Gitlab MCP vs Gitlab MCP Server

In-depth architectural comparison of the Gitlab MCP and Gitlab MCP Server 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?

G

Choose Gitlab MCP when:

• You need dedicated capabilities in the Version Control domain.
• You prefer local stdio subprocess transport architecture.
• Your security boundary fits: No auth required (Free / Open Source).

Explore Gitlab MCP Details

Choose Gitlab MCP Server when:

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

Explore Gitlab MCP Server Details

Feature & Specification Comparison

Specification	G Gitlab MCP Version Control	Gitlab MCP Server Version Control
Summary	GitLab MCP server for projects, merge requests, issues, pipelines, wiki, releases, and more.	GitLab MCP (Model Context Protocol) server for AI agents
Category & Scope	Version Control	Version Control
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": {
    "gitlab-mcp": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "gitlab-mcp"
      ]
    }
  }
}

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "gitlab-mcp-server": {
      "url": "https://gitlab.com"
    }
  }
}

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