MCP guides
Everything you need to understand the Model Context Protocol and get more out of the servers in this directory.
What Is the Model Context Protocol (MCP)?
A plain-English explanation of MCP — the open standard that connects AI assistants to real tools and data — plus how clients, servers and transports fit together.
Read guide →How to Install an MCP Server (Step by Step)
Install and configure any MCP server in minutes: find the server, add its config to your client, restart and verify the tools are available.
Read guide →Claude Desktop MCP Setup (Config File + Example)
Add MCP servers to Claude Desktop: where the config file lives, how to edit it, and a working filesystem example.
Read guide →Cursor MCP Setup — Add Servers to the Cursor IDE
Configure MCP servers in Cursor using the mcp.json file or the settings UI, with a working example and troubleshooting tips.
Read guide →Best MCP Servers to Install First (2026)
A practical shortlist of the most useful MCP servers across files, code, search, browsers, databases and productivity — with what each one is good for.
Read guide →MCP vs REST API: What's the Difference?
MCP and REST APIs solve different problems. Learn when a plain API is enough, when MCP adds value, and how the two work together.
Read guide →MCP Security: Risks and Best Practices
Understand the main security risks of MCP servers — excessive permissions, prompt injection, secrets and remote servers — and how to reduce them.
Read guide →How to Connect MCP Servers to ChatGPT (Connectors & Developer Mode)
ChatGPT can use MCP servers through connectors and Developer mode. Learn how ChatGPT's MCP support works, how to add a custom connector, and which servers work best.
Read guide →6 Best MCP Servers for Web Scraping (2026 Compared)
A practical comparison of MCP servers for web scraping and crawling — Web Scraping, Browser Use, ScrapeUnblocker, Browserbase, Exa and Fetch — with install methods, trade-offs and how to choose.
Read guide →6 Best MCP Servers for Coding Agents (2026 Compared)
The MCP servers that actually make coding agents better — GitHub, Git, Firefox DevTools, Browser Use, Fetch and Filesystem — compared on what they do, install method and safety.
Read guide →5 Best Database MCP Servers (2026 Compared)
PostgreSQL, SQLite, Redis, Supabase and Elasticsearch MCP servers compared — what each exposes to your AI agent, how they install, and the safety rules to apply before connecting a database.
Read guide →4 Best MCP Servers for Web Search (2026 Compared)
Brave Search, Exa, Tavily and Fetch MCP servers compared — pricing models, result quality, freshness and which one your AI assistant actually needs.
Read guide →5 Best MCP Servers for SEO Work (2026 Compared)
MCP servers that help with SEO research and workflows — Web Scraping, Exa, Brave Search, SEO Audit and Google Maps — what each contributes to keyword research, audits and local SEO.
Read guide →6 Best MCP Servers for Data Analysis (2026 Compared)
MCP servers for data work compared — SQLite, PostgreSQL, Filesystem, Extend, Elasticsearch and Memory — covering local files, databases, document extraction and analysis discipline.
Read guide →4 Best MCP Servers for Finance & Payments (2026 Compared)
Finance-side MCP servers compared — Stripe for payments, McpMyAdmin for multi-database queries, Trading for backtesting and MarketIntell for market analysis — with security rules for money-adjacent tools.
Read guide →Best MCP Servers for Claude Desktop (2026)
The 10 MCP servers most worth adding to Claude Desktop right now — Filesystem, GitHub, Memory, Browser Use, Firefox DevTools and more — ranked by practical usefulness with install methods and safety notes.
Read guide →Best MCP Servers for Cursor (2026)
The 10 best MCP servers for the Cursor IDE — GitHub, Git, Browser Use, Supabase, Filesystem and more — with what each adds to your coding agent, install methods and a recommended starter stack.
Read guide →Best MCP Servers for ChatGPT (2026)
Which MCP servers work with ChatGPT in 2026, how connectors and developer mode actually reach MCP, and the remote servers most worth connecting — GitHub, Figma, Linear, Sentry and more.
Read guide →Remote MCP Servers: The Most Popular in 2026
The remote MCP servers most worth knowing in 2026 — hosted Streamable HTTP endpoints from GitHub, Figma, Linear, Cloudflare, Stripe and more — with what each does and who benefits.
Read guide →MCP Server Directories Compared (2026)
The MCP server directories that matter in 2026 — the official Registry, Glama, Smithery, MCP.so, PulseMCP and Docker MCP Catalog — what each is best for, and how to use them together.
Read guide →REA: Reverse Engineer Anything, Its MCP Adapter & Prompt Library
An evidence-based look at the REA reverse-engineering ecosystem: the archived core project, its LM Studio MCP adapter, the REA-Prompts collection, and what current signals do and do not prove.
Read guide →5 Best MCP Servers for Communication (2026 Compared)
MCP servers for messaging compared — Slack, Telegram, Discord, WhatsApp and Gmail/Sheets — with what each can read and send, transport types and the safety rules for tools that talk on your behalf.
Read guide →GitHub MCP Server: Remote vs Local, Auth and Toolsets (2026)
How to connect the official GitHub MCP server: the hosted remote endpoint (OAuth or a PAT), the local Docker image, toolset scoping, and the failure modes worth knowing before you wire it into your AI tool.
Read guide →