MCP N8n vs Ckan MCP Server
A side-by-side look at the MCP N8n and Ckan MCP Server MCP servers: transport, auth, tools, quality signals, and the config to install either one in Claude, Cursor, Windsurf or VS Code.
Verdict: choose MCP N8n for developer tools work as a local process; choose Ckan MCP Server for developer tools as a local process. You can also run both side by side in one mcpServers block.
Which MCP server should you choose?
Choose MCP N8n when
- You need dedicated capabilities in the Developer Tools domain.
- You prefer a local stdio subprocess transport.
- You have the keys it needs:
N8N_BASE_URL, N8N_API_KEY. - You want tools like
n8n_create_workflow, n8n_list_workflows, n8n_list_workflows_summary.
Choose Ckan MCP Server when
- You need dedicated capabilities in the Developer Tools domain.
- You prefer a local stdio subprocess transport.
- Its auth model fits you: No auth required.
- You want tools like
ckan_package_search, ckan_find_relevant_datasets, ckan_package_show.
Feature & specification comparison
Rows where the two servers differ are marked.
| Spec | ||
|---|---|---|
| Category | Developer Tools | Developer Tools |
| Quality signal | 64/100 · Good | 68/100 · Great |
| Install command | Confirmed | Confirmed |
| Transport | Local subprocess (stdio) | Local subprocess (stdio) |
| Auth | Not declared | No auth required |
| Pricing | Not declared | Free |
| Required env vars | N8N_BASE_URLN8N_API_KEY | None listed |
| Verified owner | Community listing | Community listing |
| GitHub stars | 21 | 60 |
| Directory activity | 1 views 0 installs 0 upvotes | 2 views 0 installs 0 upvotes |
| Tools | 61 | 20 |
| Full listing | View MCP N8n | View Ckan MCP Server |
Tools & capabilities
MCP N8n tools 61
n8n_create_workflowCreate a new workflow in n8n. Prefer n8n_search_nodes + n8n_validate_workflow first so the JSON is valid. You can specify nodes, connections, and settings.n8n_list_workflowsList all workflows with full details. Can filter by active status, tags, name, or project. WARNING: Returns complete workflow data including nodes and connections - use n8n_list_workflows_summary for better token efficiency.n8n_list_workflows_summaryList workflows with minimal data (id, name, active, tags, updatedAt only). Recommended for browsing and listing - uses 90% fewer tokens than n8n_list_workflows. Use n8n_get_workflow to fetch full details of a specific workflow.n8n_get_workflowGet detailed information about a specific workflow by ID.n8n_update_workflowUpdate an existing workflow. Supports partial updates: omitted fields keep their current values (the current workflow is fetched and merged automatically).n8n_delete_workflowDelete a workflow permanently. A local snapshot is saved first so it can be restored with n8n_rollback_workflow (into a new workflow).n8n_activate_workflowActivate a workflow to start receiving triggers.n8n_deactivate_workflowDeactivate a workflow to stop receiving triggers.n8n_transfer_workflowTransfer a workflow to another project.n8n_get_workflow_tagsGet all tags associated with a workflow.n8n_update_workflow_tagsUpdate tags for a workflow.n8n_list_executionsList workflow executions. Can filter by status, workflow ID, or project. TIP: Set includeData=false and use fields parameter to reduce token usage.- +49 more on the listing page
Ckan MCP Server tools 20
ckan_package_searchSearch for datasets (packages) on a CKAN server using Solr query syntax. Supports full Solr search capabilities including filters, facets, and sorting. Use this to discover datasets matching specific criteria. Note on parser behavior: Some CKAN portals use a restrictive default query parser that can break long OR queries. For those portals, this tool may force the query into 'text:(...)' based on per-portal config. You can override with 'query_parser' to force or disable this behavior per request. Important - Date field semantics: - issued: publisher's content publish date when available (best proxy for "created/published") - modified: publisher's content update date when available - metadata_created: CKAN record creation timestamp (publish time on source portals, harvest time on aggregators; fallback for "created" if issued missing) - metadata_modified: CKAN record update timestamp (publish time on source portals, harvest time on aggregators; use for "updated/modified in last X") Natural language mapping (important for tool callers): - "created"/"published" -> prefer issued; fallback to metadata_created - "updated"/"modified" -> prefer modified; fallback to metadata_modified - For "recent in last X", consider using content_recent (issued with metadata_created fallback) Content-recent helper: - content_recent: if true, rewrites the query to use issued with a fallback to metadata_created when issued is missing. - content_recent_days: window for content_recent (default 30 days). Args: - server_url (string): Base URL of CKAN server (e.g., "https://dati.gov.it/opendata") - q (string): Search query using Solr syntax (default: "*:*" for all) - fq (string): Filter query (e.g., "organization:comune-palermo") IMPORTANT — Solr fq syntax rules: 1. OR inside a single field: use field:(val1 OR val2), NOT field:val1 OR field:val2. Wrong: fq=type:"A" OR type:"B" → silently ignored, returns entire catalog. Right: fq=type:("A" OR "B") 2. CKAN extras fields are indexed as extras_fieldname, not fieldname. e.g. to filter on extra field "hvd_category" use fq=extras_hvd_category:"<value>" - rows (number): Number of results to return (default: 10, max: 1000) - start (number): Offset for pagination (default: 0) - page (number): Page number (1-based); alias for start. Overrides start if provided. - page_size (number): Results per page when using page (default: 10, max: 1000) - sort (string): Sort field and direction (e.g., "metadata_modified desc") - facet_field (array): Fields to facet on (e.g., ["organization", "tags"]) - facet_limit (number): Max facet values per field (default: 50) - include_drafts (boolean): Include draft datasets (default: false) - query_parser ('default' | 'text'): Override search parser behavior - response_format ('markdown' | 'json'): Output format Returns: Search results with: - count: Number of results found - results: Array of dataset objects - facets: Facet counts (if facet_field specified) - search_facets: Detailed facet information Query Syntax (parameter q): Boolean operators: - AND / &&: "water AND climate" - OR / ||: "health OR sanità" - NOT / !: "data NOT personal" - +required -excluded: "+title:water -title:sea" - Grouping: "(title:water OR title:climate) AND tags:environment" Wildcards: - *: "title:environment*" (matches environmental, environments, etc.) - Note: Left truncation (*water) not supported Fuzzy search (edit distance): - ~: "title:rest~" or "title:rest~1" (finds "test", "best", "rest") Proximity search (words within N positions): - "phrase"~N: "title:"climate change"~5" Range queries: - Inclusive [a TO b]: "num_resources:[5 TO 10]" - Exclusive {a TO b}: "num_resources:{0 TO 100}" - One side open: "metadata_modified:[2024-01-01T00:00:00Z TO *]" Date math: - NOW-1YEAR, NOW-6MONTHS, NOW-7DAYS, NOW-1HOUR - NOW/DAY, NOW/MONTH (round down) - Combined: "metadata_modified:[NOW-2MONTHS TO NOW]" - Example: "metadata_created:[NOW-1YEAR TO *]" - IMPORTANT: NOW syntax works on metadata_modified and metadata_created fields - For 'modified' and 'issued' fields, NOW syntax is auto-converted to ISO dates - Manual ISO dates always work: "modified:[2026-01-15T00:00:00Z TO *]" Field existence: - Exists: "field:*" or "field:[* TO *]" - Not exists: "NOT field:*" or "-field:*" Boosting (relevance scoring): - Boost term: "title:water^2 OR notes:water" (title matches score higher) - Constant score: "title:water^=1.5" Examples: - Search all: { q: "*:*" } - By tag: { q: "tags:sanità" } - Boolean: { q: "(title:water OR title:climate) AND NOT title:sea" } - Wildcard: { q: "title:environment*" } - Fuzzy: { q: "title:health~2" } - Proximity: { q: "notes:"open data"~3" } - Date range: { q: "metadata_modified:[2024-01-01T00:00:00Z TO 2024-12-31T23:59:59Z]" } - Date math: { q: "metadata_modified:[NOW-6MONTHS TO *]" } - Date math (auto-converted): { q: "modified:[NOW-30DAYS TO NOW]" } - Published in 2025 (content date): { fq: "issued:[2025-01-01T00:00:00Z TO 2025-12-31T23:59:59Z]" } - First appeared on portal in 2025: { fq: "metadata_created:[2025-01-01T00:00:00Z TO 2025-12-31T23:59:59Z]" } - Recent content (issued w/ fallback): { q: "*:*", content_recent: true, content_recent_days: 180 } - Field exists: { q: "organization:* AND num_resources:[1 TO *]" } - Boosting: { q: "title:climate^2 OR notes:climate" } - Filter org: { fq: "organization:regione-siciliana" } - Filter extras field (correct): { fq: "extras_hvd_category:"http://data.europa.eu/bna/c_ac64a52d"" } - Filter extras OR (correct): { fq: "extras_hvd_category:("http://data.europa.eu/bna/c_ac64a52d" OR "http://data.europa.eu/bna/c_dd313021")" } - Get facets: { facet_field: ["organization"], rows: 0 } Query language: Before searching a portal, check its locale via ckan_status_show (field: "Portal Locale" / locale_default). Translate query terms to the portal's language — searching in English on a non-English portal returns 0 results. Examples: locale "it" → Italian terms; "uk_UA" → Ukrainian (Cyrillic); "fr_FR" → French. Exception: multilingual portals (e.g. data.europa.eu, open.canada.ca) accept EN + native terms joined with OR. Typical workflow: ckan_status_show (check locale) → ckan_package_search (query in portal's language) → ckan_package_show (get full metadata + resource IDs) → ckan_datastore_search (query tabular data)ckan_find_relevant_datasetsFind and rank datasets by relevance to a query using weighted fields. Use this instead of ckan_package_search when you want relevance-ranked results with explicit scoring across title, notes, tags, and organization fields. Use ckan_package_search instead when you need Solr filter syntax, facets, or pagination. Uses package_search for discovery and applies a local scoring model. Args: - server_url (string): Base URL of CKAN server (e.g., "https://dati.gov.it/opendata") - query (string): Natural language or keyword query (e.g., "mobilità urbana", "air quality") - limit (number): Number of datasets to return (default: 10) - weights (object): Field weights for scoring — higher weight = more influence on rank Default: title=4, tags=3, notes=2, organization=1, holder=4, publisher=2, coverage=4 coverage: bonus for datasets the portal returned with every query term required (Solr mm=100%); these are fetched first, the rest fills in when they are fewer than limit Note on holder vs organization: on federated catalogs (e.g. dati.gov.it), `organization` is the harvesting catalog (e.g. Regione Puglia), while `holder` (DCAT-AP_IT dct:rightsHolder) is the actual data owner (e.g. Comune di Lecce). Queries like "datasets from a specific Comune" match `holder` correctly; matching only `organization` misses datasets harvested via aggregators. `publisher` (dct:publisher) is scored separately at lower weight as it can contain technical roles ("Redazione OD") rather than the institutional owner. - query_parser ('default' | 'text'): Override search parser behavior - response_format ('markdown' | 'json'): Output format Returns: Ranked datasets with relevance scores and per-field score breakdowns Examples: - { server_url: "https://dati.gov.it/opendata", query: "mobilità" } - { server_url: "...", query: "trasporti", limit: 5, weights: { title: 5, notes: 2 } } - { server_url: "...", query: "defibrillatori Comune di Lecce", weights: { holder: 5 } } Typical workflow: ckan_find_relevant_datasets → ckan_package_show (inspect top results) → ckan_datastore_search (query data)ckan_package_showGet complete metadata for a specific dataset (package). Returns full details including resources, organization, tags, and all metadata fields. Notes: - metadata_modified is a CKAN record timestamp (publish time on source portals, harvest time on aggregators), not the content date. - issued/modified are content dates when provided by the publisher. - JSON output adds metadata_harvested_at (same as metadata_modified). Args: - server_url (string): Base URL of CKAN server - id (string): Dataset ID or name (machine-readable slug) - include_tracking (boolean): Include view/download statistics (default: false) - response_format ('markdown' | 'json'): Output format Returns (JSON format): id, name, title, notes, organization, tags, state, license_title, metadata_created, metadata_modified, issued, modified, author, maintainer, frequency, language, publisher_name, holder_name, hvd_category, applicable_legislation, temporal_coverage (array of {start, end, start_equals_issued} from dct:temporal; empty if absent; start_equals_issued=true when start = issued and no end: on dcatapit portals an export default, not a data period), resources (id, name, format, url, size, datastore_active, created, last_modified, api_json_url), view_url, api_json_url Examples: - { server_url: "https://dati.gov.it/opendata", id: "dataset-name" } - { server_url: "...", id: "abc-123-def", include_tracking: true } Typical workflow: ckan_package_show → pick a resource with datastore_active=true → ckan_datastore_search (query its data)ckan_list_resourcesList all resources in a dataset with a compact summary. Returns a focused table of resources showing format, size, DataStore availability, and download URL. Use this to quickly assess what files a dataset contains before deciding how to access the data. Args: - server_url (string): Base URL of CKAN server - id (string): Dataset ID or name - format_filter (string): Filter resources by format, case-insensitive (e.g., "CSV", "json", "XLSX") - response_format ('markdown' | 'json'): Output format Returns: Compact resource summary with name, ID, format, size, DataStore flag, and URL Examples: - { server_url: "https://dati.gov.it/opendata", id: "dataset-name" } - { server_url: "...", id: "dataset-name", format_filter: "CSV" } Typical workflow: ckan_package_search → ckan_list_resources (assess available files) → ckan_datastore_search (for resources with DataStore=true) When a resource has DataStore=false but its download URL belongs to a different (source) portal, the tool can probe the source portal for DataStore availability and report source_datastore_active and source_portal_url so you can query the data there instead. This probing is OFF by default (it issues extra HTTP requests to hosts taken from the dataset's own resource URLs); set check_source_portal=true to enable it.ckan_organization_listList all organizations on a CKAN server. Organizations are entities that publish and manage datasets. Args: - server_url (string): Base URL of CKAN server - all_fields (boolean): Return full objects vs just names (default: false) - sort (string): Sort field (default: "name asc") - limit (number): Maximum results (default: 100). Use 0 to get only the count via faceting - offset (number): Pagination offset (default: 0) - response_format ('markdown' | 'json'): Output format Returns: List of organizations with metadata. When limit=0, returns only the count of organizations with datasets. Typical workflow: ckan_organization_list → ckan_organization_show (inspect one) → ckan_package_search with fq="organization:name" (browse its datasets)ckan_organization_showGet details of a specific organization. Args: - server_url (string): Base URL of CKAN server - id (string): Organization ID or name - include_datasets (boolean): Include list of datasets (default: true) - include_users (boolean): Include list of users (default: false) - response_format ('markdown' | 'json'): Output format Returns: Organization details with optional datasets and users Typical workflow: ckan_organization_show → ckan_package_show (inspect a dataset) → ckan_datastore_search (query its data)ckan_organization_searchSearch for organizations by name pattern. This tool provides a simpler interface than package_search for finding organizations. Wildcards are automatically added around the search pattern. Args: - server_url (string): Base URL of CKAN server - pattern (string): Search pattern (e.g., "toscana", "salute") - response_format ('markdown' | 'json'): Output format Returns: List of matching organizations with dataset counts Examples: - { server_url: "https://www.dati.gov.it/opendata", pattern: "toscana" } - { server_url: "https://open.canada.ca/data", pattern: "health" } Typical workflow: ckan_organization_search → ckan_organization_show (get details) → ckan_package_search with fq="organization:name"ckan_datastore_searchQuery data from a CKAN DataStore resource. The DataStore allows SQL-like queries on tabular data. Not all resources have DataStore enabled. The response always includes a Fields section listing all available column names and types. Use limit=0 to discover column names without fetching data — do this before using filters to avoid guessing column names and getting HTTP 400 errors. Args: - server_url (string): Base URL of CKAN server - resource_id (string): ID of the DataStore resource - q (string): Full-text search query (optional) - filters (object): Key-value filters (e.g., { "anno": 2023 }) - limit (number): Max rows to return (default: 100, max: 32000) - offset (number): Pagination offset (default: 0) - fields (array): Specific fields to return (optional) - sort (string): Sort field with direction (e.g., "anno desc") - distinct (boolean): Return distinct values (default: false) - response_format ('markdown' | 'json'): Output format Returns: DataStore records matching query, always including available column names and types Examples: - { server_url: "...", resource_id: "abc-123", limit: 0 } ← discover columns first - { server_url: "...", resource_id: "abc-123", limit: 50 } - { server_url: "...", resource_id: "...", filters: { "regione": "Sicilia" } } - { server_url: "...", resource_id: "...", sort: "anno desc", limit: 100 } Typical workflow: ckan_package_search → ckan_package_show (find resource_id with datastore_active=true) → ckan_datastore_search (limit=0 to get columns) → ckan_datastore_search (with filters)ckan_datastore_search_sqlRun SQL queries on a CKAN DataStore resource. This endpoint is only available on CKAN portals with DataStore enabled and SQL access exposed. Args: - server_url (string): Base URL of CKAN server - sql (string): SQL query (e.g., SELECT * FROM "resource_id" LIMIT 10) - response_format ('markdown' | 'json'): Output format Returns: SQL query results from DataStore Examples: - { server_url: "...", sql: "SELECT * FROM "abc-123" LIMIT 10" } - { server_url: "...", sql: "SELECT COUNT(*) AS total FROM "abc-123"" } Typical workflow: ckan_package_show (get resource_id) → ckan_datastore_search_sql (run SQL on it) Security note: SQL queries are forwarded directly to the CKAN DataStore API. The CKAN server enforces its own access controls and read-only permissions. No local database is exposed. Queries are limited to public DataStore resources on the target portal.ckan_status_showCheck if a CKAN server is available and get version information. Useful to verify server accessibility before making other requests. Also shows the count of High-Value Datasets (HVD) when the portal supports it. Args: - server_url (string): Base URL of CKAN server Returns: Server status, version information, and HVD dataset count (if available) Typical workflow: ckan_status_show (verify server is up) → ckan_package_search (discover datasets)ckan_tag_listList tags from a CKAN server using faceting. This returns tag names with counts, optionally filtered by dataset query or tag substring. Args: - server_url (string): Base URL of CKAN server - q (string): Dataset search query (default: "*:*") - fq (string): Filter query (optional) - tag_query (string): Filter tags by substring (optional) - limit (number): Max tags to return (default: 100, max: 1000) - response_format ('markdown' | 'json'): Output format Returns: List of tags with counts (from faceting) Typical workflow: ckan_tag_list → ckan_package_search with fq="tags:tag_name" (find datasets by tag) → ckan_package_showckan_group_listList all groups on a CKAN server. Groups are thematic collections of datasets. Args: - server_url (string): Base URL of CKAN server - all_fields (boolean): Return full objects vs just names (default: false) - sort (string): Sort field (default: "name asc") - limit (number): Maximum results (default: 100). Use 0 to get only the count via faceting - offset (number): Pagination offset (default: 0) - response_format ('markdown' | 'json'): Output format Returns: List of groups with metadata. When limit=0, returns only the count of groups with datasets. Typical workflow: ckan_group_list → ckan_group_show (inspect one) → ckan_package_search with fq="groups:name" (browse its datasets)- +8 more on 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.
MCP N8n
{
"mcpServers": {
"mcp-n8n": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"mcp-n8n"
],
"env": {
"N8N_BASE_URL": "YOUR_N8N_BASE_URL_HERE",
"N8N_API_KEY": "YOUR_N8N_API_KEY_HERE"
}
}
}
}
Ckan MCP Server
{
"mcpServers": {
"ckan-mcp-server": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"@aborruso/ckan-mcp-server"
]
}
}
}
Frequently asked questions
MCP N8n is categorized under Developer Tools and uses a local stdio subprocess. Ckan MCP Server belongs to Developer Tools and uses a local stdio subprocess. Pick MCP N8n for developer tools work and Ckan MCP Server for developer tools.
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.
MCP N8n has no declared pricing — check the project's own site. Ckan MCP Server 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 mcp-n8n and ckan-mcp-server as separate keys in the same mcpServers object, and your assistant will call tools from either one.
On AllMCPs, MCP N8n has a quality signal of 64/100 (Good) with 1 views, 0 installs and 21 GitHub stars. Ckan MCP Server has 68/100 (Great) with 2 views, 0 installs and 60 GitHub stars.