Obsidian Sync MCP vs Obsidian MCP Server
A side-by-side look at the Obsidian Sync MCP and Obsidian 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 Obsidian Sync MCP for knowledge & memory work as a local process; choose Obsidian MCP Server for knowledge & memory as a local process. You can also run both side by side in one mcpServers block.
Which MCP server should you choose?
Choose Obsidian Sync MCP when
- You need dedicated capabilities in the Knowledge & Memory domain.
- You prefer a local stdio subprocess transport.
- You have the keys it needs:
VAULT_PATH, VAULT_NAME, COUCHDB_URL, COUCHDB_USER, COUCHDB_PASSWORD, COUCHDB_DATABASE, COUCHDB_PASSPHRASE, MCP_AUTH_TOKEN. - You want tools like
read_note, write_note, edit_note.
Choose Obsidian MCP Server when
- You need dedicated capabilities in the Knowledge & Memory domain.
- You prefer a local stdio subprocess transport.
- Its auth model fits you: No auth required.
- You have the keys it needs:
VAULT_PATH. - You want tools like
read-note, read-multiple-notes, create-note.
Feature & specification comparison
Rows where the two servers differ are marked.
| Spec | ||
|---|---|---|
| Category | Knowledge & Memory | Knowledge & Memory |
| Quality signal | 61/100 · Good | 60/100 · Good |
| Install command | Confirmed | Confirmed |
| Transport | Local subprocess (stdio) | Local subprocess (stdio) |
| Auth | Not declared | No auth required |
| Pricing | Not declared | Free |
| Required env vars | VAULT_PATHVAULT_NAMECOUCHDB_URLCOUCHDB_USERCOUCHDB_PASSWORDCOUCHDB_DATABASECOUCHDB_PASSPHRASEMCP_AUTH_TOKEN | VAULT_PATH |
| Verified owner | Community listing | Community listing |
| GitHub stars | 63 | 18 |
| Directory activity | 1 views 0 installs 0 upvotes | 3 views 0 installs 0 upvotes |
| Tools | 10 | 31 |
| Full listing | View Obsidian Sync MCP | View Obsidian MCP Server |
Tools & capabilities
Obsidian Sync MCP tools 10
read_noteRead a note's markdown content by pathwrite_noteCreate or overwrite a note (replaces entire content)edit_noteEdit a note without rewriting it — append, prepend (after frontmatter), or replace exact textlist_foldersList all folders in the vault with note counts — use to discover folder nameslist_tagsList all tags in the vault with counts — use to discover tags before filteringlist_notesList notes with timestamps. Filter by folder, name, tag, or date. Sort by name or modified.search_notesSearch note text for terms (OR, case-insensitive substrings); paths and frontmatter titles are searched first. Filter by folder, tag, or date. Returns paths with one context line each, never the note body, after a status line that states which CouchDB sequence the index is caught up with.delete_noteDelete a notemove_noteMove or rename a note — works across folders, creates destination folders automaticallyget_note_metadataGet frontmatter, tags, outgoing links, backlinks, size, and timestamps — navigate the knowledge graph
Obsidian MCP Server tools 31
read-noteRead note contents (supports `frontmatterOnly` for efficiency)read-multiple-notesBatch read multiple notescreate-noteCreate a new noteedit-noteReplace note contentswrite-noteWrite with modes: overwrite, append, or prependdelete-noteDelete a note (requires confirmation)move-noteMove/rename a noteduplicate-noteCopy a note to a new locationget-notes-infoGet file metadata without reading contentlist-vaultList files and directoriescreate-directoryCreate a new directorydelete-directoryDelete a directory (with recursive option)- +19 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.
Obsidian Sync MCP
{
"mcpServers": {
"obsidian-sync-mcp": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"obsidian-sync-mcp"
],
"env": {
"VAULT_PATH": "YOUR_VAULT_PATH_HERE",
"VAULT_NAME": "YOUR_VAULT_NAME_HERE",
"COUCHDB_URL": "YOUR_COUCHDB_URL_HERE",
"COUCHDB_USER": "YOUR_COUCHDB_USER_HERE",
"COUCHDB_PASSWORD": "YOUR_COUCHDB_PASSWORD_HERE",
"COUCHDB_DATABASE": "YOUR_COUCHDB_DATABASE_HERE",
"COUCHDB_PASSPHRASE": "YOUR_COUCHDB_PASSPHRASE_HERE",
"MCP_AUTH_TOKEN": "YOUR_MCP_AUTH_TOKEN_HERE"
}
}
}
}
Obsidian MCP Server
{
"mcpServers": {
"smith-and-web-obsidian-mcp-server": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"@smith-and-web/obsidian-mcp-server"
],
"env": {
"VAULT_PATH": "YOUR_VAULT_PATH_HERE"
}
}
}
}
Frequently asked questions
Obsidian Sync MCP is categorized under Knowledge & Memory and uses a local stdio subprocess. Obsidian MCP Server belongs to Knowledge & Memory and uses a local stdio subprocess. Pick Obsidian Sync MCP for knowledge & memory work and Obsidian MCP Server for knowledge & memory.
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.
Obsidian Sync MCP has no declared pricing — check the project's own site. Obsidian 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 obsidian-sync-mcp and smith-and-web-obsidian-mcp-server as separate keys in the same mcpServers object, and your assistant will call tools from either one.
On AllMCPs, Obsidian Sync MCP has a quality signal of 61/100 (Good) with 1 views, 0 installs and 63 GitHub stars. Obsidian MCP Server has 60/100 (Good) with 3 views, 0 installs and 18 GitHub stars.