# Zendesk setup for PopMCP

You paste three things: your Zendesk subdomain, the email address of the admin who owns the token, and the API token string Zendesk shows once when you create it in Admin Center.

- Auth: API credentials
- Setup time: 5 min
- API base URL: https://YOUR-SUBDOMAIN.zendesk.com/api/v2
- Credentials screen: https://YOUR-SUBDOMAIN.zendesk.com/admin/apps-integrations/apis/zendesk-api/api-tokens (replace YOUR-SUBDOMAIN with your Zendesk subdomain)
- Provider docs: https://developer.zendesk.com/api-reference/ticketing/introduction/

## Before you begin

- A Zendesk Support or Suite account.
- The Administrator role. Agents and end users cannot create API tokens.
- "Allow API token access" turned on for the account. Any admin can switch it off.
- Do this before 27 October 2026. Zendesk stops issuing new API tokens on that date and deactivates all existing tokens on 30 April 2027.

## Get your credentials

### 1. Open the API pages in Admin Center

Sign in as an admin and open Admin Center at https://<your-subdomain>.zendesk.com/admin. In the left sidebar click Apps and integrations, then APIs.

Screen: https://YOUR-SUBDOMAIN.zendesk.com/admin/apps-integrations/apis/zendesk-api/settings (replace YOUR-SUBDOMAIN with your Zendesk subdomain)

### 2. Turn on Allow API token access

On the API configuration tab, tick Allow API token access and click Save.

Screen: https://YOUR-SUBDOMAIN.zendesk.com/admin/apps-integrations/apis/zendesk-api/settings (replace YOUR-SUBDOMAIN with your Zendesk subdomain)

### 3. Add an API token

Open the API tokens tab and click Add API token. Type `PopMCP` in Description.

Screen: https://YOUR-SUBDOMAIN.zendesk.com/admin/apps-integrations/apis/zendesk-api/api-tokens (replace YOUR-SUBDOMAIN with your Zendesk subdomain)

### 4. Copy the token before you close the dialog

Click Copy to take the full token string, then click Save to close the dialog.

Screen: https://YOUR-SUBDOMAIN.zendesk.com/admin/apps-integrations/apis/zendesk-api/api-tokens (replace YOUR-SUBDOMAIN with your Zendesk subdomain)

### 5. Paste subdomain, email and token into PopMCP

Enter the Zendesk subdomain (the `acme` in `https://acme.zendesk.com`), the email of the admin who created the token, and the token itself. The email must be the token owner's.

## Fields PopMCP asks for

- Zendesk subdomain (subdomain) [required]: The first part of your Zendesk URL: https://<your-company>.zendesk.com. You can paste the full URL and we'll extract the subdomain. This is the account the MCP is locked to.
- Agent or admin email (email) [required]: The email of a Zendesk agent or admin. It's used as the API username (sent as {email}/token), so it must match the account the API token belongs to.
- API token (apiToken) [required]: Admin Center → Apps and integrations → APIs → Zendesk API → API tokens → Add API token. You must also turn ON "Allow API token access" on that page (it's off by default). The token is shown only once. Stored encrypted.

## Verify

The Zendesk connection shows Connected in PopMCP and the Zendesk tools appear. Listing recent tickets or searching users returns rows from your own help desk.

## Troubleshooting

### The API configuration page asks you to accept terms

Cause: Nobody has used the API on this account before.

Fix: Tick the terms box and click Get started, then set Allow API token access and Save.

### 401 "Couldn't authenticate you"

Cause: API token access is off, the email does not belong to the token's account, or the token was copied incompletely.

Fix: Tick Allow API token access on the API configuration tab and Save, confirm the email is the admin who created the token, and re-create the token if you are unsure it was copied whole.

### The connection worked, then broke about a month later

Cause: From 28 July 2026 Zendesk automatically deactivates API tokens that go 30 days without use.

Fix: Create a fresh API token and update the PopMCP connection. Plan a move to OAuth before the April 2027 cutoff.

### The Add API token button is missing or disabled

Cause: You are not an administrator, the account is at the 256-token limit, or the account is past Zendesk's 27 October 2026 token-creation cutoff.

Fix: Sign in as an admin, delete an unused token to free a slot, and check Zendesk's API token removal announcement for your account's phase.

### 429 Too Many Requests

Cause: The account-wide per-minute rate limit was exceeded.

Fix: Slow the tool calls down and respect the Retry-After header, or add the High Volume API add-on.

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Source: https://www.docs.popmcp.com/docs/integrations/zendesk/