

The agent then calls:

curl -X POST https://auth.expense-budget-tracker.com/api/agent/verify-code \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "code":"12345678",
    "otpSessionToken":"opaque-token-from-send-code",
    "label":"Claude Code on macbook"
  }'

The response includes a new ApiKey. That key is shown once and should be stored by the agent for later requests, ideally as EXPENSE_BUDGET_TRACKER_API_KEY.

This is the main improvement over the old manual flow: the user does not need to create a key in Settings and copy it into the terminal.

5. Load account and workspace context

After verification, the agent uses Authorization: ApiKey <key> and loads the account:

curl https://api.expense-budget-tracker.com/v1/me \
  -H "Authorization: ApiKey ebta_ABCDEFGH_0123456789ABCDEFGHJKMNPQ"

Then it lists workspaces:

curl https://api.expense-budget-tracker.com/v1/workspaces \
  -H "Authorization: ApiKey ebta_ABCDEFGH_0123456789ABCDEFGHJKMNPQ"

If needed, it can create a new workspace or explicitly save an existing one with POST /v1/workspaces/{workspaceId}/select.

curl -X POST https://api.expense-budget-tracker.com/v1/workspaces/workspace_123/select \
  -H "Authorization: ApiKey ebta_ABCDEFGH_0123456789ABCDEFGHJKMNPQ"

6. Run SQL through the agent API

After that, normal data work happens through the app domain:

curl -X POST https://api.expense-budget-tracker.com/v1/sql \
  -H "Authorization: ApiKey ebta_ABCDEFGH_0123456789ABCDEFGHJKMNPQ" \
  -H "X-Workspace-Id: workspace_123" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "sql":"SELECT ts, category, counterparty, amount, currency FROM ledger_entries ORDER BY ts DESC LIMIT 20"
  }'

The request must include both:

  • Authorization: ApiKey <key>
  • X-Workspace-Id: <workspaceId> only when you want to override the saved workspace or before one is saved

Workspace selection is explicit, and the server saves that selection per API key after POST /v1/workspaces/{workspaceId}/select. If the user has exactly one workspace, the API auto-saves and uses it for a new key.

What your agent can do after setup

Once connected, the agent can handle the boring finance work that should not require hours of clicking:

  1. Parse CSV, PDF, or screenshot exports from the bank
  2. Insert transactions into the ledger
  3. Check balances against what the bank shows
  4. Query spending by category, merchant, or period
  5. Update budget lines for the next month

Here is a practical example for importing a statement:

Import ~/Downloads/revolut-february-2026.csv into my EUR account.
Before writing anything, query my existing categories and the last 30 days of transactions to avoid duplicates.
After import, compare the resulting account balance with the closing balance in the CSV.

And here is an example for analysis:

Show me my top 10 spending categories in the last 90 days, then compare them with the previous 90-day period.
Also list the largest transactions in categories where spending increased.

Why this is better than manual API key setup

The new flow is simpler for both the user and the agent:

  • the user does not have to copy a long-lived key manually
  • the agent discovers the protocol from the product itself
  • auth is separated from data access cleanly
  • every SQL request is scoped to a selected workspace
  • the connection can be revoked later from the app

If you are building an AI expense tracking workflow, that matters. It removes a lot of prompt boilerplate and setup mistakes.

Open-source expense tracker with agent setup

Expense Budget Tracker is MIT licensed and fully open source:

If you want to self-host it, start with:

git clone https://github.com/kirill-markin/expense-budget-tracker.git
cd expense-budget-tracker
make up

If you want to use the hosted version, give your agent this URL:

https://api.expense-budget-tracker.com/v1/

That is enough for Claude Code, Codex, or OpenClaw to start the login flow on their own.

Read next

How to Track Expenses and Manage Your Budget with Claude Code

Set up Claude Code as your personal finance assistant. Give it one discovery URL, let it complete the email OTP flow, save the returned ApiKey, and it can parse statements, check balances, and manage your budget from the terminal.

How to Use AI to Track Expenses and Manage Your Budget

A practical guide to AI-powered personal finance. Give your AI agent an API key, and it will parse bank statements, categorize transactions, track expenses, and manage your budget — all through a SQL API.

Self-Hosted Open Source Budget Tracker for Developers — Own Your Financial Data

Why programmers should self-host their expense tracker on their own server. Deploy an open-source budget tracker with SQL API, AI agent integration, and full control over your Postgres database.

Best Budget App for Couples in 2026: Open-Source Shared Budgeting With Invites and Multi-Currency Support

Looking for the best budget app for couples in 2026? Here is the practical tradeoff: most shared budgeting apps optimize for quick setup, while an open-source shared budget app gives couples invites, balances, transfers, and multi-currency support without spreadsheet chaos.