Side-by-Side Model Context Protocol Comparison
Reddit MCP Buddy vs Research
In-depth architectural comparison of the Reddit MCP Buddy and Research 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
Reddit MCP Buddy
Social Media · Local stdio
Quality: 71/100 (Great) | Auth: No auth required
Research
Social Media · Local stdio
Quality: 26/100 (Emerging) | Auth: No auth required
Verdict Summary: Choose Reddit MCP Buddy if you need specialized Social Media tools running via a local process. Choose Research if your workspace requires Social Media integration with local subprocess execution. Both servers can be configured concurrently in your client's
mcpServers manifest.Which MCP Server Should You Choose?
Choose Reddit MCP Buddy when:
- You need dedicated capabilities in the Social Media domain.
- You prefer local stdio subprocess transport architecture.
- Your security boundary fits: No auth required (Free / Open Source).
- Primary tools included: browse_subreddit, search_reddit, get_post_details.
R
Choose Research when:
- You need dedicated capabilities in the Social Media domain.
- You prefer local stdio subprocess transport architecture.
- Your security boundary fits: No auth required (Free / Open Source).
Feature & Specification Comparison
Tools & Capabilities Breakdown
Reddit MCP Buddy Tools (5)
browse_subreddit
Fetch posts from a subreddit sorted by your choice (hot/new/top/rising/controversial). Returns a post list with content, metadata, and a data_source field. With Reddit credentials (data_source "api") posts include score, num_comments, and upvote_ratio; without credentials, results come from Reddit's public RSS feed (data_source "rss") and those fields plus nsfw are null — see the response note and do not infer popularity from them.
search_reddit
Search for posts across Reddit or specific subreddits. Returns matching posts with content and metadata.
get_post_details
Fetch a Reddit post with its comments. Requires EITHER url OR post_id. IMPORTANT: When using post_id alone, an extra API call is made to fetch the subreddit first (2 calls total). For better efficiency, always provide the subreddit parameter when known (1 call total).
user_analysis
Analyze a Reddit user's posting history, karma, and activity patterns. Returns posts, comments, and statistics.
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).
Reddit MCP Buddy Configuration
Research Configuration