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ChatGPT can operate your lobstr.io account directly through the lobstr.io MCP server. You describe what you need in plain language, and ChatGPT finds the right scraper, launches the run in your account, and reads the results back to you. Endpoint: https://mcp.lobstr.io/mcp
This is the operational server — it acts in your account and spends credits. A separate public server at https://docs.lobstr.io/mcp only answers questions about the lobstr.io API and can’t touch your account.

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Before you start

  • A lobstr.io account with credits — launching a run spends credits from your balance.
  • ChatGPT on the web, on a plan where custom connectors are available (Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise, or Edu).
You don’t need your API key. The connection uses OAuth: you approve it on lobstr.io’s own site, so no password ever reaches ChatGPT.
On Business and Enterprise workspaces, an admin may need to allow custom connectors before the option appears for you.

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Watch the setup walkthrough

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Connect ChatGPT to lobstr.io

1

Turn on developer mode

In ChatGPT on the web, go to Settings → Apps → Advanced settings and switch on Developer mode.The button for creating custom connectors only appears once this is on.
2

Create the connector

Go to Settings → Connectors and create a new custom connector. Name it lobstr.io and paste the full URL:
Include the trailing /mcp. A URL without it won’t connect.
3

Choose OAuth and approve

lobstr.io authenticates with OAuth, so pick that option if ChatGPT asks. It opens the lobstr.io consent page — you’re already signed in, so review the permissions and click Allow.
4

Enable it in a chat

Back in ChatGPT, turn the lobstr.io connector on for the conversation you want to use it in.

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What you’re approving

The consent page lists the permissions ChatGPT is asking for, and you choose which ones to allow. You can revoke access at any time from your lobstr.io account.

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What ChatGPT can do

New scrapers work automatically. ChatGPT reads each scraper’s live input schema, so nothing needs updating when lobstr.io adds one to the store.

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Scrapers that need a synced account

Some scrapers log in to a platform on your behalf, such as the LinkedIn and Sales Navigator scrapers. They need a synced account first, set up with Account sync.
  • One matching account: if exactly one healthy synced account of the right type exists, ChatGPT attaches it for you.
  • Several or none: ChatGPT asks you which account to use, or tells you which platform to sync.
  • The type must match. A LinkedIn account can’t run a Sales Navigator scraper, and the reverse.
  • Attaching only adds. An account already on a Squid is never swapped out.

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A typical conversation

Here’s a complete run in ChatGPT — finding a scraper, launching it, and pulling the results back into the chat.
1

Find a scraper

“Find me a scraper for TripAdvisor restaurant reviews.”
2

Check what it needs

“What inputs does it take, and what does it cost per row?”
3

Launch the run

“Run it on these three restaurant pages.” — ChatGPT asks you to confirm the cost before it launches.
4

Follow the run

“Is it finished?”
5

Get the data

“Show me the results as a table.”

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Credits and confirmation

lobstr.io prices per result row, so the final cost of a run isn’t known until it finishes. Before launching, ChatGPT estimates the cost — and when the estimate is high or can’t be calculated, it asks you to confirm first. Reading scrapers, runs, and results never spends credits. For a closer figure before anything launches, ask ChatGPT to estimate the run once the Squid has its tasks. If email verification is on, it’s billed separately after the scrape.
Runs launched from ChatGPT are real runs in your account. They appear in your dashboard with an mcp badge next to the Squid name, count against your slots, and draw down the same credit balance as runs you launch yourself.

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Troubleshooting

Developer mode isn’t on, or your plan or workspace doesn’t allow custom connectors. Check Settings → Apps → Advanced settings first, and ask your workspace admin if you’re on Business or Enterprise.
Check the URL is exactly https://mcp.lobstr.io/mcp, over HTTPS and with the /mcp path included.
That’s expected. lobstr.io charges per row, so the total is unknowable up front — the estimate still shows you the per-row rate.
Open the run in your lobstr.io dashboard. ChatGPT sees the same status your account does, so the dashboard will show the same stop reason.
Your plan caps the total slots your active Squids can reserve. The cap is checked when a Squid is created, activated, or has its slots raised, not when a run starts. If creating a Squid fails because you’re at the limit, deactivate Squids you don’t need from the dashboard, or ask ChatGPT to do it. After a plan change the count can read above your limit; Squids that already exist keep running.
On the free plan, reading results through the MCP server is capped at the first 30 rows. Upgrading your plan is the only way past it. See Manage subscription.