AUTOMATIONSWITCH
OfficialDev Tools

GitHub

by GitHub

Codebase awareness layer for accessing repositories, pull requests, issues, code search, and GitHub Actions. Fine-grained PAT scopes keep access minimal.

18,000·24 tools·Released DEC 2024·MIT
npx @modelcontextprotocol/server-github
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The official GitHub MCP server. Broad API coverage, fine-grained token scopes, and maintained by the modelcontextprotocol team. The starting point for any code-aware agent.

Reviewed by M. Nouriel · APR 2026

INSTALL THIS SERVER

Requires authenticationGitHub Personal Access Token via GITHUB_TOKEN env var
{ "mcpServers": { "github": { "command": "npx", "args": ["@modelcontextprotocol/server-github"], "env": { "GITHUB_TOKEN": "ghp_your_token" } } } }
PrereqClaude Desktop v1.4+ . Restart after save
{ "mcpServers": { "github": { "command": "npx", "args": ["-y", "@modelcontextprotocol/server-github"], "env": { "GITHUB_TOKEN": "ghp_your_token" } } } }
{ "servers": { "github": { "type": "stdio", "command": "npx", "args": ["@modelcontextprotocol/server-github"] } } }

5 TOOLS AVAILABLE

search_code
Search code across repositories
Read
get_file_contents
Read file contents from a repository
Read
create_issue
Create a new issue
Write

OUR ASSESSMENT

Strengths
  • Official reference implementation with broad API coverage
  • Fine-grained PAT scopes for least-privilege access
  • Actively maintained by the MCP protocol team
  • 24 tools covering the full GitHub surface
Weaknesses
  • Requires a GitHub PAT with appropriate scopes
  • Enterprise-specific features (SAML, IP allow lists) require additional setup
Security Notes

Uses fine-grained PATs. Scope tokens to the minimum required repositories and permissions. Read-only scopes available for discovery workflows.

Best For

Any agent workflow that touches repositories, PRs, issues, or code search

TECHNICAL DETAILS

Language
typescript
Transport
stdio
Clients
Claude DesktopClaude CodeCursorVS CodeWindsurfCline
License
MIT
GitHub
npm
@modelcontextprotocol/server-github
Last Release
v0.6.2APR 10, 2026
First Released
DEC 1, 2024

ADOPTION METRICS

// GitHub Stars
18,000
400 this week (+2.3%)

// Reading thisThe second most-starred MCP server globally. Growth is organic and steady, driven by the modelcontextprotocol monorepo visibility.

// Weekly Downloads
62,000
3,800 this week

// Reading thisConsistently the highest-downloaded MCP after filesystem. Enterprise adoption drives the bulk of weekly installs.

// Popularity Rank
#2
Globally · #1 in Dev Tools

// Reading this#2 globally behind filesystem. #1 in Dev Tools by a wide margin.

SOURCES & VERIFICATION

We don't take any single directory's word for it. Before scoring, we cross-reference 4 public MCP sources, install the server ourselves against the clients we cover, and record when we last re-verified.

01
Discovered
Official MCP Registry
First indexed APR 24, 2026
02
Cross-referenced
4 directories
Official MCP Registry, PulseMCP, Smithery, Glama
03
Verified against
Claude Desktop + Cursor + VS Code
Installed and tested across clients
04
Last re-checked
APR 22, 2026
Weekly re-verification
// How other directories see it

The same server, 4 different lenses. We reconcile these signals into our editorial score, which is why our number sometimes diverges from a directory-aggregate star count.

SourceTheir ratingTheir star countTheir downloadsLast synced
AutomationSwitch This page5editorial18,00062.0K / wkAPR 22, 2026
Official MCP Registry— unrated3,200unavailableAPR 12, 2026
PulseMCP4.7 community3,18042.6K / wkAPR 21, 2026
Smithery4.8 installs3,20055.0K installsAPR 20, 2026
Glama— unrated3,210unavailableAPR 18, 2026

// Counts are directory-reported; we don't adjust them. Discrepancies usually come from different snapshot times or star-caching.

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