Use cases
Where payment awareness pays off
mcp-pay is one small idea — make payments first-class in MCP — but it shows up differently depending on how you run tools. Here are the situations builders hit first.
Metering paid MCP tools
→Teams running an MCP server with tools worth charging for
Charge per call for a specific MCP tool by returning HTTP 402 and verifying an X-PAYMENT proof before running it — without building a bespoke billing layer.
Per-tool pricing across multiple rails
→Servers that want to accept more than one payment method
Advertise the same tool priced for x402, Lightning, and card in one manifest, so agents pay on whichever rail they are configured for — no lock-in to a single chain.
Monetizing an agent tool server
→Developers who want their MCP tools to earn without a checkout page
Turn a useful MCP tool server into a paid service that agents can discover and pay automatically, using a static manifest and the standard 402 flow.
Composing 402 payments with a facilitator
→Teams that want payments without becoming a payment processor
Keep your server out of the money path by delegating proof verification and settlement to a facilitator, while mcp-pay handles discovery and the 402 handshake.