Getting Started

Create a free account

Sign up at umlforge.dev/signup. No credit card required — the free plan gives you 5 diagrams per month across all 13 tools.

After signing up, open the dashboard, go to API Keys, and create a key. Copy it — it is shown only once.

Create your config file

UML Forge reads its settings from ~/.umlforge/config.toml. Run these two commands in your terminal to create it:

mkdir -p ~/.umlforge

cat > ~/.umlforge/config.toml << 'EOF'
api_key = "uf_live_your_key_here"
guided_mode = false
EOF

Replace uf_live_your_key_here with the key you copied from the dashboard. Set guided_mode = true if you are on the Pro plan.

Add UML Forge to your coding tool

UML Forge works through the Model Context Protocol (MCP). Add the connector configuration for your tool below. After saving, restart your tool to pick up the new server.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "umlforge": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": ["uml-forge-mcp"]
    }
  }
}

{
  "umlforge": {
    "command": "uvx",
    "args": ["uml-forge-mcp"]
  }
}

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "umlforge": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": ["uml-forge-mcp"]
    }
  }
}

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "umlforge": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": ["uml-forge-mcp"]
    }
  }
}

Generate your first diagram

Open a conversation in your coding tool and ask it to call a UML Forge tool. The simplest first call is umlforge_suggest — describe what you are building and it will recommend the right diagram type:

Use umlforge_suggest to recommend the best diagram type for:
"I'm designing the checkout flow for an e-commerce app —
user adds to cart, enters payment, Stripe processes it,
order is confirmed and emailed."

Or go directly to a diagram tool. Here is a typical first call:

Use umlforge_api_sequence with:
- endpoints: "POST /orders, POST /payments, GET /orders/{id}"
- services: "OrderService, PaymentService, NotificationService"
- auth_method: "JWT Bearer"
- include_error_flows: true

The tool returns a Mermaid diagram rendered inline. Copy the ```mermaid block into any Markdown editor, GitHub, or Notion to view it.

Upgrade to Pro for Guided Mode

Free users get all 13 tools. Pro users also unlock Guided Mode — before generating, UML Forge asks 3–5 clarifying questions about your system. The answers produce significantly more accurate diagrams, especially for complex systems.

To enable Guided Mode after upgrading, set the flag in your config file:

# ~/.umlforge/config.toml
api_key = "uf_live_your_key_here"
guided_mode = true   # ← enable after upgrading to Pro