Cheap-ag MCP is an open-source MCP server that lets an expensive Claude model plan a task while a cheap model writes the output, with tests deciding what ships. On a $20 Claude plan that means fewer premium tokens burned per task, so you finish more AI social media work before you hit limits. The tradeoff is real: cheap output is weaker on brand-voice copy.
your prompt
|
v
[ Opus / Sonnet ] plans the task, writes the spec
| (few premium tokens)
v
[ cheap model ] writes every line of output
| (most of the token volume)
v
[ test gate ] pass? ship. fail? loop back
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v
finished draft / reply / code
What Is Cheap-Ag MCP and How Does It Cut Claude Costs
Cheap-ag MCP moves token volume off your premium Claude model and onto a cheaper one, keeping the expensive model for planning only.
Most of what an AI agent does is not deep reasoning. It is generating lines: a caption, a reply, a summary of a week of analytics, a chunk of code. Those lines cost the same per token whether a frontier model or a cheap model writes them. Cheap-ag separates the two jobs. The strong model reads the request and writes a plan. The cheap model fills in the output. A test step checks the result before it counts as done.
Three things make it work:
- Opus plans. The frontier model stays in the loop for the part it is actually good at: understanding the task, choosing a structure, writing a spec the cheap model can follow.
- A cheap model writes. Every line of the actual output comes from the low-cost model, which is where most of the token spend goes.
- Tests decide what ships. The server checks the output against criteria before returning it, and loops when the check fails instead of handing you a broken draft.
The saving is not a discount. It is a reallocation. Your $20 plan buys fewer Opus tokens than you would like, and cheap-ag spends those tokens on thinking rather than typing.
How Cheap-Ag MCP Works: Opus Plans, Cheap Model Writes, Tests Ship
Cheap-ag MCP turns a single request into three stages, and only the first stage touches your premium quota in any serious way.
- Plan. The premium model receives your prompt and returns a short plan: what the output must contain, what shape it takes, what good looks like. This is a small number of tokens relative to the finished work.
- Write. The cheap model takes the plan and produces the output. A 300 word blog section, a batch of ten comment replies, a caption set. This is where the bulk of the tokens land, and they land on the cheap model.
- Test. The server runs whatever check the task defines, then either ships the result or sends it back to the writer with the failure. You get output that passed a gate, not the first thing the model typed.
The quality of a cheap-ag run depends almost entirely on stage one. A vague plan gives the cheap writer nothing to aim at, and the test gate can only reject so much. A precise plan, with a format, a length, a list of required elements and a tone description, gives the cheap model a narrow target it can hit.
That is also why cheap-ag is a poor fit for work where the plan is the work. A strategy memo, a positioning statement, a sensitive public reply to a complaint: the premium model’s own phrasing is the product. Save those for direct Claude requests and push the volume work through cheap-ag.
How to Install Cheap-Ag MCP in Claude Code
Cheap-ag is an MCP server, so installing it means adding one entry to your Claude Code MCP configuration, then giving it whatever model access it needs.
The repository is at github.com/muaaz9329/cheap-ag. Follow its setup steps for the exact command and the model or API key it expects, since those details live in the repo and change as the project moves. The pattern is the same as any HTTP MCP server you add to Claude Code:
claude mcp add --transport http cheapag <url> \
--header "Authorization: Bearer <key>"Once it is registered, Claude Code sees its tools alongside everything else in your session. You prompt normally and the server decides what to route to which model.
A practical first test: give it a scoped, repeatable job rather than an open-ended one. Something like “take these five comments and draft a short public reply to each, under 40 words, no hashtags, no exclamation marks.” That has a clear plan, a clear output format, and a clear thing to check. If cheap-ag handles it cleanly, you have found a job worth pushing off your premium quota permanently.
If you also run Creator OS, the two servers sit side by side in the same Claude Code session. Cheaper drafting on one side, real publishing on the other. See the MCP docs for Creator OS connection details.
How Much Claude Usage Can a $20 Plan Actually Stretch
The honest answer: it stretches the number of tasks you complete, not the depth of any single one, and the multiple depends on how much of your work is generation versus reasoning.
The 50x figure in the project’s own framing describes the best case, where nearly every token in a task would otherwise have gone to the premium model. Real work mixes the two. A task that is 90 percent generation and 10 percent planning sits close to that best case. A task that is half reasoning sits much further away. Treat the headline as a ceiling, not a promise, and measure your own mix.
Here is how that plays out in a typical creator week on a $20 plan:
| Task | Premium-heavy workload | With cheap-ag routing |
|---|---|---|
| Ten comment replies | Short but frequent, adds up fast | Good fit, narrow plan, cheap writes |
| One week of captions across platforms | Long output, heavy on tokens | Good fit, keep the plan detailed |
| Analytics read-out | Depends on how much judgment you want | Mixed fit, plan does most of the value |
| Brand positioning or crisis reply | Premium model should own this | Poor fit, do not route it |
The pattern to notice: the more repetitive and format-driven the job, the better cheap-ag pays off. The more the job is judgment, the less you gain and the more you risk.
Where Cheap-Ag Fits Your Social Stack
Routing cheap models through an Instagram, X, Facebook or LinkedIn workflow means splitting drafting from publishing, and only drafting belongs on the cheap side.
A workable three-layer stack looks like this:
- Drafting layer: cheap-ag, for the volume of captions, replies and variant sets.
- Publishing and data layer: a platform MCP server that actually posts and reads numbers.
- Your judgment: the pass that decides what leaves the building.
Creator OS fills the middle layer. It runs a hosted MCP server at https://mcp.creatoros.ca/mcp with nothing to install, and about 160 tools across posts, analytics, comments, DMs, automations, Skool, Reddit, Discord, WhatsApp, Slack, Shopify, the blog and the Ads add-on. Tool names you will recognize: create_post, get_post_analytics, list_comments, reply_to_comment, check_caption_length.
That split matters because the two halves have different failure modes. A cheap model that writes a clumsy caption costs you a rewrite. A publishing tool that posts the clumsy caption costs you an audience. Keep them separate and cheap-ag becomes safe to use aggressively.
A worked loop: cheap-ag generates twenty caption variants for a week of Instagram Reels. You pick five. Claude calls check_caption_length on each to confirm platform limits, then create_post to schedule the winners. Two days later get_post_analytics returns the numbers, including the Reel watch stats that show which hooks held. That feedback goes into next week’s cheap-ag prompt as a tighter plan. For the full loop, read the Claude Code plus Creator OS MCP setup guide.
The Quality Tradeoff: Where Cheap Models Hurt Brand-Voice Content
Cheap models fail in a specific way: they produce text that is grammatically fine, structurally correct, and slightly wrong for you.
You will notice it as flattened rhythm. The sentence lengths even out. The opinions soften into preferences. Industry shorthand gets spelled out. Jokes arrive with the timing sanded off. None of that shows up in a grammar check, and none of it is caught by a test that only verifies format.
Five places to keep the premium model in charge:
- Your bio and pinned posts. Read thousands of times, rewritten rarely. Cheap output here compounds.
- Replies to complaints or criticism. Tone carries the whole message. One flat sentence reads as indifference.
- Launch announcements. The one post where a wrong nuance is expensive.
- Anything with a number in it. Cheap models are more likely to drift on figures and dates. Verify every one against source.
- Direct messages to a customer. A DM lands in someone’s private inbox. Voice matters more there than in a public post.
Give cheap-ag the jobs with a clear target and a countable pass mark. Give the premium model the jobs where the phrasing is the product. If you want to see how this plays out with an agent harness, watch the walkthroughs on the KevBuildsApps YouTube channel, and the launch video for the agent side of the stack.
How to Combine Cheap-Ag With a Content Calendar and Creator OS
Pair cheap-ag with a content calendar and you get cheap drafting plus scheduled delivery in one Claude Code session, with your approval as the gate between them.
The workflow that holds up:
- Ask Claude to pull next week’s open slots with
creatoros posts:list --status scheduledandcreatoros analytics:best-time. - Send the slot list and your topic notes through cheap-ag for first drafts.
- Edit the drafts you keep. This step is yours and should stay yours.
- Schedule with
creatoros posts:create --text "<caption>" --platforms instagram,tiktok --scheduledAt <ISO> --timezone <tz>. - Read results later and feed the winners back into the plan.
Because Creator OS API keys are pinned to one workspace, an agent holding one workspace’s key cannot post to another. Destructive calls such as delete post or delete ad are marked so the AI app asks before running. That gives you a second gate on top of cheap-ag’s test step. For the wider setup, see building a content repurposing agent with Claude Code, and for the agent design pattern, Claude Code templates for content teams. Full commands are in the CLI docs.
FAQ
What is the cheap-ag MCP server?
It is an open-source MCP server, published at github.com/muaaz9329/cheap-ag, that routes a task so an expensive Claude model writes the plan and a cheaper model writes the output. A test step checks the result before it returns. You add it to Claude Code like any other MCP server.
Does cheap-ag MCP really give 50x Claude usage on a $20 plan?
The 50x figure describes the best case, where almost every token in a task would otherwise have gone to the premium model. Real work mixes planning and generation, so your own multiple will be lower. Measure it on your own tasks rather than assuming the headline number.
Is cheap-ag MCP safe to use with my Claude account?
It is open source, so you can read the code before running it. Review what model access and credentials it asks for, and confirm where your prompt content is sent. Treat any third-party MCP server the way you would treat an unfamiliar script with access to your accounts.
Can cheap-ag MCP write Instagram, X and LinkedIn posts in my brand voice?
It can draft them, and the quality depends on how detailed the plan the premium model writes. Captions and comment replies in a defined format work well. Voice-heavy work such as bios, launch posts and replies to criticism is better written directly by the premium model.
How does cheap-ag MCP compare to using Claude Opus directly?
Direct Opus gives you the strongest phrasing and judgment on every token, and it uses your premium quota on all of it. Cheap-ag trades some of that quality for a much larger volume of finished tasks. Use direct Opus for the few pieces that carry your voice, and route volume work through cheap-ag.
Get started
Cheap-ag helps you draft more without hitting Claude limits. Creator OS is where those drafts actually go out and where the numbers come back. It publishes, schedules, replies and reads analytics across 11 platforms plus Skool, with a WordPress blog, a Shopify store and a paid ads add-on, all from the web app, the iOS app, the REST API, the @creatoros/cli CLI, a Claude Code plugin or the hosted MCP server.
Creator OS plans start at $14.99/month for 11 platforms plus Skool, with the API, the MCP server and the CLI included. Start at https://www.creatoros.ca/sign-up and read the setup guides at https://www.creatoros.ca/docs.
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