How to Add Hooklayer to Claude Desktop in 60 Seconds (claude_desktop_config.json template)

The short answer

To add Hooklayer to Claude Desktop, paste this into your claude_desktop_config.json, replace the API key with your hl_live_ key, and restart Claude:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "hooklayer": {
      "url": "https://hooklayer.dev/api/mcp",
      "transport": "http",
      "headers": { "Authorization": "Bearer hl_live_YOUR_KEY_HERE" }
    }
  }
}

That's it. Claude auto-discovers all 8 Hooklayer tools (analyze_account, score_hook, viral_remix, trend_pulse, find_viral_template, search_videos, match_voice, predict_virality) and they're callable from any chat. Total time: 60 seconds. Free tier is 50 lifetime credits with no card required — get yours at hooklayer.dev/auth/signup.

Why this setup matters

MCP adoption in Claude Desktop crossed a meaningful threshold in 2026 — over 1,800 published MCP servers in the official Anthropic registry, and Hooklayer ships 8 viral-content tools that chain themselves via the recommended_chain field. Once the install below is done, every analyze_account call returns 3 pre-filled next-tool calls that Claude reads and continues automatically. Total tool-discovery time after restart: under 10 seconds.

Where claude_desktop_config.json actually lives

This is the part most setup guides skip. The file path is platform-specific:

On macOS you can open it with a one-liner from Terminal:

open ~/Library/Application\ Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

If the file doesn't exist yet, Claude Desktop hasn't created it. Open Claude Desktop once, then close it — that triggers the file creation. Or just create the file manually with the JSON above.

Step-by-step (the long version)

1. Get your Hooklayer API key

Sign up at hooklayer.dev/auth/signup — no credit card. The free tier mints an hl_live_ key with 50 lifetime credits. That's enough for ~10 analyze_account calls or ~50 score_hook calls. The key looks like hl_live_abc123def456....

Copy it. You'll need it in the next step.

2. Open claude_desktop_config.json

Use the path from the table above. If you've never set up an MCP server before, the file may be empty ({}) or contain only the top-level {"mcpServers": {}} stub.

3. Paste the Hooklayer block

Inside "mcpServers", add the Hooklayer entry. If you already have other MCP servers (filesystem, github, etc.), add Hooklayer alongside them — the entries are sibling keys:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "filesystem": { /* your existing filesystem MCP */ },
    "hooklayer": {
      "url": "https://hooklayer.dev/api/mcp",
      "transport": "http",
      "headers": { "Authorization": "Bearer hl_live_YOUR_KEY_HERE" }
    }
  }
}

The Authorization header is the trap that gets most people. It's Bearer (capitalized) followed by a single space, then the full hl_live_ key — no quotes around the key inside the string.

4. Restart Claude Desktop

Fully quit (Cmd-Q on macOS, right-click → exit on Windows) and reopen. MCP servers are loaded at startup; the new config doesn't take effect until restart.

5. Verify it worked

Open a new Claude conversation and type:

Use Hooklayer to analyze @mrbeast on TikTok.

Claude should call analyze_account, show a tool-use indicator, and return the viral_dna_score + the steal_map for MrBeast. If you see this, you're live.

If Claude says it doesn't have access to that tool, the most common causes are:

• You skipped the restart — the config doesn't load until you fully quit and reopen.
• Your key is invalid or expired — get a fresh one at hooklayer.dev/dashboard.
• There's a typo in the JSON — paste it into a JSON validator. A missing comma between MCP servers is the #1 cause.

What Hooklayer actually gives you

8 tools (all callable from Claude Desktop after the install above):

• analyze_account — Pull viral DNA scores + steal_map for any TikTok or YouTube creator.
• score_hook — Rate any hook 0-100 against proven viral patterns with cited evidence.
• viral_remix — Turn a viral video URL into a fresh script in your niche.
• trend_pulse — Live niche trend intel (rising + saturated, with sources).
• find_viral_template — Ranked viral templates with example URLs.
• search_videos — Free-text TikTok keyword search, niche-filtered.
• match_voice — Capture a creator's voice profile to write in their style.
• predict_virality — Adversarial second-pass score on a draft script (the AI slop quality gate).

Each tool costs 1-5 credits. The free tier covers real use; if you graduate, plans start at $19/month or $25 PAYG (1,500 credits, never expire).

When you're past the basics

Once Hooklayer is wired into Claude Desktop, the high-leverage move is chaining. The tools return a recommended_chain field that names the next 2-3 tool calls with parameters pre-filled. Claude reads it and continues the workflow without prompt engineering.

The natural starting points:

• Build a viral TikTok research pipeline — analyze_account → trend_pulse → find_viral_template, 10 minutes.
• Build an AI content quality gate — score_hook + predict_virality, gate every AI-generated script before publish.
• Build a TikTok competitor analysis bot — analyze_account + match_voice + viral_remix, track competitor playbooks on autopilot.

The Hooklayer MCP install page has the equivalent config snippets for Cursor, n8n, OpenAI Agents SDK, LangChain, and Windsurf if you're using something other than Claude Desktop.