Computer Use vs Desktop MCP

In-depth architectural comparison of the Computer Use and Desktop 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.

Which MCP Server Should You Choose?

Choose Computer Use when:

• You need dedicated capabilities in the Developer Tools domain.
• You prefer remote streaming HTTP/SSE transport architecture.
• Your security boundary fits: No auth required (Free / Open Source).

Explore Computer Use Details

Choose Desktop MCP 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).

Explore Desktop MCP Details

Feature & Specification Comparison

Specification	Computer Use Developer Tools	Desktop MCP Developer Tools
Summary	Control your computer with screenshots, mouse, and keyboard automation.	Windows desktop-control MCP server: screenshot, window mgmt, mouse/keyboard input, recording.
Category & Scope	Developer Tools	Developer Tools
Quality signal

Tools & Capabilities Breakdown

Ready-to-Paste Client Configurations

Paste either (or both) of these JSON server blocks into your client config file (e.g. claude_desktop_config.json or ~/.cursor/mcp.json).

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "computer-use": {
      "url": "https://docs.anthropic.com/en/docs/build-with-claude/computer-use"
    }
  }
}

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "desktop-mcp": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": [
        "desktop-mcp"
      ]
    }
  }
}

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