Put the expert accountant in control of Claude.
Xero support is now live alongside QuickBooks Online. Numbers Game gives a firm one MCP for the client books it manages, with granular user and company controls so Claude can write where you allow it, stay read-only where you require it, and never reach companies you exclude.
What is a QuickBooks and Xero MCP?
MCP stands for Model Context Protocol. It is an open protocol that lets an AI client use defined tools and data sources without forcing a team to export data into a chat window or build a bespoke integration for every question.
Xero support is now live alongside QuickBooks Online. Numbers Game gives an accounting firm one controlled MCP for the client books it manages, rather than a separate connection with an all-or-nothing permission model for each client.
The expert accountant stays in control of Claude. The firm chooses which users and AI clients can reach each company, grants write access per company where it is appropriate, keeps other companies read-only, and excludes companies from a person’s approved set entirely. Claude helps retrieve, organize, compare, and prepare. The firm decides the scope of access and the accounting treatment.
The books should answer questions, not become an export project.
Ask questions in plain English
An accountant can ask for a P&L explanation, aging review, vendor breakdown, or a list of unusual transactions without opening every client file and reconstructing the answer in a spreadsheet.
Work across the firm
The same request can be applied to the QuickBooks Online and Xero companies a firm has approved. That matters when the work is repeated every week or at every close.
Keep judgment where it belongs
AI can retrieve, organize, compare, and prepare. The accountant still decides whether a transaction is supported, whether an exception is real, and whether a proposed accounting treatment belongs in the books.
Reduce stale-file risk
Working from the authorized connection reduces the cycle of exporting, renaming, emailing, and re-uploading a report that may already be out of date.
A controlled path from client books to useful work.
- 1. Connect the firms’ approved booksAn Owner or Admin connects the QuickBooks Online and Xero companies the firm is authorized to manage. The connection is limited to the scopes and companies the firm approves.
- 2. Set user and company controlsThe firm grants access by user and by company. It can give Claude write access per company where the work requires it, keep another company read-only, and exclude a company from a user or AI client altogether.
- 3. Put Claude to work inside the boundaryA team member asks for reporting, investigation, categorization preparation, reconciliation support, or a review workflow using only the firm’s approved AI client capabilities and companies.
- 4. Review proposed workWhen the workflow prepares a change, the proposal is visible for human review. The review step is not optional decoration. It is where a firm applies its accounting judgment before a ledger changes.
- 5. Keep an accountable recordEvery MCP tool call lands in an activity log that records the client, tool, outcome, and duration. Firm access can be revoked when a person leaves or a client relationship changes.
Examples for accountants and fractional CFOs.
Investigate a variance
Ask: “Why did software expense increase this quarter for these clients?” Claude can retrieve the relevant transactions, group the vendors, and prepare the evidence for the accountant to interpret.
Prepare a close review
Ask: “Prepare the uncategorized and unusual activity for month-end across the approved companies. Separate items ready for review from items that need a receipt or a client question.”
Run a multi-entity review
Ask: “Compare travel and contractor spend across these related entities, identify duplicate vendors, and show the transaction-level evidence.” The review can start from live connected data rather than stitched exports.
Draft a proposed entry
Ask: “Prepare the proposed treatment for this prepaid annual subscription, including the supporting schedule. Do not send anything to the books until I approve it.”
Set a safe client boundary
Give an experienced manager Claude write access for the selected operating companies they own, keep a sensitive client read-only, and exclude a former client entirely. The accountant decides the operating boundary before the prompt is ever run.
Review bank and card activity
Connect authorized bank accounts and credit cards in Numbers Game, ask Claude to organize the activity, then review the proposed accounting data before it is sent to QuickBooks Online or Xero.
Answer a client question
Ask: “Give me a client-ready explanation of the overdue receivables this month, with the invoices and customer context behind the total.” The accountant reviews the facts and edits the communication.
The connection is only useful when its controls match the work.
| Question | A raw one-company connection | Numbers Game for firms |
|---|---|---|
| Who can use it? | Often whoever holds the setup and token | Owner, Admin, Member, and Viewer roles with explicit boundaries |
| Which books are reachable? | Usually configured one company at a time | The firm scopes each approved AI client to the companies it names |
| What happens before a write? | Depends on the client or implementation | The proposed work is held for human review before it reaches the books |
| What proves what happened? | Logs vary by integration | A firm-readable activity log records MCP calls, outcomes, and timing |
| What happens when access changes? | Someone must find and remove the relevant credential | The firm can see connected clients and revoke access when a person or client leaves |
A connection with write capability deserves more than a disclaimer.
- OAuth, not shared credentials: Numbers Game uses authorized connections. The firm controls which company access is granted and can revoke it.
- Role and company scoping: a person’s firm role and their approved client set determine what they can reach. A Viewer is read-only and cannot see operational bank data.
- Human approval before a ledger change: the model can prepare work. It does not silently make the accounting decision.
- Structural limits: Numbers Game cannot permanently delete QuickBooks records, change Intuit account settings, initiate payments or ACH, or touch payroll filings.
- Your AI account: the firm uses its own Claude or ChatGPT account. Numbers Game does not operate a separate inference model or add a second model vendor between the firm and its chosen AI provider.
For the complete permission matrix, read Roles and QuickBooks Access Controls. For the wider security posture, read Security.
QuickBooks, Xero, and MCP, answered directly.
What is a QuickBooks and Xero MCP?
An MCP, or Model Context Protocol, is a standard way for an AI client such as Claude to use approved tools and data. Numbers Game connects the QuickBooks Online and Xero client books a firm manages to its approved AI clients, with firm controls around company access, roles, review, and logging.
Does Numbers Game work with both QuickBooks Online and Xero?
Yes. Numbers Game is built for accounting firms working across QuickBooks Online and Xero client books. It gives the firm one controlled way to use connected accounting data through Claude, ChatGPT, or another supported MCP client.
Can an MCP write to QuickBooks Online or Xero?
It can prepare bookkeeping work where the approved connection supports it, but Numbers Game does not use silent writes. A proposed categorization, journal entry, reconciliation, or other change is shown for human review before it reaches the books.
Can the firm control which companies Claude can write to?
Yes. Numbers Game gives the firm granular user and company controls. The firm can grant Claude write access per company where that is appropriate, keep other companies read-only, and exclude companies from a person’s approved client set entirely.
Do we need to export financial data into Claude?
No. The point of the connection is to work with authorized live accounting data without repeated CSV exports and copy-paste. QuickBooks Online and Xero remain the systems of record.
Can one firm work across several client companies?
Yes. Numbers Game is designed for a firm managing many client books. Each AI client is scoped to the companies the firm authorizes, and the firm can run the same analysis or workflow across its approved client set.
Who can see bank and credit card data?
Owners, Admins, and Members can access bank connections and bank-feed transaction data when authorized. Viewers cannot see bank connections or bank-feed transactions, and cannot create or modify anything in QuickBooks.
Is Numbers Game an AI model?
No. Numbers Game does not run its own inference model. Your firm uses its own Claude or ChatGPT account, so the AI provider is one you choose rather than an additional model vendor inserted by Numbers Game.
Bring one client workflow. See the MCP do the work.
Book a working session with a real QuickBooks Online or Xero workflow and leave with a useful output.