productivityapi_key

Shortcut

Shortcut aligns product development work with company objectives so teams can execute with a shared purpose.

Verdict

Shortcut's MCP lets your team create and manage project work directly from Switchy conversations. @mention it to draft epics, stories, and iterations without switching tabs — useful when planning sprints in a Space or triaging bugs during standup. It exposes 50 tools covering categories, labels, groups, entity templates, and threaded comments. You'll need a Shortcut API key with write permissions. The MCP can't read existing stories or search your backlog, so it's best for creating new work items on the fly, not querying what already exists.

Common use cases

Draft epics during roadmap planning sessions
Log bugs from customer feedback threads
Create iterations for upcoming sprints
Add labels to categorize incoming requests
Spin up entity templates for repeatable workflows

Integration

Vendor: Shortcut
Category: productivity
Auth: API_KEY
Tools: 50
Composio slug: shortcut

Tools

Create category
Create category allows you to create a new category in shortcut.
Create entity template
Create a new entity template for the workspace.
Create epic
Create epic allows you to create a new epic in shortcut.
Create epic comment
This endpoint allows you to create a threaded comment on an epic.
Create epic comment comment
This endpoint allows you to create a nested comment reply to an existing epic comment.
Create group
Creates a new group in the shortcut system with customizable properties. this endpoint allows you to set up a group with a unique mention name, display name, optional description, and various customization options. use this when you need to
Create iteration
The createiteration endpoint allows you to create a new iteration in shortcut, which represents a time-boxed period for completing a set of stories or tasks. this endpoint is crucial for teams using agile methodologies, enabling them to pla
Create label
Create label allows you to create a new label in shortcut.
Create linked file
Create linked file allows you to create a new linked file in shortcut.
Create milestone
(deprecated: use 'create objective') create milestone allows you to create a new milestone in shortcut.
Create multiple stories
Create multiple stories allows you to create multiple stories in a single request using the same syntax as [create story](https://developer.shortcut.com/api/rest/v3#create-story).
Create objective
Create objective allows you to create a new objective in shortcut.
Create project
Create project is used to create a new shortcut project.
Create story
Create story is used to add a new story to your shortcut workspace. this endpoint requires that either **workflow state id** or **project id** be provided, but will reject the request if both or neither are specified. the workflow state id
Create story comment
Create comment allows you to create a comment on any story.
Create story from template
Create story from template is used to add a new story derived from a template to your shortcut workspace.
Create story link
Story links (called story relationships in the ui) allow you create semantic relationships between two stories. the parameters read like an active voice grammatical sentence: subject -> verb -> object. the subject story acts on the object s
Create story reaction
Create a reaction to a story comment.
Create task
Create task is used to create a new task in a story.
Delete category
destructive
Delete category can be used to delete any category.
Delete custom field
destructive
Deletes a specific custom field from the shortcut system using its unique public identifier. this endpoint should be used when you need to permanently remove a custom field that is no longer required in your workflows or project structure.
Delete entity template
destructive
Deletes a specific entity template from the shortcut api. this endpoint should be used when you need to permanently remove a template that is no longer needed or is obsolete. it's important to note that this operation cannot be undone, so i
Delete epic
destructive
Delete epic can be used to delete the epic. the only required parameter is epic id.
Delete epic comment
destructive
This endpoint allows you to delete a comment from an epic.
Delete file
destructive
Delete file deletes a previously uploaded file.
Delete iteration
destructive
Deletes a specific iteration from the shortcut project management system. this endpoint should be used when you need to permanently remove an iteration and all its associated data from your project workflow. it's particularly useful for cle
Delete label
destructive
Delete label can be used to delete any label.
Delete linked file
destructive
Delete linked file can be used to delete any previously attached linked-file.
Delete milestone
destructive
(deprecated: use 'delete objective') delete milestone can be used to delete any milestone.
Delete multiple stories
destructive
Delete multiple stories allows you to delete multiple archived stories at once.
Delete objective
destructive
Delete objective can be used to delete any objective.
Delete project
destructive
Delete project can be used to delete a project. projects can only be deleted if all associated stories are moved or deleted. in the case that the project cannot be deleted, you will receive a 422 response.
Delete story
destructive
Delete story can be used to delete any story.
Delete story comment
destructive
Delete a comment from any story.
Delete story link
destructive
Removes the relationship between the stories for the given story link.
Delete story reaction
destructive
Delete a reaction from any story comment.
Delete task
destructive
Delete task can be used to delete any previously created task on a story.
Disable iterations
Disables iterations for the current workspace
Disable story templates
Disables the story template feature for the workspace.
Enable iterations
Enables iterations for the current workspace
Enable story templates
Enables the story template feature for the workspace.
Get category
Get category returns information about the selected category.
Get current member info
Returns information about the authenticated member.
Get custom field
Retrieves detailed information about a specific custom field in shortcut using its unique public identifier. this endpoint allows developers to fetch the properties and configuration of a custom field, which can include its name, type, poss
Get entity template
Get entity template returns information about a given entity template.
Get epic
Get epic returns information about the selected epic.
Get epic comment
This endpoint returns information about the selected epic comment.
Get epic workflow
Returns the epic workflow for the workspace.
Get external link stories
Get stories which have a given external link associated with them.
Get file
Get file returns information about the selected uploadedfile.

Setup

Setup guide

11. In Switchy, open your workspace settings and navigate to the Integrations tab. 2. Click 'Add MCP Integration' and select Shortcut from the catalog. 3. Go to your Shortcut workspace settings, then API Tokens, and generate a new token with write access to stories, epics, and iterations. 4. Paste the token into Switchy's connection form and click Connect. 5. Open any Space and type '@Shortcut create a story titled Test' to confirm the integration works. 6. If the story appears in your Shortcut workspace, the connection is live. 7. To invoke a tool, @mention Shortcut in any message and describe the item you want to create — the MCP will prompt for required fields like project or workflow state if you don't provide them upfront.

What teammates see: by default, memories from Shortcut are scoped to the Space (PROJECT visibility) - you can mark any memory PRIVATE or share it ORG-wide.

Works well with

Top models

Compatibility data appears once enough Spaces have used this MCP together with a given model.

How Switchy teams use it

Not enough Spaces yet to publish anonymised usage stats (we require ≥ 50 Spaces per week).

Starter prompts

Draft Next Sprint Epic

@Shortcut create an epic titled 'Mobile onboarding redesign' with a description outlining the user flow improvements and a target completion date of March 15.

Open in a Space →

Log Bug from Support Chat

@Shortcut create a story titled 'Login fails on Safari 17' with the bug label and assign it to the platform team.

Open in a Space →

Set Up Two-Week Iteration

@Shortcut create an iteration named 'Sprint 24' starting January 20 and ending February 2.

Open in a Space →

Build Onboarding Template

@Shortcut create an entity template called 'New engineer onboarding' with tasks for repo access, tooling setup, and first commit.

Open in a Space →

Add Feature Request Label

@Shortcut create a label named 'feature-request' with a blue color so we can tag user suggestions in one place.

Open in a Space →

Example outputs

Illustrative - representative of the model's voice and quality, not literal recordings.

Prompt

@Shortcut list all epics in progress and show me which ones have no stories assigned yet

Output

Found 4 active epics in your workspace. Two have unassigned work: 'Mobile App Redesign' (created 3 weeks ago, no stories) and 'API v2 Migration' (5 stories planned but none started). The other two epics—'Customer Dashboard' and 'Performance Optimization'—each have 8+ stories in flight. This suggests your team may need to break down or prioritize the first two epics before the current iteration closes.

Notes

This example shows Shortcut's read capabilities across epics and stories. Requires an API key with read access to epics and stories. The MCP can surface planning gaps, but it won't infer why work is unassigned—your team will need to decide if that's intentional or a blocker.

Prompt

@Shortcut create a new epic called 'Q2 Onboarding Flow' with a two-week iteration starting Monday and label it 'growth-team'

Output

Created epic 'Q2 Onboarding Flow' (ID: epic-5021) and assigned it to a new iteration running April 7–20. Applied the 'growth-team' label. The epic is now visible in your workspace's roadmap view. No stories have been added yet—you can create them separately or ask me to draft a set based on your onboarding requirements.

Notes

This demonstrates Shortcut's write capabilities: creating epics, iterations, and applying labels in one action. Side-effect: the epic and iteration are immediately live in your workspace. If your team uses a different epic-creation workflow (e.g., templates or required custom fields), you may need to update the epic manually afterward.

Prompt

@Shortcut review all stories completed in the last sprint and draft a release note summarizing new features and bug fixes

Output

Reviewed 14 stories marked 'Done' in the March 24–April 4 iteration. Key features: added OAuth login (story-1823), redesigned settings page (story-1831), and enabled CSV export for reports (story-1844). Bug fixes: resolved crash on mobile logout (story-1807) and fixed timezone display in notifications (story-1819). Draft release note: 'This release improves authentication options and reporting flexibility while addressing two high-priority mobile bugs.' You can refine this or ask me to format it for your changelog template.

Notes

This example pairs Shortcut's story-retrieval tools with AI synthesis to generate a human-readable summary. Accuracy depends on how your team writes story titles and descriptions—vague titles like 'Fix issue' won't produce useful summaries. The MCP reads story metadata; it doesn't access linked commits or PRs unless those are in story comments.

Use-case deep-dives

Sprint planning for distributed eng teams

When Shortcut MCP beats manual sprint setup for 6-12 person teams

A distributed engineering team of 8 people runs two-week sprints and spends 30 minutes at the start of each cycle creating the iteration, copying over epic templates, and tagging stories. The Shortcut MCP handles this in under 60 seconds: create the iteration with date boundaries, bulk-create stories from entity templates, apply labels by team area, and nest comment threads for async context. The API key auth means any team member can trigger the setup from Switchy without waiting on an admin. This breaks down when your sprint involves more than 40 stories at kickoff—Shortcut's API rate limits start to bite, and you're better off using their bulk CSV import. If your sprints are predictable and under that threshold, the MCP turns setup from a calendar event into a background task.

Customer feedback triage in support ops

How Shortcut MCP routes inbound feedback to the right epic

A 4-person support team fields 20-30 feature requests a week through Intercom and needs to funnel them into existing product epics without leaving the chat tool. The Shortcut MCP lets them create epic comments directly from Switchy: paste the customer quote, tag the relevant epic by name, and thread a reply if the PM has follow-up questions. The create-epic-comment and create-epic-comment-comment tools handle the nesting so context doesn't get lost. This works cleanly when your roadmap has fewer than 15 active epics—beyond that, finding the right epic to comment on becomes a search problem, and Shortcut's MCP doesn't expose search. If your backlog is lean and your support team knows the epic names by heart, this MCP keeps feedback attached to the work without tab-switching.

Quarterly OKR rollout for product org

When Shortcut MCP automates OKR scaffolding at quarter boundaries

A 10-person product org resets OKRs every quarter and needs to create 4-6 epics per objective, each with a category tag and a starter iteration. Doing this by hand in Shortcut's UI takes 45 minutes and invites typos. The Shortcut MCP batch-creates epics, assigns them to categories, and links them to the first iteration of the quarter in one Switchy prompt. The create-epic, create-category, and create-iteration tools cover the full setup, and the API key means the PM leading the rollout doesn't need admin permissions. This approach falters if your OKRs span multiple workspaces—Shortcut's MCP operates on a single workspace per API key, so multi-workspace orgs still need manual coordination. For single-workspace product teams running structured quarterly planning, the MCP turns a manual slog into a 5-minute automation.

Frequently asked

What does the Shortcut MCP do in Switchy?

It lets your AI agents create and manage Shortcut work items — epics, stories, iterations, labels, groups — without leaving the conversation. Instead of switching to Shortcut's web UI to file a bug or start an iteration, you describe what you need and the agent writes it directly into your workspace. Useful for teams that plan sprints or triage issues in Slack threads.

Do I need admin access to connect Shortcut?

You need a Shortcut API key, which any member can generate from their account settings. The key inherits your personal permissions, so if you can create epics and stories in Shortcut's UI, the MCP can too. Admins aren't required unless your workspace restricts API access at the org level, which is rare.

Can the Shortcut MCP update existing stories or just create new ones?

The 50 tools focus heavily on creation — epics, iterations, labels, comments, entity templates. Updating story status, reassigning owners, or editing descriptions isn't shown in the representative set. If your workflow depends on modifying existing work items, check the full tool list or plan to handle updates in Shortcut's UI.

How does this compare to using Shortcut's web app directly?

The MCP trades Shortcut's visual board and bulk-edit features for speed in conversational contexts. If you're already discussing a feature in Switchy, the agent can file the epic without context-switching. You lose the drag-and-drop board and advanced filters, so use the web app for sprint planning and the MCP for quick capture during meetings.

Who on the team should connect the Shortcut integration?

Whoever creates the most epics or iterations — usually a PM or tech lead. Because the API key is personal, the agent acts as that user in Shortcut's audit log. If your team cares about attribution, consider a shared service account or rotate the connection among leads each quarter.