How to integrate Quaderno MCP with OpenAI Agents SDK

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Introduction

This guide walks you through connecting Quaderno to the OpenAI Agents SDK using the Composio tool router. By the end, you'll have a working Quaderno agent that can calculate tax rate for a u.s. sale, create an invoice for a new customer, email finalized invoice to a client through natural language commands.

This guide will help you understand how to give your OpenAI Agents SDK agent real control over a Quaderno account through Composio's Quaderno MCP server.

Before we dive in, let's take a quick look at the key ideas and tools involved.

Also integrate Quaderno with

TL;DR

Here's what you'll learn:
  • Get and set up your OpenAI and Composio API keys
  • Install the necessary dependencies
  • Initialize Composio and create a Tool Router session for Quaderno
  • Configure an AI agent that can use Quaderno as a tool
  • Run a live chat session where you can ask the agent to perform Quaderno operations

What is OpenAI Agents SDK?

The OpenAI Agents SDK is a lightweight framework for building AI agents that can use tools and maintain conversation state. It provides a simple interface for creating agents with hosted MCP tool support.

Key features include:

  • Hosted MCP Tools: Connect to external services through hosted MCP endpoints
  • SQLite Sessions: Persist conversation history across interactions
  • Simple API: Clean interface with Agent, Runner, and tool configuration
  • Streaming Support: Real-time response streaming for interactive applications

What is the Quaderno MCP server, and what's possible with it?

The Quaderno MCP server is an implementation of the Model Context Protocol that connects your AI agent and assistants like Claude, Cursor, etc directly to your Quaderno account. It provides structured and secure access to your tax automation, invoicing, and compliance workflows, so your agent can calculate taxes, generate invoices, manage contacts and products, and handle essential document delivery on your behalf.

  • Automated tax rate calculation: Ask your agent to instantly determine the correct tax rate for any address or transaction type before creating invoices or processing sales.
  • Invoice creation and delivery: Let your agent generate detailed invoices for customers and deliver them directly via email, ensuring seamless billing operations.
  • Contact and product management: Easily create new customer or vendor contacts, add new products, or permanently delete outdated items from your Quaderno account—all through your agent.
  • Expense and tax ID cleanup: Direct your agent to remove specific expenses or registered tax IDs when they're no longer needed, keeping your records tidy and up to date.
  • Credit note and coupon handling: Your agent can deliver finalized credit notes to customers and permanently delete coupons as part of your accounting and revenue operations.

Supported Tools & Triggers

Tools
Add Expense PaymentAdds a payment to an existing expense in Quaderno.
Calculate Tax RateTool to calculate applicable tax rate for given address and transaction type.
Create ContactTool to create a new contact (customer or vendor).
Create CouponTool to create a new discount coupon in Quaderno.
Create EstimateCreates a new estimate/quote in Quaderno for a customer with line items.
Create EvidenceTool to create a new location evidence for tax compliance.
Create ExpenseTool to create a business expense in Quaderno.
Create InvoiceCreates a new invoice in Quaderno for a customer with line items.
Create ProductCreates a new product that can be used as a line item in invoices, credit notes, and expenses.
Create ReceiptCreates a new receipt in Quaderno documenting payment for goods or services.
Create RecurringTool to create a recurring document in Quaderno that automatically generates invoices on a schedule.
Create Report RequestTool to request a new report generation in Quaderno.
Create Tax IDTool to create a tax ID in a specific jurisdiction.
Create TransactionTool to create a sale or refund transaction in Quaderno.
Create WebhookTool to create a new webhook in Quaderno to receive event notifications.
Delete ContactTool to permanently delete a contact by ID.
Delete CouponTool to permanently delete a coupon.
Delete EstimatePermanently deletes an estimate from Quaderno by its ID.
Delete ExpensePermanently deletes an expense from Quaderno by its ID.
Delete ProductTool to permanently delete a product by ID.
Delete RecurringTool to permanently delete a recurring by ID.
Delete Tax IDPermanently deletes a registered tax ID from your Quaderno account.
Delete WebhookTool to permanently delete a webhook by ID.
Deliver Credit NoteSends a credit note to the customer via email.
Deliver EstimateDelivers an estimate to the customer via email.
Deliver InvoiceDelivers an invoice to the customer via email.
Deliver ReceiptSends a receipt to the customer via email.
Get AuthorizationTool to retrieve account credentials and verify API access.
Get EstimateTool to retrieve the details of an existing estimate by ID.
List ContactsTool to list contacts, paginated and filterable by name, email, or tax ID.
List CouponsTool to list all coupons.
List CreditsTool to list all credit notes from Quaderno.
List EstimatesTool to list all estimates in the account, paginated and sorted by creation date (newest first).
List EvidenceTool to list all evidence objects.
List ExpensesList all expenses from Quaderno with pagination support.
List InvoicesTool to list all invoices from Quaderno with filtering support.
List Tax JurisdictionsTool to list all tax jurisdictions.
List ProductsList all products (goods and services) from your Quaderno account.
List ReceiptsTool to list all receipts from Quaderno with optional filtering by search query, date range, payment state, processor ID, or customer ID.
List RecurringsList all recurring documents (invoices, expenses, or estimates) from your Quaderno account.
List Registered Tax IDsTool to list all registered tax IDs.
List Reporting RequestsRetrieves all reporting requests for the account with their current status and download URLs.
List SessionsList Quaderno Checkout sessions with optional filtering and pagination.
List Tax CodesTool to list all supported tax codes.
List WebhooksTool to list all webhooks.
Mark Invoice UncollectibleTool to mark an invoice as uncollectible (bad debt).
Ping API ServiceTool to check if the Quaderno API service is up and verify credentials.
Record Invoice PaymentTool to record a payment on an existing invoice.
Remove Invoice PaymentTool to remove a payment from an invoice.
Retrieve ContactTool to retrieve details of an existing contact by ID.
Retrieve Contact by Processor IDTool to retrieve a contact by external payment processor customer ID and gateway name.
Retrieve CouponRetrieve detailed information about a specific coupon by its ID.
Retrieve Credit NoteTool to retrieve details of an existing credit note by ID.
Retrieve EvidenceRetrieves a specific evidence object by its ID.
Retrieve ExpenseTool to retrieve details of an existing expense by ID.
Retrieve InvoiceTool to retrieve details of an existing invoice by ID.
Retrieve Tax JurisdictionTool to retrieve a tax jurisdiction by ID.
Retrieve ProductTool to retrieve details of an existing product by ID.
Retrieve ReceiptTool to retrieve details of an existing receipt by ID.
Retrieve RecurringTool to retrieve details of an existing recurring document by ID.
Retrieve Reporting RequestTool to retrieve the status and download URL of a specific report request by ID.
Retrieve Tax CodeTool to retrieve a specific tax code by ID.
Retrieve Tax IDTool to retrieve details of a specific tax ID by its ID.
Update ContactTool to update an existing contact in Quaderno.
Update CouponTool to update an existing coupon.
Update Credit NoteTool to update a credit note.
Update EstimateUpdates an existing estimate in Quaderno by modifying allowed fields.
Update EvidenceTool to update an evidence object.
Update ExpenseUpdates an existing expense in Quaderno by modifying allowed fields.
Update InvoiceUpdates an existing invoice in Quaderno by modifying allowed fields.
Update productTool to update a product; unspecified fields remain unchanged.
Update RecurringTool to update a recurring document in Quaderno.
Update Tax IDTool to update an existing tax ID in Quaderno.
Update WebhookTool to update an existing webhook configuration.
Validate Tax IDTool to validate a tax ID.
Void Credit NoteTool to void a credit note.

What is the Composio tool router, and how does it fit here?

What is Composio SDK?

Composio's Composio SDK helps agents find the right tools for a task at runtime. You can plug in multiple toolkits (like Gmail, HubSpot, and GitHub), and the agent will identify the relevant app and action to complete multi-step workflows. This can reduce token usage and improve the reliability of tool calls. Read more here: Getting started with Composio SDK

The tool router generates a secure MCP URL that your agents can access to perform actions.

How the Composio SDK works

The Composio SDK follows a three-phase workflow:

  1. Discovery: Searches for tools matching your task and returns relevant toolkits with their details.
  2. Authentication: Checks for active connections. If missing, creates an auth config and returns a connection URL via Auth Link.
  3. Execution: Executes the action using the authenticated connection.

Step-by-step Guide

Prerequisites

Before starting, make sure you have:
  • Composio API Key and OpenAI API Key
  • Primary know-how of OpenAI Agents SDK
  • A live Quaderno project
  • Some knowledge of Python or Typescript

Getting API Keys for OpenAI and Composio

OpenAI API Key
  • Go to the OpenAI dashboard and create an API key. You'll need credits to use the models, or you can connect to another model provider.
  • Keep the API key safe.
Composio API Key

Install dependencies

pip install composio_openai_agents openai-agents python-dotenv

Install the Composio SDK and the OpenAI Agents SDK.

Set up environment variables

bash
OPENAI_API_KEY=sk-...your-api-key
COMPOSIO_API_KEY=your-api-key
USER_ID=composio_user@gmail.com

Create a .env file and add your OpenAI and Composio API keys.

Import dependencies

import asyncio
import os
from dotenv import load_dotenv

from composio import Composio
from composio_openai_agents import OpenAIAgentsProvider
from agents import Agent, Runner, HostedMCPTool, SQLiteSession
What's happening:
  • You're importing all necessary libraries.
  • The Composio and OpenAIAgentsProvider classes are imported to connect your OpenAI agent to Composio tools like Quaderno.

Set up the Composio instance

load_dotenv()

api_key = os.getenv("COMPOSIO_API_KEY")
user_id = os.getenv("USER_ID")

if not api_key:
    raise RuntimeError("COMPOSIO_API_KEY is not set. Create a .env file with COMPOSIO_API_KEY=your_key")

# Initialize Composio
composio = Composio(api_key=api_key, provider=OpenAIAgentsProvider())
What's happening:
  • load_dotenv() loads your .env file so OPENAI_API_KEY and COMPOSIO_API_KEY are available as environment variables.
  • Creating a Composio instance using the API Key and OpenAIAgentsProvider class.

Create a Tool Router session

# Create a Quaderno Tool Router session
session = composio.create(
    user_id=user_id,
    toolkits=["quaderno"]
)

mcp_url = session.mcp.url

What is happening:

  • You give the Tool Router the user id and the toolkits you want available. Here, it is only quaderno.
  • The router checks the user's Quaderno connection and prepares the MCP endpoint.
  • The returned session.mcp.url is the MCP URL that your agent will use to access Quaderno.
  • This approach keeps things lightweight and lets the agent request Quaderno tools only when needed during the conversation.

Configure the agent

# Configure agent with MCP tool
agent = Agent(
    name="Assistant",
    model="gpt-5",
    instructions=(
        "You are a helpful assistant that can access Quaderno. "
        "Help users perform Quaderno operations through natural language."
    ),
    tools=[
        HostedMCPTool(
            tool_config={
                "type": "mcp",
                "server_label": "tool_router",
                "server_url": mcp_url,
                "headers": {"x-api-key": api_key},
                "require_approval": "never",
            }
        )
    ],
)
What's happening:
  • We're creating an Agent instance with a name, model (gpt-5), and clear instructions about its purpose.
  • The agent's instructions tell it that it can access Quaderno and help with queries, inserts, updates, authentication, and fetching database information.
  • The tools array includes a HostedMCPTool that connects to the MCP server URL we created earlier.
  • The headers dict includes the Composio API key for secure authentication with the MCP server.
  • require_approval: 'never' means the agent can execute Quaderno operations without asking for permission each time, making interactions smoother.

Start chat loop and handle conversation

print("\nComposio Tool Router session created.")

chat_session = SQLiteSession("conversation_openai_toolrouter")

print("\nChat started. Type your requests below.")
print("Commands: 'exit', 'quit', or 'q' to end\n")

async def main():
    try:
        result = await Runner.run(
            agent,
            "What can you help me with?",
            session=chat_session
        )
        print(f"Assistant: {result.final_output}\n")
    except Exception as e:
        print(f"Error: {e}\n")

    while True:
        user_input = input("You: ").strip()
        if user_input.lower() in {"exit", "quit", "q"}:
            print("Goodbye!")
            break

        result = await Runner.run(
            agent,
            user_input,
            session=chat_session
        )
        print(f"Assistant: {result.final_output}\n")

asyncio.run(main())
What's happening:
  • The program prints a session URL that you visit to authorize Quaderno.
  • After authorization, the chat begins.
  • Each message you type is processed by the agent using Runner.run().
  • The responses are printed to the console, and conversations are saved locally using SQLite.
  • Typing exit, quit, or q cleanly ends the chat.

Complete Code

Here's the complete code to get you started with Quaderno and OpenAI Agents SDK:

import asyncio
import os
from dotenv import load_dotenv

from composio import Composio
from composio_openai_agents import OpenAIAgentsProvider
from agents import Agent, Runner, HostedMCPTool, SQLiteSession

load_dotenv()

api_key = os.getenv("COMPOSIO_API_KEY")
user_id = os.getenv("USER_ID")

if not api_key:
    raise RuntimeError("COMPOSIO_API_KEY is not set. Create a .env file with COMPOSIO_API_KEY=your_key")

# Initialize Composio
composio = Composio(api_key=api_key, provider=OpenAIAgentsProvider())

# Create Tool Router session
session = composio.create(
    user_id=user_id,
    toolkits=["quaderno"]
)
mcp_url = session.mcp.url

# Configure agent with MCP tool
agent = Agent(
    name="Assistant",
    model="gpt-5",
    instructions=(
        "You are a helpful assistant that can access Quaderno. "
        "Help users perform Quaderno operations through natural language."
    ),
    tools=[
        HostedMCPTool(
            tool_config={
                "type": "mcp",
                "server_label": "tool_router",
                "server_url": mcp_url,
                "headers": {"x-api-key": api_key},
                "require_approval": "never",
            }
        )
    ],
)

print("\nComposio Tool Router session created.")

chat_session = SQLiteSession("conversation_openai_toolrouter")

print("\nChat started. Type your requests below.")
print("Commands: 'exit', 'quit', or 'q' to end\n")

async def main():
    try:
        result = await Runner.run(
            agent,
            "What can you help me with?",
            session=chat_session
        )
        print(f"Assistant: {result.final_output}\n")
    except Exception as e:
        print(f"Error: {e}\n")

    while True:
        user_input = input("You: ").strip()
        if user_input.lower() in {"exit", "quit", "q"}:
            print("Goodbye!")
            break

        result = await Runner.run(
            agent,
            user_input,
            session=chat_session
        )
        print(f"Assistant: {result.final_output}\n")

asyncio.run(main())

Conclusion

This was a starter code for integrating Quaderno MCP with OpenAI Agents SDK to build a functional AI agent that can interact with Quaderno.

Key features:

  • Hosted MCP tool integration through Composio's Tool Router
  • SQLite session persistence for conversation history
  • Simple async chat loop for interactive testing
You can extend this by adding more toolkits, implementing custom business logic, or building a web interface around the agent.

How to build Quaderno MCP Agent with another framework

FAQ

What are the differences in Tool Router MCP and Quaderno MCP?

With a standalone Quaderno MCP server, the agents and LLMs can only access a fixed set of Quaderno tools tied to that server. However, with the Composio Tool Router, agents can dynamically load tools from Quaderno and many other apps based on the task at hand, all through a single MCP endpoint.

Can I use Tool Router MCP with OpenAI Agents SDK?

Yes, you can. OpenAI Agents SDK fully supports MCP integration. You get structured tool calling, message history handling, and model orchestration while Tool Router takes care of discovering and serving the right Quaderno tools.

Can I manage the permissions and scopes for Quaderno while using Tool Router?

Yes, absolutely. You can configure which Quaderno scopes and actions are allowed when connecting your account to Composio. You can also bring your own OAuth credentials or API configuration so you keep full control over what the agent can do.

How safe is my data with Composio Tool Router?

All sensitive data such as tokens, keys, and configuration is fully encrypted at rest and in transit. Composio is SOC 2 Type 2 compliant and follows strict security practices so your Quaderno data and credentials are handled as safely as possible.

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Letta
glean
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Agent.ai
Altera
DataStax
Entelligence
Rolai
Context
Letta
glean
HubSpot
Agent.ai
Altera
DataStax
Entelligence
Rolai

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