Help Scout
Connect Help Scout to manage conversations, customers, mailboxes, users, workflows, reports, and the docs knowledge base.
You paste the App ID and App Secret of a Help Scout My App (the OAuth2 client_id and client_secret) into PopMCP, plus an optional Docs API key if you want the knowledge-base tools.
Paid plan required before this connector works
Help Scout excludes API and integration access from its Free plan, so the account must be on a paid Standard plan or higher before any credentials return data - no human review is involved.
- Typical wait
- Immediate once the account is on a paid plan
- Cost
- Standard plan is USD 25 per user per month as listed on Help Scout's pricing page (Plus USD 45, Pro USD 75); higher tiers raise API rate limits and unlock the reporting endpoints
- Blocked until approved
- On the Free plan the Mailbox API 2.0 and integrations are not available at all (Help Scout's own docs state the Free plan does not include access to the API or integrations), so OAuth tokens cannot read or write conversations, customers, or mailboxes. On Standard the API works at up to 200 calls/minute but the reporting endpoints return nothing - those need Plus (400/min) or Pro (800/min).
- Works meanwhile
- You can read the docs and write the integration against the documented schema, and on a paid plan the OAuth2 app itself is created instantly with no review.
Where to apply: Upgrade the account under Manage > Plan & Billing in Help Scout, then create credentials at Your Profile > My Apps > Create My App to get the Application ID and Application Secret.
- Creating the app is instant - the only gate is the subscription tier, so do not wait for an approval email that never comes.
- Reporting API endpoints are gated to Plus/Pro even though the rest of the API works on Standard.
- Client Credentials flow is the right choice for talking to your own account; Authorization Code is only needed for an app other Help Scout accounts install.
- Access tokens are short-lived (two days), so build refresh handling rather than pasting a token once.
- The legacy Mailbox API 1.0 keys are retired - anything written against them will not work.
- Setup time
- 5 min
- Auth
- API credentials
- API base URL
- https://api.helpscout.net/v2
- Rate limits
- Per minute across the whole account and set by plan. Standard 200 calls with no reporting endpoints, Plus 400, Pro 800. POST, PUT, PATCH and DELETE each count as two calls. The Docs API is separate at 2,000 to 4,000 requests per 10 minutes depending on site count.
Before you begin
- A Help Scout account on a paid plan. The free plan has no API access. Standard allows 200 calls per minute, Plus 400, Pro 800.
- An active, invited Help Scout user. Credentials must belong to one or the token endpoint returns 401.
- For the optional Docs key only, access to the Docs API Keys tab on your Authentication page.
Get your credentials
Open Your Profile, then My Apps
Sign in at secure.helpscout.net, click your avatar in the top right and choose Your Profile. Click My Apps in the left menu.
My Apps
OAuth2 applications you have created on this account.
| App Name | App ID | Status | Created |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reporting exportClient Credentials | 8f31****c0a4 | Active | Mar 4, 2026 |
An empty list is normal. Most accounts have never created a My App.
Create the app
Click Create My App, name it PopMCP, and put any URL into Redirection URL. Click Create.
Create My App
Help Scout issues an App ID and App Secret once the app is created.
The redirection URL is only used by the Authorization Code flow, which PopMCP does not use.
Copy the App ID and App Secret
Open the new app and copy the App ID and the App Secret. These are the OAuth2 client_id and client_secret.
PopMCP
Client credentials for the Inbox API.
- App ID
- 8f31a27d****c0a4
- App Secret
- hsSec_****9b12
- Token endpoint
- https://api.helpscout.net/v2/oauth2/token
- Token lifetime
- 172800 seconds
Treat the App Secret like a password. It reaches every inbox on the account.
Optional: copy a Docs API key
Only needed for the knowledge-base tools. Open Your Profile, click Authentication in the left menu, select the Docs API Keys tab and copy a key.
Authentication
Two-factor authentication, API keys, authorized apps and active sessions.
| Key | Site | Status | Created |
|---|---|---|---|
| d0c5****71ae | Acme Helpdocs.acme-supply.com | Active | Mar 4, 2026 |
Leave the PopMCP field blank if you do not use Help Scout Docs.
Paste the values into PopMCP
Enter the App ID, the App Secret and, if you have one, the Docs API Key in PopMCP's Help Scout form, then save.
Connect in PopMCP
Open your workspace, choose Help Scout in the marketplace, and fill in the connect dialog:
| Field | What to enter |
|---|---|
| App IDtext | In Help Scout go to Your Profile → My Apps → Create My App (App Type: any; for a redirect URL you can use a placeholder like https://www.google.com; it isn't used). Copy the App ID. It's the OAuth2 client_id. |
| App Secretsecret | From the same My Apps screen, copy the App Secret (the OAuth2 client_secret). Stored encrypted and used server-side only to mint a short-lived access token.Encrypted with AES-256-GCM on save and never shown again. |
| Docs API Key (optional)secret | Optional. Only needed for the knowledge-base (Docs) tools. In Help Scout go to Your Profile → Authentication → API Keys and copy a Docs API key. Leave blank if you don't use Help Scout Docs.Encrypted with AES-256-GCM on save and never shown again. |
PopMCP verifies the credential against Help Scout immediately. On success the connection flips to Verified and its MCP tools are provisioned.
Verify it worked
PopMCP shows Help Scout as Connected and a first tool call returns your inboxes. If you supplied a Docs key, the knowledge-base tools list your Docs collections too.
Troubleshooting
401 Unauthorized on every call
Why: App ID and App Secret do not match, the app was deleted, or the user who owns it is no longer active on the account.
Fix: Re-open Your Profile, My Apps, confirm the app still exists, and re-copy both values into PopMCP.
invalid_client from the token endpoint
Why: A space or newline was pasted with the App Secret.
Fix: Re-copy the secret with the copy button instead of selecting the text by hand.
403 on Inbox API endpoints
Why: The account is on the free plan, which has no API access.
Fix: Move to Standard or above, or connect a different Help Scout account.
Reporting endpoints return 403 while everything else works
Why: Reporting endpoints are excluded on the Standard plan.
Fix: Upgrade to Plus or Pro.
Docs tools fail while everything else works
Why: Missing or wrong Docs API key. It is a different credential from the App ID and App Secret.
Fix: Copy a key from Your Profile, Authentication, Docs API Keys and paste it into the optional field.
429 Too Many Requests
Why: The plan rate limit was reached. Write requests count as two calls.
Fix: Wait the number of seconds in X-RateLimit-Retry-After, or move to a higher Help Scout plan.