Trello API key

trello-mcp needs two credentials from Trello: TRELLO_API_KEY identifies the app you register, and TRELLO_TOKEN authorizes access as a Trello member. You create both on Trello’s website; this project does not create, refresh, or revoke them for you.

This guide sends you to Trello

Trello and Atlassian operate the app portal and authorization screens linked below. Some official pages still call apps “Power-Ups,” but the current developer portal labels this area Apps.

Before you begin

• Sign in to the Trello account that the server should use.
• Decide whether that account should be your everyday member or a dedicated automation member with access only to selected boards and Workspaces.
• To create or manage the app, the signed-in member must be an admin of the Workspace that owns it or an app collaborator. App-management access is separate from the Trello account access granted by the token.
• Have a local ignored .env file, MCP client configuration, or secrets manager ready. Do not paste credentials into this website, chat, screenshots, issues, or pull requests.

The token is broad account access

Trello tokens can be issued for one hour, one day, 30 days, or without a scheduled expiration. A token remains usable until it expires or is revoked, and it can reach boards and Workspaces the member gains access to later when those resources fall within the granted scope. Treat the token like a password and use a dedicated Trello member when you need a narrower boundary.

Create the credentials

Open Trello App Admin Portal

1. Open Trello’s App Admin Portal.

   Sign in, then open trello.com/apps/admin. On a first visit, Trello may ask you to complete its Joint Development Agreement before you can create an app.

2. Create or select an app.

   Select an existing app you control, or choose New and complete Trello’s required name, Workspace, contact, and author fields. The iframe connector URL applies only to apps using Power-Up capabilities; trello-mcp does not need those capabilities or a connector URL.

   For this server, the app record exists to own the API key. You do not need to publish it in Trello’s Power-Up directory or enable it on a board.

3. Generate the API key.

   Open the app’s API Key tab and select Generate a new API Key. Copy the displayed key into your local secret storage as TRELLO_API_KEY.

4. Authorize a token for the correct Trello member.

   On the same API Key page, select the Token link near the key. Trello will show the member, requested permissions, and access duration. Confirm that the correct account is shown, review the permissions, and choose Allow only if they match the access you intend to give the server.

   If an app admin generated the key for a separate automation member, complete this authorization screen while signed in as that automation member. The token represents the member that approves this screen, not the app admin who generated the key.

5. Copy the token into local secret storage.

   After authorization, Trello redirects to a page containing the token. Store it as TRELLO_TOKEN. Do not put the key or token in a command URL, shell history, source file, screenshot, or public report.

6. Configure trello-mcp with placeholders replaced locally.

   In the repository’s ignored .env file:

   TRELLO_API_KEY=your-api-key
   TRELLO_TOKEN=your-token

   For local stdio, the same two environment variables can instead live in a protected MCP client configuration. Continue with Set up your MCP client after creating the credentials.

7. Verify without changing Trello data.

   Start the server and connect your MCP client. Call the read-only auth_whoami tool to confirm the member, then auth_token_info to inspect the token owner, expiration, and permissions. Do not use a write tool as the first connectivity test.

Know which value is which

Setting	Issued by	Purpose	Handling
TRELLO_API_KEY	Trello App Admin Portal	Identifies the app making Trello REST API requests. Trello documents the key as publicly accessible and says it does not grant account access by itself.	Keep it in local configuration with the token, and do not include it in public troubleshooting material.
TRELLO_TOKEN	Trello authorization screen	Authorizes requests as the consenting Trello member, within the granted scope and that member’s visibility.	Secret. Treat it like a password. Never commit, log, screenshot, or share it.
MCP_AUTH_TOKEN	You, optionally	Protects this project’s Streamable HTTP /mcp endpoint. It is not sent to Trello and is unrelated to Trello authorization.	Use a separate strong secret and HTTPS whenever HTTP is exposed beyond loopback.

Revoke or replace a token

If a token is exposed, no longer needed, or tied to the wrong member:

1. Open your Trello account settings.
2. Find the Applications section and revoke the relevant authorization.
3. Return to the app’s API Key tab and use the Token link to authorize a replacement.
4. Replace TRELLO_TOKEN wherever the server is configured, restart the process, and run auth_whoami again.

Revoking a Trello token does not replace the separate MCP_AUTH_TOKEN. Rotate that value independently if the HTTP bearer secret is exposed.

Troubleshooting

There is no API Key tab

Confirm that you selected an app you administer and that your Trello member is a Workspace admin or an app collaborator. If the portal is asking for Power-Up implementation details, return to Basic Information; this server needs the app record and API key, not enabled Power-Up capabilities.

Trello will not create or authorize a token

Confirm the active Trello account and review any organization restrictions on API token creation. Managed-account policies can be outside this project’s control; ask the Trello or organization administrator when the authorization screen is blocked.

trello-mcp reports invalid credentials

• Remove accidental whitespace or quotation marks from the stored values.
• Confirm the token was authorized from the same app/API key you configured.
• Restart the server after changing its environment.
• Run auth_whoami and auth_token_info again before attempting any write.

Official Trello references

• Get started with Trello’s REST API covers the account-level key and token flow.
• App Admin Portal guide documents current app fields and the API Key tab.
• Trello REST API introduction explains API keys, member tokens, authorization, and requests.
• Revoke a Trello token explains how to remove an application’s access from account settings.
• Trello developer changelog is the source to check if Trello changes this authorization flow.

Continue setup

• Run and verify trello-mcp.
• Connect an MCP client.
• Review the security boundary.