Popular MCP Servers
Explore the most widely used MCP servers for files, databases, APIs, and more. Install them in minutes.
Filesystem Server
The most commonly used MCP server. Gives the AI model controlled access to read and write files on your local machine.
{
"filesystem": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"@modelcontextprotocol/server-filesystem",
"/Users/you/Documents",
"/Users/you/Projects"
]
}
}
// Available tools:
read_file - Read contents of a file
write_file - Write content to a file
list_directory - List files in a directory
create_directory- Create a new directory
move_file - Move or rename a file
search_files - Search for files by pattern
get_file_info - Get file metadata
Database Servers
PostgreSQL
{
"postgres": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"@modelcontextprotocol/server-postgres",
"postgresql://user:pass@localhost:5432/mydb"
]
}
}
// Available tools:
query - Execute read-only SQL queries
// Resources: database schema as resource
SQLite
{
"sqlite": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"@modelcontextprotocol/server-sqlite",
"/path/to/database.db"
]
}
}
GitHub Server
Manage GitHub repositories, issues, pull requests, and more:
{
"github": {
"command": "npx",
"args": ["-y", "@modelcontextprotocol/server-github"],
"env": {
"GITHUB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN": "ghp_your_token"
}
}
}
// Available tools:
create_or_update_file - Create/update a file in a repo
search_repositories - Search GitHub repositories
create_issue - Create a new issue
create_pull_request - Create a pull request
fork_repository - Fork a repository
create_branch - Create a new branch
list_commits - List recent commits
list_issues - List repository issues
Slack Server
{
"slack": {
"command": "npx",
"args": ["-y", "@modelcontextprotocol/server-slack"],
"env": {
"SLACK_BOT_TOKEN": "xoxb-your-token",
"SLACK_TEAM_ID": "T0123456789"
}
}
}
// Available tools:
send_message - Send a message to a channel
list_channels - List available channels
get_channel_history- Read recent messages
reply_to_thread - Reply in a thread
Brave Search Server
{
"brave-search": {
"command": "npx",
"args": ["-y", "@modelcontextprotocol/server-brave-search"],
"env": {
"BRAVE_API_KEY": "BSA..."
}
}
}
// Available tools:
brave_web_search - Search the web
brave_local_search - Search for local businesses
Google Drive Server
{
"gdrive": {
"command": "npx",
"args": ["-y", "@modelcontextprotocol/server-gdrive"],
"env": {
"GDRIVE_CREDENTIALS_PATH": "/path/to/credentials.json"
}
}
}
// Available tools:
search_files - Search Google Drive files
read_file - Read a file's content
Puppeteer Server
Browser automation for web scraping and testing:
{
"puppeteer": {
"command": "npx",
"args": ["-y", "@modelcontextprotocol/server-puppeteer"]
}
}
// Available tools:
navigate - Navigate to a URL
screenshot - Take a screenshot
click - Click an element
fill - Fill a form field
evaluate - Run JavaScript in page
Server Comparison
| Server | Category | Auth Required | Use Case |
|---|---|---|---|
| Filesystem | Local Files | No | Read/write local files |
| PostgreSQL | Database | Connection string | Query databases |
| GitHub | API | PAT token | Repo management |
| Slack | Messaging | Bot token | Send/read messages |
| Brave Search | Web Search | API key | Search the internet |
| Google Drive | Cloud Storage | OAuth credentials | Access Drive files |
| Puppeteer | Browser | No | Web scraping, testing |
Finding Community Servers
The MCP ecosystem is growing rapidly. Here is where to find community-built servers:
MCP Servers GitHub
The official modelcontextprotocol/servers repository on GitHub contains reference implementations and community contributions.
npm / PyPI
Search for @modelcontextprotocol on npm or mcp-server- on PyPI to find published servers.
Awesome MCP Lists
Community-curated lists on GitHub collect the best MCP servers across categories.
What's Next?
The next lesson covers deploying MCP servers — from local stdio to remote HTTP/SSE, Docker containers, and cloud platforms.
Lilly Tech Systems