What is the best alternative to Core?

The top-rated alternatives to Core in the Knowledge & Memory category include Moxie Docs MCP, Scrivener MCP, Codebase Memory MCP. These servers offer complementary or alternative capabilities depending on your deployment stack and authentication requirements.

How do Core alternatives differ in installation and runtime?

Core and its alternatives vary by runtime requirement (Node.js/npx, Python/uvx, Docker, or remote HTTP/SSE endpoints). Check the specification comparison table above to verify command requirements before installing.

Are alternatives to Core free and open source?

Most MCP servers listed on AllMCPs are open source tools under MIT or Apache licenses that you can self-host or run locally with Claude Desktop, Cursor, VS Code, or Windsurf.

How do I side-by-side compare Core with a specific alternative?

Click the "Compare side-by-side →" button on any alternative card to see an in-depth comparison matrix covering feature lists, stars, npm downloads, install configurations, and schema specifications.

Knowledge & Memory• MCP Alternatives Guide

Best Alternatives to Core

Looking for an alternative to Core? Whether you need a different runtime environment, custom authentication support, or alternative API integrations in the Knowledge & Memory ecosystem, we have cataloged and compared the top alternative MCP servers below.

Browse all Knowledge & Memory servers →View Core Specs →

Target Reference Server

Core Overview

Persistent memory for AI coding agents. #1 on LongMemEval. 26 MCP tools. Local-first.

Specification Matrix: Core vs Alternatives

Server Name	Runtime	Auth	Pricing	GitHub Stars	Downloads	Action
C Core (Target)	uvx	Free/None	Free	215	—	Current
Moxie Docs MCP	npx	API key	Freemium	2	25	Compare →
Scrivener MCP	npx	No auth required	Free	49	12	Compare →
Codebase Memory MCP	npx	No auth required	Free	42,594	1	Compare →
Hindsight	npx	API key	Free	22,770	—	Compare →
Memora	npx	API key	Bring your own API key (usage-based cost)	715	—	Compare →
Basic Memory	npx	No auth required	Freemium	3,857	—	Compare →
Context7	npx	API key	Free	61,670	—	Compare →
Screenpipe	npx	Free/None	Free	21,412	—	Compare →
Emulo	uvx	No auth required	Free	289	—	Compare →
Mendeley MCP	npx	API key	Free	39	—	Compare →
Shodh Memory	npx	No auth required	Free	279	—	Compare →
Penfield MCP	Remote (SSE)	OAuth	Free	6	—	Compare →

Detailed Evaluation of Core Alternatives

Moxie Docs MCP

Runtime: npx

★ Featured

Provides repository-aware documentation context, convention checks, API context, and proposed documentation updates through MCP.

Key Features:

Repository-aware AI context

Convention discovery with citations

Documentation impact analysis

21 25 2

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Scrivener MCP

Runtime: npx

Connects Scrivener 3 projects to AI clients for editing, analysis, search, and writing support.

Key Features:

Scrivener 3 document access and editing

Deterministic writing analysis

Keyword and offline semantic search

16 12 49

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Codebase Memory MCP

Runtime: npx

Indexes repositories into a local code graph for structural search, call tracing, impact analysis, and architecture exploration.

Key Features:

Persistent local code knowledge graph

Tree-sitter parsing for 162 languages

Hybrid LSP semantic resolution

7 1 42,594

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Hindsight

Runtime: npx

Stores, searches, and synthesizes long-term agent memory through retain, recall, and reflect operations.

Key Features:

Long-term agent memory

Retain, recall, and reflect operations

Named memory banks

3 0 22,770

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Memora

Runtime: npx

Persistent memory MCP server with knowledge graph, semantic search, cloud sync, and cross-session context management.

Key Features:

Persistent storage with SQLite or cloud sync (S3, R2, D1)

Hierarchical memory organization with sections and subsections

Semantic search using TF-IDF, sentence-transformers, and OpenAI embeddings

2 0 715

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Basic Memory

Runtime: npx

Local-first AI memory server storing knowledge as Markdown files with semantic search and optional cloud sync.

Key Features:

Local-first plain text Markdown storage

Two-way human and AI file editing

Semantic knowledge graph with wikilinks

2 0 3,857

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Context7

Runtime: npx

Fetches current, version-aware library documentation and code examples for AI coding agents.

Key Features:

Library ID resolution

Documentation and code example retrieval

Version-aware documentation queries

7 0 61,670

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Screenpipe

Runtime: npx

Local-first workflow memory for AI agents. screenpipe lets MCP clients search selected screen, audio, app, and meeting context and turn real work into cited notes, SOPs, workflow reports, and automation candidates.

1 0 21,412

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