What is the key difference between DistrictAPI and Lumen?

DistrictAPI belongs to the Education category with local stdio execution, while Lumen belongs to the Education category with cloud HTTP/SSE execution.

How do I install DistrictAPI or Lumen in Claude Desktop or Cursor?

Copy the mcpServers JSON configuration snippet provided on this page into your claude_desktop_config.json or ~/.cursor/mcp.json file and restart your AI client.

Are DistrictAPI and Lumen free or paid?

DistrictAPI operates under a Free / Open Source model (No auth required). Lumen operates under a BYOK (Pay Provider Direct) model (No auth required).

Which MCP server has more tools and community activity?

DistrictAPI lists 6 tools with 0 views and 0 GitHub stars. Lumen lists 6 tools with 3 views and 88 GitHub stars.

Can I use both DistrictAPI and Lumen together in the same MCP host?

Yes! MCP hosts like Claude Desktop, Cursor, Windsurf, Cline, and VS Code support configuring multiple servers under the mcpServers object simultaneously.

Side-by-Side Model Context Protocol Comparison

DistrictAPI vs Lumen

In-depth architectural comparison of the DistrictAPI and Lumen 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

DistrictAPI

Education · Local stdio

Quality: 51/100 (Good) | Auth: No auth required

Lumen

Education · Remote HTTP/SSE

Quality: 41/100 (Fair) | Auth: No auth required

Verdict Summary: Choose DistrictAPI if you need specialized Education tools running via a local process. Choose Lumen if your workspace requires Education integration with remote web transport. Both servers can be configured concurrently in your client's mcpServers manifest.

Which MCP Server Should You Choose?

Choose DistrictAPI when:

You need dedicated capabilities in the Education domain.
You prefer local stdio subprocess transport architecture.
Your security boundary fits: No auth required (Free / Open Source).
You have access to required keys: DISTRICTAPI_KEY.
Primary tools included: lookup_district_by_address, get_district, search_districts.

Explore DistrictAPI Details

Choose Lumen when:

You need dedicated capabilities in the Education domain.
You prefer remote streaming HTTP/SSE transport architecture.
Your security boundary fits: No auth required (BYOK (Pay Provider Direct)).
You have access to required keys: LUMEN_MCP_AUTH_TOKEN, DATABASE_URL.
Primary tools included: Nine MCP tools for learning workflows, Course-scoped RAG tutoring with citations, FSRS review management.

Feature & Specification Comparison

Specification	DistrictAPI Education	Lumen Education
Summary
Category & Scope	Education	Education
Quality signal

Tools & Capabilities Breakdown

DistrictAPI Tools (6)

lookup_district_by_address

Find the district serving a US street address

get_district

Get full district profile by NCES LEA ID

search_districts

Search districts by name and/or state

get_district_schools

List all schools in a district

get_school

Get full school profile by NCES school ID

find_schools_near_address

Find schools within a radius of an address

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).

DistrictAPI Configuration

mcpServers (Claude Desktop / Cursor)

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "districtapi": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": [
        "districtapi-mcp"
      ],
      "env": {
        "DISTRICTAPI_KEY": "YOUR_DISTRICTAPI_KEY_HERE"
      }
    }
  }
}

Lumen Configuration

mcpServers (Claude Desktop / Cursor)

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "lumen-2": {
      "url": "https://api.groq.com/openai/v1"
    }
  }
}

Frequently Asked Questions

DistrictAPI is categorized under Education and uses a local stdio subprocess. In contrast, Lumen belongs to Education using remote streaming HTTP/SSE transport. Select DistrictAPI when you need capabilities focused on education and Lumen when you require tools for education.

More alternatives to DistrictAPI More alternatives to Lumen Education category hub