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Connecting Robinhood on Scalar Field turns a research workspace into a live trading desk. Once the account is linked, your agents and strategies can read real positions and place real orders in US equities and ETFs, and your Robinhood balance rolls into your overall portfolio view. This guide walks through the connection screen by screen. The whole process takes about two minutes, and Scalar Field never asks for your Robinhood username or password. What you’ll learn:
  • How the Robinhood connection works and why it needs a browser extension
  • What you need before you start
  • How to install the Scalar Field – Robinhood Bridge extension
  • How to authorize Robinhood over OAuth
  • How to verify positions, buying power, and orders after connecting
  • How to troubleshoot a failed connection and how to disconnect

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How the Robinhood Connection Works

Scalar Field connects to Robinhood over OAuth. You log in on Robinhood’s own site, and Robinhood hands Scalar Field a scoped token. Your credentials are never shared with or stored by Scalar Field. Robinhood returns that token to a local callback address, so the handshake needs a small helper running in your browser. That helper is the Scalar Field – Robinhood Bridge, a background-only extension you install once from the Chrome Web Store. It activates solely on the Robinhood OAuth callback and stores no personal data.

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Before You Start

Four things are required. If any one is missing, the connect flow will stop and tell you why. Two limits are worth knowing before you connect: the integration covers US equities and ETFs, and margin is not supported. Your buying power in Scalar Field reflects cash only, and neither agents nor manual trades can use Robinhood margin or day-trade leverage.

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Step 1: Open Your Portfolio

Sign in to Scalar Field and click Portfolio in the left sidebar, or go directly to scalarfield.io/portfolio. Scroll to the Connect More section, headed “Add exchanges, brokerages, and trading venues.” Every available venue lives here. The Connect More section on the Scalar Field portfolio page

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Step 2: Click Connect on the Robinhood Card

Find the Robinhood card. It carries a Live Trading badge and the description “US equities and ETFs via Robinhood (connects through the Scalar Field browser extension).” Click Connect. The Robinhood card with its Live Trading badge and Connect button

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Step 3: Install the Robinhood Bridge Extension

The connect modal opens on the extension step with two numbered instructions: install the Scalar Field – Robinhood Bridge extension, then click Add to Chrome. Click Install Extension. The Chrome Web Store opens in a smaller window on top of Scalar Field, so you never lose your place. Until the extension is installed, the modal shows a status pill reading Extension not detected yet. The connect modal prompting you to install the Robinhood Bridge extension In the store window, click Add to Chrome, confirm the permission prompt, then close that window and return to Scalar Field.

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Step 4: Let Scalar Field Detect the Extension

Scalar Field re-checks automatically when you return to the tab. As soon as the extension answers, the modal advances to the disclosures step on its own. You do not need to click anything. If it stays on the install step, click Check. That opens a small popup which reloads the page context so the newly installed extension can respond. This is the most common snag: a tab that was already open before you installed the extension cannot see it, so a hard refresh fixes it too.

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Step 5: Review and Accept the Disclosures

The disclosures step lists three items. Read them before continuing. Tick “I agree to the Terms of Use, Privacy Policy, and authorize this connection” and click Acknowledge & continue. The Robinhood disclosures step with the consent checkbox ticked

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Step 6: Authorize on Robinhood

A popup opens on Robinhood’s own login page, headed Log in to Robinhood. Robinhood shows its own confirmation there: “Log in to link your account. We won’t share your username or password with third-party apps.” Sign in with your email and password, or use Log in with passkeys, then approve the request. If your account has two-factor authentication, you complete that here as well. All of this happens on robinhood.com. The Robinhood login and authorization popup

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Step 7: Let the Connection Finish

When you approve, the bridge extension captures the callback and closes the popup itself. A popup that disappears on its own is the expected success path, not an error. Scalar Field then polls for confirmation while the token exchange completes on the server. This normally takes a few seconds, and it will keep waiting up to three minutes before giving up. Stay on the page until the Robinhood card shows as connected.

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Step 8: Verify Your Robinhood Portfolio

Your account now appears under Your Venues on the portfolio page. Click it, or go to scalarfield.io/portfolio/robinhood. The page loads your portfolio value, buying power, cash, and position count, followed by a Positions table, a Quick Trade panel, and your recent Orders. You will also see the Margin trading not supported notice: “Buying power reflects cash only. Agents and manual trades cannot use Robinhood margin or day-trade leverage.” Once the positions table populates, your agents and strategies can trade through Robinhood.

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Other Ways to Connect Robinhood

The portfolio page is not the only entry point. The same flow is available from:
  • Chat. The Connect a platform card lists Robinhood with a Connect button, and shows a Connected badge once linked.
  • The invest flow. When you deploy a strategy, the Choose Account step lets you connect Robinhood inline.
  • Add Trading Platforms. This menu lists Robinhood under Brokerages and takes you to the Robinhood portfolio page.
  • The Robinhood page directly. Visiting /portfolio/robinhood while unlinked shows an Account Not Connected notice with a Connect Robinhood button.

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Troubleshooting

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How to Disconnect Robinhood

Open /portfolio/robinhood and click Disconnect Robinhood. The confirmation reads: “This will disconnect your Robinhood account from the platform. You can reconnect at any time.” Disconnecting revokes Scalar Field’s access. Reconnecting uses the same flow described above, and because the extension stays installed, it is considerably faster the second time.

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What to Know Before Trading Through Robinhood

  • Instruments. US equities and ETFs.
  • Margin. Not supported. Buying power reflects cash only, and neither agents nor manual trades can use margin or day-trade leverage.
  • Credentials. Never collected or stored. Authorization happens on Robinhood’s site and can be revoked by disconnecting.
  • Cancellations. Scalar Field will attempt to cancel an order with Robinhood, but orders already in execution may not be cancellable.
  • Scope. The agent only does what its mandate and risk limits allow. Connecting a broker does not hand an agent unlimited authority.

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Final Checklist

Before you rely on the connection, confirm:
  • Browser: You are on desktop Chrome or Brave, in a regular window.
  • Extension: The Scalar Field – Robinhood Bridge is installed and enabled.
  • Authorization: You completed login on Robinhood’s own page, including any two-factor step.
  • Status: Robinhood appears under Your Venues on the portfolio page.
  • Data: Positions, buying power, and orders load on /portfolio/robinhood.
  • Limits: You understand that margin is unavailable and buying power is cash only.
  • Exit: You know where Disconnect Robinhood lives if you want to revoke access.
If any item is missing, resolve it before pointing an agent at the account.

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Final Thoughts

Connecting Robinhood is intentionally a short flow with an explicit consent step. The extension exists for one narrow purpose — completing the OAuth handshake — and the disclosures make the boundaries clear before any order can be placed. Once linked, Robinhood becomes a venue your agents can use inside the limits you define. The strategy, the allocation, and the risk controls remain yours to set; the broker connection just closes the gap between a verified idea and live execution. For venue-specific API details, see the Robinhood venue documentation.