In-depth architectural comparison of the Catalog and Carbone MCP MCP servers. Compare execution transports, security boundaries, tool capabilities, quality scores, and ready-to-paste client installation snippets for Claude, Cursor, Windsurf, and VS Code.
At a Glance & Executive Verdict
Catalog
Developer Tools · Local stdio
Quality: 52/100 (Good) | Auth: No auth required
Carbone MCP
Developer Tools · Local stdio
Quality: 57/100 (Good) | Auth: No auth required
Verdict Summary: Choose Catalog if you need specialized Developer Tools tools running via a local process. Choose Carbone MCP if your workspace requires Developer Tools integration with local subprocess execution. Both servers can be configured concurrently in your client's mcpServers manifest.
Which MCP Server Should You Choose?
C
Choose Catalog when:
You need dedicated capabilities in the Developer Tools domain.
You prefer local stdio subprocess transport architecture.
Your security boundary fits: No auth required (Free / Open Source).
All MFOs with borrower rating, quick terms and canonical card URLs, ordered by rating position.
get_mfo
Full MFO card: terms for new/repeat clients (amount, term, rate, full cost of credit), borrower requirements, fees, legal entity, OGRN, Bank of Russia registry number, 4-criteria rating, record update date. Empty fields are omitted.
Catalog is categorized under Developer Tools and uses a local stdio subprocess. In contrast, Carbone MCP belongs to Developer Tools using local stdio subprocess. Select Catalog when you need capabilities focused on developer tools and Carbone MCP when you require tools for developer tools.
Latest borrower reviews for an MFO: rating, date, text.
get_market_rules
Legal context of microlending in Russia (0.8%/day rate cap under Art. 6.1 of Law 353-FZ, 100% total-cost cap since 2026-04-01, self-ban via Gosuslugi, cooling-off periods, debt collection rules under Law 230-FZ) with last-review date.
Carbone MCP Tools (11)
convert_document
Convert documents between 100+ formats without storing a template
render_document
Generate documents from templates by merging with JSON data
list_templates
Browse your template library with filtering by category or search (tags are returned per template but not filterable server-side)
list_categories
List all template categories in your account
list_tags
List all tags used across your templates
upload_template
Store reusable templates with versioning, categorization, and metadata
update_template_metadata
Rename, categorize, tag, deploy, or expire template versions
delete_template
Soft-delete templates (marked for removal, gone after ~24h)
download_template
Download original template files (DOCX, XLSX, PDF, etc.)
get_api_status
Check Carbone API health and current version
get_capabilities
View all supported formats, features, and examples