Getting Started

Overview #

GapQuery scans 11 app ecosystems and surfaces the opportunities hiding in them: underserved categories, poorly-rated incumbents, overpriced tools, and missing integrations. It's for developers and micro SaaS founders who want real data behind their next idea.

You interact with the data through an MCP server that plugs into Claude Code. A set of companion skills walk Claude through discovery, validation, and deep research so you get actionable results, not just raw numbers.

Prerequisites #

A GapQuery account with an active purchase
Claude Code installed and configured
An API key (create one under Settings > API Keys after purchase)

Get Your API Key #

After purchasing, go to Settings > API Keys and create a new key. The ecosystems you can access depend on your purchase tier:

Tier	Price	Ecosystems
Bundle	$99 one-time	5 ecosystems of your choice
Unlimited	$199 one-time	All 11 ecosystems
Monthly	$49/mo	All 11 ecosystems (converts to lifetime after 4 payments)

Select your ecosystems after purchase in Settings > API Keys. You can change your selection at any time.

Connect Claude Code #

The GapQuery MCP server gives Claude Code direct access to ecosystem data and gap analysis tools. Add this to your project's .mcp.json file:

json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "gapquery": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://www.gapquery.com/mcp/gapquery",
      "headers": {
        "Authorization": "Bearer YOUR_API_KEY"
      }
    }
  }
}

Replace YOUR_API_KEY with the key you created in the previous step.

The MCP server uses the streamable HTTP transport. Make sure your version of Claude Code supports MCP.

Verify Connection #

Open Claude Code in your project and ask it to list available ecosystems. If it comes back with data, you're connected.

text

You: "What ecosystems are available in GapQuery?"
Claude: Lists ecosystems with slugs and app counts

If Claude can't find the tools, check that .mcp.json is in your project root and restart Claude Code.

Install the Skills #

GapQuery ships three skills that give Claude Code a structured workflow on top of the MCP tools: gapquery-discover (find opportunities), gapquery-validate (web-check real demand and whether a gap is already covered), and gapquery-research (deep build/skip verdict).

Install all three with one command:

bash

npx skills add northify/skills -y

Each skill is just a markdown file that Claude Code reads. There's nothing else to install.

Updating the skills #

We ship skill improvements regularly. When the GapQuery MCP server returns a newer version than your local skill, Claude will tell you. At that point, re-run the same install command:

bash

npx skills add northify/skills -y

Use add, not update. The npx skills update command only works for skills installed by recent versions of the skills CLI; npx skills add northify/skills -y always works regardless of when you first installed.

Once installed, just ask Claude to find opportunities or research an ecosystem. The right skill activates automatically: discover surfaces and ranks opportunities, validate web-checks the promising ones, and research runs the deep build/skip study.

What the Skills Do #

Discover (gapquery-discover)

Ecosystem Scan: Broad analysis across all dimensions
Creative Synthesis: Connects raw signals into opportunity ideas
Drill-down: Zooms into the most promising signals
Present & Select: Ranked list of opportunities for you to pick from

Validate (gapquery-validate)

Before you sink time into research, validate pressure-tests an opportunity against the real world: it web-searches for genuine demand (forums, Reddit, communities) and checks whether standalone tools outside the marketplace already solve it, then saves a market-reality verdict to the opportunity.

Research (gapquery-research, 6 Areas)

Market Validation: TAM/SAM, growth trends, timing
Competition: Direct and indirect competitors, your advantages
Revenue: Pricing model, estimated MRR, key assumptions
Technical: APIs, complexity, dev time, stack
Keywords: SEO difficulty, content strategy
Go-to-Market: Launch strategy, channels, partnerships

Next Steps #

You're all set. Here's the fastest path to your first opportunity:

Pick an ecosystem you know well
Ask Claude to scan it for opportunities
Save the top opportunities to your pipeline
Validate a shortlisted idea against real-world demand
Run deep research on the survivors
Build what the data says is missing

Read the Discovery Guide to learn how GapQuery's 8 opportunity dimensions work, the Validate Guide for the demand-and-coverage cross-check, or the Research Guide for the 6-area deep research workflow.

Guides

Reference