A side-by-side look at the MCP Simple Pubmed and Pubmed MCP Server MCP servers: transport, auth, tools, quality signals, and the config to install either one in Claude, Cursor, Windsurf or VS Code.
Verdict: choose MCP Simple Pubmed for biology, medicine and bioinformatics work as a local process; choose Pubmed MCP Server for biology, medicine and bioinformatics as a local process. You can also run both side by side in one mcpServers block.
PUBMED_EMAIL, PUBMED_API_KEY.pubmed_search_articles, pubmed_fetch_articles, pubmed_fetch_fulltext.Rows where the two servers differ are marked.
| Spec | ||
|---|---|---|
| Category | Biology, Medicine and Bioinformatics | Biology, Medicine and Bioinformatics |
| Quality signal | 41/100 · Fair | 57/100 · Good |
| Install command | Confirmed | Confirmed |
| Transport | Local subprocess (stdio) | Local subprocess (stdio) |
| Auth | API key required | Not declared |
| Pricing | Free | Not declared |
| Required env vars | PUBMED_EMAILPUBMED_API_KEY | None listed |
| Verified owner | Community listing | Community listing |
| GitHub stars | 172 | 159 |
| Directory activity | 2 views 0 installs 0 upvotes | 1 views 0 installs 0 upvotes |
| Tools | Not listed | 11 |
| Full listing | View MCP Simple Pubmed | View Pubmed MCP Server |
No tool names declared yet. Check the project README from the listing page.
pubmed_search_articlesSearch PubMed with full query syntax, structured filters, date ranges, and optional summariespubmed_fetch_articlesFetch article metadata by PMID: abstract, authors, journal, MeSH terms, grants, linked retraction and correction noticespubmed_fetch_fulltextFetch full text by PMID, PMCID, or DOI, falling back from PMC to Europe PMC to Unpaywallpubmed_europepmc_searchSearch Europe PMC for preprints, patents, Agricola, and open-access records PubMed doesn't carrypubmed_europepmc_fetchFetch complete Europe PMC records, including the untruncated abstract, by `source` + `epmcIdpubmed_format_citationsFormat citations in APA 7th, MLA 9th, BibTeX, RIS, or Vancouver (ICMJE/NLM)pubmed_find_relatedFind similar articles, citing articles, or references for a PMIDpubmed_spell_checkCorrect a misspelled PubMed query via NCBI ESpellpubmed_lookup_meshLook up MeSH headings with tree numbers, scope notes, and entry termspubmed_lookup_citationResolve partial references, up to 25 at a time, to PMIDs via ECitMatchpubmed_convert_idsConvert between DOI, PMID, and PMCID via the PMC ID ConverterPaste either block (or both) into your client config, e.g. claude_desktop_config.json or ~/.cursor/mcp.json. We only show a config when the install command is confirmed.
{
"mcpServers": {
"andybrandt-mcp-simple-pubmed": {
"command": "uvx",
"args": [
"mcp-simple-pubmed"
],
"env": {
"PUBMED_EMAIL": "YOUR_PUBMED_EMAIL_HERE",
"PUBMED_API_KEY": "YOUR_PUBMED_API_KEY_HERE"
}
}
}
}
{
"mcpServers": {
"pubmed-mcp-server-2": {
"command": "bunx",
"args": [
"@cyanheads/pubmed-mcp-server@latest"
]
}
}
}