Is fastmcp or MCP Reference Servers better?

Neither is universally better. fastmcp is the stronger fit for Building custom MCP servers and clients in Python quickly; MCP Reference Servers for Learning how MCP servers work and adding basic filesystem, git, fetch or memory tools to a client. Use the side-by-side specs to decide by your own constraints.

Is fastmcp or MCP Reference Servers free?

fastmcp is free to run and self-host; MCP Reference Servers is free to run and self-host. Both are free to self-host — you only pay for the infrastructure and any model or API usage.

Which is more popular, fastmcp or MCP Reference Servers?

By GitHub stars — a proxy for open-source adoption — MCP Reference Servers is ahead (91k vs 28k). Stars measure attention, not necessarily the better fit for you.

MCP Servers · Head-to-head

fastmcp vs MCP Reference Servers

fastmcp and MCP Reference Servers are both mcp servers. fastmcp is The fast, Pythonic way to build MCP servers and clients, while MCP Reference Servers is the MCP steering group's reference servers: Everything, Fetch, Filesystem, Git, Memory, Sequential Thinking and Time. Here's an independent, side-by-side look at how they compare — and which fits.

fastmcp

SDK / library· Open source

The fast, Pythonic way to build MCP servers and clients.

Visit fastmcp →

MCP Reference Servers

MCP server· Open source

The MCP steering group's reference servers: Everything, Fetch, Filesystem, Git, Memory, Sequential Thinking and Time.

Visit MCP Reference Servers →

Bottom line

fastmcp and MCP Reference Servers are both open-source mcp servers you can self-host for free. MCP Reference Servers has wider GitHub adoption — 91k stars vs 28k. Neither is universally better — pick by fit.

Building one yourself? How to build an MCP server →

Side by side

Spec	fastmcp	MCP Reference Servers
Type	SDK / library	MCP server
Model	Open source	Open source
Pricing	Open source	Open source
GitHub stars	27,876	90,558
Language	Python	TypeScript
License	Apache-2.0	MIT AND Apache-2.0
Last activity	Sep 2026	Sep 2026

Key differences

MCP Reference Servers has wider GitHub adoption — 91k stars vs 28k.
fastmcp is written primarily in Python; MCP Reference Servers in TypeScript.
Licensing differs: fastmcp is Apache-2.0, MCP Reference Servers is MIT AND Apache-2.0.

Choose fastmcp if

Building custom MCP servers and clients in Python quickly.

Choose MCP Reference Servers if

Learning how MCP servers work and adding basic filesystem, git, fetch or memory tools to a client.

About fastmcp

The fast, Pythonic way to build MCP servers and clients.

Full fastmcp profile →

About MCP Reference Servers

The modelcontextprotocol/servers repository holds the small set of reference servers maintained by the MCP steering group: Everything (a test server), Fetch, Filesystem with configurable access controls, Git, a knowledge-graph Memory server, Sequential Thinking and Time. Older servers such as GitHub, GitLab and Brave Search were archived, several in favour of official vendor servers. The maintainers describe these as educational reference implementations rather than production-ready software.

Full MCP Reference Servers profile →

Frequently asked

What's the main difference between fastmcp and MCP Reference Servers?: MCP Reference Servers has wider GitHub adoption — 91k stars vs 28k.
Is fastmcp or MCP Reference Servers better?: Neither is universally better. fastmcp is the stronger fit for Building custom MCP servers and clients in Python quickly; MCP Reference Servers for Learning how MCP servers work and adding basic filesystem, git, fetch or memory tools to a client. Use the side-by-side specs to decide by your own constraints.
Is fastmcp or MCP Reference Servers free?: fastmcp is free to run and self-host; MCP Reference Servers is free to run and self-host. Both are free to self-host — you only pay for the infrastructure and any model or API usage.
Which is more popular, fastmcp or MCP Reference Servers?: By GitHub stars — a proxy for open-source adoption — MCP Reference Servers is ahead (91k vs 28k). Stars measure attention, not necessarily the better fit for you.

For agent buildersMake your product part of the discovery.Explore advertising

More mcp servers comparisons

All mcp servers →