Search conversations
Conversations matching a Help Scout search: status, tag, assignee, subject and free text.
MCP tool help_scout_read → search_conversations
read
Runs the same search as the search box in Help Scout and returns the conversations it finds, newest first, with the fields shown in a folder list. Free text matches the subject, body, notes and attachment file names; filters such as status:active, assigned:Unassigned, tag:billing and subject:urgent narrow it, and a comma means OR (tag:shirts,ties). A search holds up to 1,000 characters. You see only inboxes your account can open, and deleted conversations are not returned.
Parameters
| Name | Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
| query string required | string | Help Scout search text and filters, e.g. 'status:active assigned:Unassigned tag:billing'. Up to 1,000 characters. |
| inbox string | string | Inbox name, e.g. 'Support'. Default: every inbox you can open. |
| limit integer | integer | 1 to 50. Default: 25. |
| cursor string | string | Next page cursor from the previous call. |
tools/call
{
"jsonrpc": "2.0",
"id": 1,
"method": "tools/call",
"params": {
"name": "help_scout_read",
"arguments": {
"operation": "search_conversations",
"arguments": {
"query": "status:active assigned:Unassigned tag:billing"
}
}
}
}Example response
{
"content": [
{
"type": "text",
"text": "{ ... same JSON as structuredContent ... }"
}
],
"structuredContent": {
"query": "status:active assigned:Unassigned tag:billing",
"total": 2,
"conversations": [
{
"conversation_id": 48244,
"subject": "Charged twice in October",
"status": "active",
"assignee": null,
"tags": [
"billing"
],
"customer": "Priya Nair",
"inbox": "Support",
"thread_count": 3,
"last_activity": "2026-10-16T08:12:00Z"
},
{
"conversation_id": 48202,
"subject": "Invoice shows the wrong address",
"status": "active",
"assignee": null,
"tags": [
"billing"
],
"customer": "Tom Becker",
"inbox": "Support",
"thread_count": 1,
"last_activity": "2026-10-15T17:40:00Z"
}
],
"next_cursor": null
},
"isError": false
}