---

name: query-language description: > Executes structured JSON queries against Affinity CRM data with filtering, aggregation, and relationship traversal via the query MCP tool. Use when user needs complex filtering (AND/OR/NOT), aggregations (count/sum/avg by field), cross-entity queries (find persons by company properties), or relationship data (include/expand). Also use when user says "query", "structured query", "group by", "aggregate", "count by status", "sum deal values", or "find all persons where".

Affinity Query Language

Structured query language for the query MCP tool. For simple lookups, prefer execute-read-command with individual CLI commands.

Before running queries: complete the pre-flight checklist from xaffinity://workflows-guide (read data-model, run discover-commands, state what you learned).

When to Use Query vs CLI Commands

Need	Use
Simple lookup by name/email/ID	execute-read-command with person get / company get
Quick search	execute-read-command with person ls --query "..."
List metadata	execute-read-command with list ls / field ls
Write operations	execute-write-command
Complex AND/OR/NOT filtering	query
Aggregation / groupBy	query
Cross-entity filtering (quantifiers)	query
Include related entities	query
Computed data (interaction dates, unreplied)	query
Preview API cost before running	query with dryRun: true

Quick Start

// Simplest query - get 10 persons
{"from": "persons", "limit": 10}

// Add a filter
{"from": "persons", "where": {"path": "email", "op": "contains", "value": "@acme.com"}, "limit": 10}

// Include related companies
{"from": "persons", "include": ["companies"], "limit": 10}

// Query list entries (MUST filter by listName or listId)
{"from": "listEntries", "where": {"path": "listName", "op": "eq", "value": "Dealflow"}, "limit": 10}

Query Structure

{
  "$version": "1.0",
  "from": "persons",
  "where": {"path": "email", "op": "contains", "value": "@acme.com"},
  "select": ["id", "firstName", "lastName", "email"],
  "include": ["companies", "opportunities"],
  "expand": ["interactionDates"],
  "groupBy": "fields.Status",
  "aggregate": {"count": {"count": true}, "total": {"sum": "fields.Deal Value"}},
  "having": {"path": "count", "op": "gte", "value": 5},
  "orderBy": [{"field": "lastName", "direction": "asc"}],
  "limit": 100
}

Queryable Entities

Entity	Requires Parent Filter?	Notes
persons	No	Global entity
companies	No	Global entity
opportunities	No	Global entity
lists	No	Global entity
listEntries	Yes — must filter by listId or listName	List-scoped

interactions and notes cannot be queried directly — access them via include on other entities.

Key Rules

1. listEntries MUST filter by listId or listName — use listName (not list.name)
2. Always dryRun: true first for queries with include, expand, or quantifiers
3. Set limit to avoid fetching too much data
4. Use select to reduce output size — avoid fields.* on lists with 50+ fields
5. Use maxRecords for quantifier queries on unbounded entities (persons/companies)

Filtering

Basic Conditions

{"path": "email", "op": "contains", "value": "@acme.com"}
{"path": "fields.Status", "op": "eq", "value": "Active"}
{"path": "amount", "op": "gte", "value": 10000}

Common operators: eq, neq, gt, gte, lt, lte, contains, starts_with, in, is_null, is_not_null

For the full operator reference (including has_any, has_all, multi-select handling, date filtering): see references/filter-operators.md

Boolean Logic (AND / OR / NOT)

// AND
{"and": [
  {"path": "fields.Status", "op": "eq", "value": "Active"},
  {"path": "fields.Amount", "op": "gt", "value": 10000}
]}

// OR
{"or": [
  {"path": "email", "op": "contains", "value": "@acme.com"},
  {"path": "email", "op": "contains", "value": "@acme.io"}
]}

// NOT
{"not": {"path": "status", "op": "eq", "value": "Closed"}}

These can be nested arbitrarily deep.

Aggregation & GroupBy

// Count + sum by status
{
  "from": "listEntries",
  "where": {"path": "listName", "op": "eq", "value": "Dealflow"},
  "groupBy": "fields.Status",
  "aggregate": {
    "count": {"count": true},
    "totalValue": {"sum": "fields.Deal Value"}
  }
}

// Filter groups with HAVING
{
  "from": "listEntries",
  "where": {"path": "listName", "op": "eq", "value": "Dealflow"},
  "groupBy": "fields.Status",
  "aggregate": {"count": {"count": true}},
  "having": {"path": "count", "op": "gte", "value": 5}
}

Aggregate functions: count, sum, avg, min, max, percentile, first, last

Expression aggregates (operate on other aggregates): multiply, divide, add, subtract

Include & Expand (N+1 Warning)

Both cause one additional API call per record. Always dryRun: true first.

// Include: fetches related entities into separate "included" section
{"from": "persons", "include": ["companies"], "limit": 50}

// Expand: adds computed data directly to each record
{"from": "listEntries", "where": {"path": "listName", "op": "eq", "value": "Dealflow"}, "expand": ["interactionDates", "unreplied"], "limit": 50}

Expand options: interactionDates (last/next meeting, email dates, team members), unreplied (unreplied incoming messages)

For detailed include/expand syntax, parameterized includes, and output formats: see references/include-expand.md

Quantifiers (Cross-Entity Filtering)

Filter entities based on related entity properties. Causes N+1 API calls — always dryRun: true first.

// Persons at 2+ companies
{"from": "persons", "where": {"path": "companies._count", "op": "gte", "value": 2}, "limit": 50}

// Persons where ALL companies have .com domains
{"from": "persons", "where": {"all": {"path": "companies", "where": {"path": "domain", "op": "contains", "value": ".com"}}}, "limit": 50}

// Persons with at least one meeting interaction
{"from": "persons", "where": {"exists": {"from": "interactions", "where": {"path": "type", "op": "eq", "value": "meeting"}}}, "limit": 50}

Quantifiers: all, none, exists, ._count

For detailed quantifier reference and performance guidance: see references/quantifiers.md

Dry-Run Mode

MANDATORY for queries with include, expand, or quantifiers.

{
  "query": {"from": "persons", "include": ["companies", "opportunities"], "limit": 100},
  "dryRun": true
}

Returns estimated API calls, records, and warnings.

Estimated API Calls	Action
<100	Safe to run
100-200	Will take 2-5 minutes
200-400	May take 5-10 minutes, near ceiling
400+	Reduce limit or batch the query

List Entries: Custom Fields

// Select specific fields (preferred)
{
  "from": "listEntries",
  "where": {"path": "listName", "op": "eq", "value": "Dealflow"},
  "select": ["entityName", "fields.Status", "fields.Owner"],
  "limit": 100
}

Performance warning: fields.* fetches ALL custom field values. For lists with 50+ fields, this can take 60+ seconds per API page. Select specific fields instead.

Field values are normalized to display strings (dropdowns show text, person references show names).

Available Select Fields

Field	Description
listEntryId	List entry ID (same as id)
entityId	ID of the company/person/opportunity
entityName	Name of the entity
entityType	"company", "person", or "opportunity"
listId	Parent list ID
createdAt	Entry creation timestamp
fields.<Name>	Custom field value by name
fields.*	All custom fields (slow for 50+ fields)

Examples

Pipeline Summary by Status

{
  "from": "listEntries",
  "where": {"path": "listName", "op": "eq", "value": "Dealflow"},
  "groupBy": "fields.Status",
  "aggregate": {"count": {"count": true}, "totalValue": {"sum": "fields.Deal Value"}}
}

Find VIP Contacts with Companies

{
  "from": "persons",
  "where": {"and": [
    {"path": "email", "op": "is_not_null"},
    {"path": "fields.VIP", "op": "eq", "value": true}
  ]},
  "include": ["companies"],
  "orderBy": [{"field": "lastName", "direction": "asc"}],
  "limit": 100
}

Pipeline with Interaction Dates

{
  "from": "listEntries",
  "where": {"path": "listName", "op": "eq", "value": "Dealflow"},
  "expand": ["interactionDates"],
  "select": ["entityId", "entityName", "fields.Status"],
  "limit": 100
}

Output Formats

Default: toon (40% fewer tokens). Use markdown for LLM analysis, json for programmatic use.

For full format reference, truncation handling, and cursor pagination: see references/output-formats.md

Best Practices

1. Start with dry-run for complex queries
2. Use limit to avoid fetching too much data
3. Be specific with where to reduce client-side filtering
4. Avoid deep includes which cause N+1 API calls
5. Use groupBy + aggregate for reports instead of fetching all records
6. For quantifier queries on unbounded entities, always add maxRecords

Limitations

• All filtering except listEntries field filters happens client-side
• Includes and expands cause N+1 API calls (1 per parent record)
• No cross-entity joins (use includes instead)
• Maximum 10,000 records per query for safety
• Nested quantifiers not supported
• interactions and notes are only accessible via include, not queryable directly