io.github.cyanheads/bls-labor-mcp-server

Measured conclusion: Deep-tested. L2 outcome: tools_ok.

Fetch US Bureau of Labor Statistics data — CPI, unemployment, wages, JOLTS, and more via MCP.

Add to your agent

Copy this into your MCP client config:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "bls-labor-mcp-server": {
      "url": "https://bls-labor.caseyjhand.com/mcp",
      "transport": "streamable-http"
    }
  }
}

Measured tools (6)

• bls_list_surveys read-only

  List BLS survey programs with their abbreviation codes, full names, and metadata about calculation support and annual averages. Use to discover which survey covers a topic before calling bls_search_series; bls_search_series covers only the surveys in its offline index, and series in the others are fetched by SeriesID with bls_get_series. Optional category filter narrows results to prices, employment, wages, productivity, injuries, or time_use surveys.

  Parameters:

  • category — string — Optional category filter. One of: prices, employment, wages, productivity, injuries, time_use. A survey can appear under more than one category (CES under employment and wages). Omit to list all surveys.

  Hints: read-only yes · destructive not declared · idempotent yes · open-world no

• bls_search_series read-only

  Search the BLS series catalog by natural language query, survey code, geographic area, or keywords to resolve cryptic SeriesIDs. Returns matching series with decoded components (survey, area, item, seasonal flag, and publication frequency for surveys that publish one series at several frequencies) and plain-language names, ranked by relevance and paged with limit and offset. Use this before bls_get_series when you have a concept but not a SeriesID. Operates offline against an index of the major surveys — no API quota consumed. Survey filter accepts the two-letter code of an indexed survey (CU, AP, CE, LN, LA, PC, WP, JT, EC, PR, MP, CW, CM, CI; OE only when the server sets BLS_CATALOG_INCLUDE_OES=true); series in other surveys are fetched by SeriesID with bls_get_series. Area filter accepts state names, MSA names, or FIPS area codes.

  Parameters:

  • query (required) — string — Natural language or keyword query (e.g. "unemployment rate", "CPI food", "nonfarm payrolls"). Also accepts a SeriesID directly for exact lookup.
  • area — string — State name, MSA name, or FIPS area code to narrow results to a geographic area — a case-insensitive substring of the area name, title, or SeriesID. Without this filter, specific whole place names in query are relevance preferences; otherwise national series rank first among equal matches.
  • limit — integer — Maximum number of results to return (1–50, default 10).
  • offset — integer — Number of ranked results to skip, for paging past the first page (default 0). Pass nextOffset from the previous response to get the next page.
  • survey — string — Two-letter LABSTAT survey abbreviation to filter results, case-insensitive (e.g. CU for CPI, CE for CES, LN for CPS, LA for LAUS, JT for JOLTS). Indexed surveys: CU, AP, CE, LN, LA, PC, WP, JT, EC, PR, MP, CW, CM, CI; OE (OEWS) only when the server sets BLS_CATALOG_INCLUDE_OES=true. Omit to search all indexed surveys.
  • seasonal_adjustment — boolean — When true, return only seasonally adjusted series. When false, return only not-seasonally-adjusted. Omit to return both.

  Hints: read-only yes · destructive not declared · idempotent not declared · open-world yes

• bls_get_latest read-only

  Return the single most recent observation for one or more BLS series. Use for "what is X right now" questions — the current unemployment rate, the latest CPI reading, etc. Each series consumes one API query against the 500/day limit; for the current value of many series, bls_get_series with a 1-year window is more quota-efficient (one query for up to 50 series). Recommended limit: 10 series; maximum: 50.

  Parameters:

  • series_ids (required) — array — One or more BLS SeriesIDs (1–50). Each consumes one daily API query. Use bls_search_series to resolve concepts to SeriesIDs. Recommended: ≤10 series.

  Hints: read-only yes · destructive not declared · idempotent yes · open-world yes

• bls_get_series read-only

  Fetch time-series data for 1–50 BLS series by SeriesID in a single API request (one query against the 500/day limit). Supports optional year range (up to 20 years per request) and BLS-computed period-over-period calculations (net change and percent change; a survey returns whichever it supports and silently omits the rest — CPI and PPI return percent change only, the inflation rate). BLS can publish a '-' missing-value sentinel; check observation.available before arithmetic. Set annual_average to add each year's annual-average row, which is that year's mean rather than an additional period. When the total observation count would exceed the inline context budget, results spill to a canvas dataframe and the response includes a dataset.name handle. Call bls_dataframe_describe with that name to inspect the dataframe schema, then use the name in bls_dataframe_query SQL. Use bls_search_series first if you need to resolve a concept to a SeriesID.

  Parameters:

  • series_ids (required) — array — One or more BLS SeriesIDs (1–50). The entire batch counts as one API query. Use bls_search_series to resolve concepts to SeriesIDs.
  • end_year — integer — End year for the data range (inclusive). Supplying it without start_year is rejected before the request — BLS applies no default start year alongside an explicit end year. Pair it with start_year, or omit both for the API default window.
  • start_year — integer — Start year for the data range (inclusive). The BLS API allows up to 20 years per request and requires both bounds or neither: supplying start_year alone resolves end_year to the current year, capped at start_year + 19 so the window stays inside the 20-year limit. Omit both for the API default (typically 3–20 years depending on survey).
  • calculations — boolean — When true, request BLS-computed period-over-period calculations. The flag is a single boolean (you cannot select an individual calculation type), but the API returns whichever the survey supports and omits the rest — CPI and PPI return percent change only (the inflation rate), and a survey that supports neither simply returns its observations without calculation fields. Requesting calculations never fails, so it is always safe to set; consult bls_list_surveys (allowsNetChange / allowsPercentChange) only to predict which fields will come back. Monthly-cadence series return each supported change type over 1, 3, 6, and 12-month intervals; other cadences return a subset. A series served from the local observation mirror, when the server runs one, carries no calculation fields; enrichment.calculationsApplied is then false and notice names it.
  • annual_average — boolean — When true, add each year's annual-average row to the observations. An annual average is the mean of that year's real periods, returned as an extra row named "Annual" with period M13 (monthly series), Q05 (quarterly) or S03 (semiannual) — not an additional month or quarter, so it must be excluded from any sum or average over observations. Defaults to false, which returns real periods only; check available before aggregating. Independent of start_year/end_year. Surveys that publish no annual averages return the same rows either way; enrichment.annualAverageRows reports how many rows were actually added.

  Hints: read-only yes · destructive not declared · idempotent not declared · open-world yes

• bls_dataframe_describe read-only

  List canvas dataframes materialized by bls_get_series or by bls_dataframe_query register_as, with provenance (source tool, query parameters), TTL, row count, and column schema. Use before writing SQL to confirm column names and types. Lazy-sweeps expired tables before responding. Requires CANVAS_PROVIDER_TYPE=duckdb.

  Parameters:

  • name — string — Optional dataframe name to describe a single dataframe — a df_XXXXX_XXXXX name from bls_get_series, or a register_as name from bls_dataframe_query. Omit, or leave blank, to list all active dataframes.

  Hints: read-only yes · destructive not declared · idempotent yes · open-world no

• bls_dataframe_query read-only

  Run a single-statement SELECT against the canvas dataframes registered by bls_get_series or by an earlier register_as. Read-only: writes, DDL, DROP, COPY, PRAGMA, ATTACH, and external-file table functions are rejected. System catalogs (information_schema, pg_catalog, sqlite_master, duckdb_*) are denied at the bridge layer — use bls_dataframe_describe to list available dataframes. Supports JOINs, aggregates, window functions, and CTEs. Optional register_as persists the result as a new dataframe with a fresh TTL for chained analysis. Canvas SQL operations consume zero BLS API quota. Requires CANVAS_PROVIDER_TYPE=duckdb.

  Parameters:

  • sql (required) — string — Single-statement SELECT against df_<id> tables on the shared canvas. Reference dataframes by the names returned in bls_get_series responses or listed by bls_dataframe_describe. Standard DuckDB SQL — joins, aggregates, window functions, CTEs all supported. Example: SELECT series_id, year, period, value FROM df_AAAAA_BBBBB WHERE year >= '2020' ORDER BY year DESC.
  • preview — integer — Inline row preview count. Defaults to row_limit. Set lower (e.g. 50) when chaining via register_as and only a sample is needed immediately.
  • row_limit — integer — Hard cap on rows materialized in the response (default 1000, max 10000). Full results live on-canvas under register_as when provided.
  • register_as — string — When set, persist the query result as a new dataframe under this name. Fresh TTL — not inherited from parent tables. Use to chain analyses without re-running source SQL or consuming additional BLS quota.

  Hints: read-only yes · destructive not declared · idempotent yes · open-world no

Repository

Measured by MCPYP probing. Untested fields are omitted, never estimated. Listing is always free; MCPYP never proxies calls or stores user tokens.