Contextful vs Cognee
A side-by-side look at the Contextful and Cognee MCP servers: transport, auth, tools, quality signals, and the config to install either one in Claude, Cursor, Windsurf or VS Code.
Verdict: choose Contextful for knowledge & memory work as a local process; choose Cognee for knowledge & memory as a local process. You can also run both side by side in one mcpServers block.
Which MCP server should you choose?
Choose Contextful when
- You need dedicated capabilities in the Knowledge & Memory domain.
- You prefer a local stdio subprocess transport.
Choose Cognee when
- You need dedicated capabilities in the Knowledge & Memory domain.
- You prefer a local stdio subprocess transport.
- Its auth model fits you: No auth required.
Feature & specification comparison
Rows where the two servers differ are marked.
| Spec | ||
|---|---|---|
| Category | Knowledge & Memory | Knowledge & Memory |
| Quality signal | 41/100 · Fair | 55/100 · Good |
| Install command | Confirmed | Confirmed |
| Transport | Local subprocess (stdio) | Local subprocess (stdio) |
| Auth | Not declared | No auth required |
| Pricing | Not declared | Free |
| Required env vars | None listed | None listed |
| Verified owner | Community listing | Community listing |
| GitHub stars | 5 | 32,468 |
| Directory activity | 2 views 0 installs 0 upvotes | 4 views 0 installs 0 upvotes |
| Tools | Not listed | Not listed |
| Full listing | View Contextful | View Cognee |
Tools & capabilities
Contextful tools
No tool names declared yet. Check the project README from the listing page.
Cognee tools
No tool names declared yet. Check the project README from the listing page.
Ready-to-paste client configs
Paste 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.
Contextful
{
"mcpServers": {
"contextful": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"@inferensys/contextful"
]
}
}
}
Cognee
{
"mcpServers": {
"topoteretes-cognee": {
"command": "uvx",
"args": [
"cognee"
]
}
}
}
Frequently asked questions
Contextful is categorized under Knowledge & Memory and uses a local stdio subprocess. Cognee belongs to Knowledge & Memory and uses a local stdio subprocess. Pick Contextful for knowledge & memory work and Cognee for knowledge & memory.
Copy the mcpServers block from the config section on this page into your client's config (for example claude_desktop_config.json or ~/.cursor/mcp.json), then fully restart the client.
Contextful has no declared pricing — check the project's own site. Cognee is listed as free. Auth: no auth required. If a server needs environment variables such as API keys, define them under the env key in your client's MCP config.
Yes. MCP clients support multiple servers: add contextful and topoteretes-cognee as separate keys in the same mcpServers object, and your assistant will call tools from either one.
On AllMCPs, Contextful has a quality signal of 41/100 (Fair) with 2 views, 0 installs and 5 GitHub stars. Cognee has 55/100 (Good) with 4 views, 0 installs and 32,468 GitHub stars.