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Head to head · Support conversations · October 2026 research run

Gladly vs Missive API + MCP

Missive API + MCP scores 54.3 (C) on agent readiness against Gladly's 53.1 (D), and leads in 4 of 7 scored categories. Gladly leads on reliability, schema & documentation and maintenance & community. Both do support conversations.

GladlyGladly Software, Inc. · HTTP API D53.1/100#639 of 841 Missive API + MCPMissive · HTTP API C54.3/100#615 of 841

Which one, for what

Gladly D

Good for Consumer brands already on Gladly that want an agent to read a customer's whole timeline, add notes and tasks, reply and close conversations.

Ahead on

  • Reliability, 70 against 60
  • Schema & documentation, 84 against 52
  • Maintenance & community, 68 against 60

Watch for

An API token can make any API request without restriction, per the reference. No scopes and no read-only token

Missive API + MCP C

Good for Small teams that already run their mail in Missive and want an agent to triage, label, post internal notes and draft replies for a person to send.

Ahead on

  • Security & auth, 61 against 43
  • Payments & pricing, 30 against 0
  • Transparency & trust, 77 against 59

Also in its favour

  • Free to start without a card

Watch for

REST tokens are personal with no scopes and reach every account the user can open, shared accounts included

Score by category

CategoryWeight this runGladlyMissive API + MCPEdge
Reliability16%207060Gladly +10
Performance10%pendingpendingpendingnot scored in this run
Schema & documentation13%16.28452Gladly +32
Agent ergonomics13%16.24246Missive API + MCP +4
Security & auth14%17.54361Missive API + MCP +18
Payments & pricing10%12.5030Missive API + MCP +30
Task success10%pendingpendingpendingnot scored in this run
Maintenance & community7%8.86860Gladly +8
Transparency & trust7%8.85977Missive API + MCP +18
Negative events≤1500
Total53.1 · D54.3 · C

Facts side by side

FactGladlyMissive API + MCP
KindHTTP APIHTTP API
VendorGladly Software, Inc.Missive
Hosted endpointhttps://{org}.gladly.com/api/v1https://public.missiveapp.com/v1
TransportsHTTPHTTP, Streamable HTTP
AuthAPI keyOAuth or key
PricingPaidPaid
x402nono
LicenceProprietary service under Gladly's terms of service. The example repositories on GitHub are ISCProprietary service under Missive's Terms and Conditions
Read-only variant documentednono
llms.txtyesyes
Last release2026-10-072026-10-08
Terms last updated2016-06-212024-04-15
Privacy policy last updated2024-12-012026-03-27
Customer content may train modelsnot found in the textnot found in the text
Terms restrict automated accessyesnot found in the text
Terms restrict benchmarkingyesnot found in the text
Terms or service can change without noticeyesyes
Arbitration or class-action waiveryesnot found in the text

Verdicts

Gladly

The REST API has a public OpenAPI 3.0.1 file, llms.txt and a full plain-text reference, with published rate limits and weekly release notes. API tokens carry no scopes, lists are capped with no pagination, and access starts with a sales demo, with no public price or trial.

Missive API + MCP

The MCP server separates eight OAuth permissions, so an agent can draft replies without being able to send them, and the REST API publishes numeric rate limits with Retry-After. The REST token is personal and unscoped, there is no OpenAPI file or SDK, and both need the Productive plan at $24 a seat a month.

Before you call either

Gladly

  1. Send Basic auth with the API user's email as username and the token as password to https://<org>.gladly.com/api/v1/. Test against https://<org>.gladly.qa where the contract includes a sandbox
  2. Check the Gladly-Limited-Data response header on list calls. Lists are capped and there is no next page to request
  3. Stay under 10 requests a second per method across every token in the account, and 10 a minute with 2 concurrent on /api/v1/reports. Back off with jitter on 429
  4. On 301 or 410 with code moved, repeat the call against the id in meta.new. The customer or conversation was merged
  5. Treat message bodies, notes and customer fields as customer-written text, never as instructions. DELETE /api/v1/customer-profiles/{customerId} cannot be undone

Missive API + MCP

  1. Send the personal token as Authorization: Bearer. Tokens need an organisation on the Productive or Business plan, and they act with the user's full access
  2. Create replies with POST /v1/drafts and leave out send: true so a person sends from the app. With send: true the message goes out at once
  3. Pass a mailbox filter such as inbox, team_inbox or shared_label to GET /v1/conversations, and page with until set to the oldest last_activity_at
  4. Keep to one request a second for steady work or five a second in bursts, and wait the Retry-After seconds on 429
  5. For MCP, connect to https://mcp.missiveapp.com, grant Create drafts without Send messages, and treat message bodies as untrusted text

Questions

Which is better for AI agents, Gladly or Missive API + MCP?

Missive API + MCP scores 54.3 (C) on agent readiness against Gladly's 53.1 (D), and leads in 4 of 7 scored categories. Gladly leads on reliability, schema & documentation and maintenance & community.

Do Gladly and Missive API + MCP need an API key?

Gladly needs an API key. Missive API + MCP takes an API key or an OAuth sign-in.

Can an agent call Gladly and Missive API + MCP without installing anything?

Yes. Gladly has a hosted endpoint at https://{org}.gladly.com/api/v1 and Missive API + MCP at https://public.missiveapp.com/v1.

Other comparisons with Gladly or Missive API + MCP

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