What is the main functional difference between PDF Reader MCP and Zactonz?

PDF Reader MCP is categorized under Search & Data Extraction and uses an install path we have not confirmed yet. Zactonz belongs to Developer Tools and uses a local stdio subprocess. Pick PDF Reader MCP for search & data extraction work and Zactonz for developer tools.

How do I install PDF Reader MCP or Zactonz in Claude Desktop, Cursor, or Windsurf?

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. PDF Reader MCP has no confirmed install command yet — follow its own setup instructions.

Are PDF Reader MCP and Zactonz free to use, or do they require API keys?

PDF Reader MCP is listed as free. Auth: no auth required. Zactonz is listed as freemium — a free tier with paid plans. Auth: api key required. If a server needs environment variables such as API keys, define them under the env key in your client's MCP config.

Can I run both PDF Reader MCP and Zactonz at the same time in my AI client?

Yes. MCP clients support multiple servers: add pdf-reader-mcp and zactonz as separate keys in the same mcpServers object, and your assistant will call tools from either one.

Which MCP server has higher directory engagement and quality ratings?

On AllMCPs, PDF Reader MCP has a quality signal of 65/100 (Great) with 2 views, 0 installs and 1,041 GitHub stars. Zactonz has 53/100 (Good) with 0 views, 0 installs and 0 GitHub stars.

PDF Reader MCP vs Zactonz — MCP Server Comparison

Feature & specification comparison

Rows where the two servers differ are marked.

Spec	PDF Reader MCP	Z Zactonz
Category	Search & Data Extraction	Developer Tools
Quality signal	65/100 · Great	53/100 · Good
Install command	Not confirmed yet	Confirmed
Transport	—	Local subprocess (stdio)
Auth	No auth required	API key required
Pricing	Free	Freemium
Required env vars	None listed	`ZACTONZ_API_KEYS`
Verified owner	Community listing	Community listing
GitHub stars	1,041	0
Directory activity	2 views 0 installs 0 upvotes	0 views 0 installs 0 upvotes
Tools	4	19
Full listing	View PDF Reader MCP	View Zactonz

Tools & capabilities

PDF Reader MCP tools 4

inspectDocument and media evidence when Markdown is not enough. video_timeline (bounded scene/cue timeline) and render_frame (actual decoded frames), and cite_check (quote/location support, not semantic truth), are anymd Pro; PDF operations: inspect (page facts, metadata), render_page (PNG images), extract_regions (crop bounding boxes), ocr_pages / analyze_regions (configured OCR or vision provider), structure (JSON with document map, elements, geometry; profile quality|research adds trust and accessibility reports), compare (page-level diff of sources[0] vs sources[1]).
outlineReturn a document heading tree with stable node ids, title paths, page/slide/chapter ranges and Markdown byte ranges. PDF bookmarks or detected headings, Word headings, PowerPoint slides, EPUB chapters and headings, HTML and Markdown. format json (default) or tree. Pass a node id to read to fetch that section.
readRead any document as clean Markdown: PDF, Word (DOCX), PowerPoint (PPTX), Excel (XLSX/XLS/ODS), CSV, EPUB, HTML or a web URL, Markdown/text, images (metadata + OCR), audio/video (metadata, chapters, subtitles). Pages/slides/sheets carry  style markers for citation. Long documents stop at max_tokens (default 20000) and end with a cursor to continue; choose pages with pages: "1-5,8". A directory returns its readable files.
searchSearch documents for text: one file, many files, whole directories (recursive, .gitignore aware), or URLs, across every format read supports. Returns each hit as file + page/slide/sheet + a snippet with the match in bold. mode auto (default) finds the exact phrase and falls back to BM25-ranked passages when there is none; literal or ranked force one. Narrow directories with glob, e.g. "*.pdf".

Zactonz tools 19

capture_screenshotCapture a web page as an image or PDF
render_htmlRender HTML to an image or PDF
read_webpageRead a web page as Markdown
convert_html_to_markdownConvert HTML to Markdown
preview_linkTitle, description, image and metadata of a URL
lookup_dnsDNS records and DNSSEC status
inspect_ssl_certificateCertificate, chain, expiry and TLS details
lookup_whoisRegistrar, dates and nameservers of a domain
check_email_domainMX, SPF, DKIM, DMARC and related records, scored
verify_emailsWhether addresses can receive mail
generate_qr_codeGenerate a QR code
read_qr_codeDecode a QR code
+7 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.

PDF Reader MCP

No confirmed install command for PDF Reader MCP yet — follow the setup steps linked from its listing page rather than a guessed package name.

Zactonz

mcpServers (Claude Desktop / Cursor)

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "zactonz": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@zactonz/mcp"
      ],
      "env": {
        "ZACTONZ_API_KEYS": "YOUR_ZACTONZ_API_KEYS_HERE"
      }
    }
  }
}

PDF Reader MCP vs Zactonz

Which MCP server should you choose?

Choose PDF Reader MCP when

Z
Choose Zactonz when

Feature & specification comparison

Tools & capabilities

PDF Reader MCP tools 4

Zactonz tools 19

Ready-to-paste client configs

PDF Reader MCP

Zactonz

Frequently asked questions

Choose PDF Reader MCP when

ZChoose Zactonz when

PDF Reader MCP tools 4

Zactonz tools 19

PDF Reader MCP

Zactonz

Frequently asked questions

What is the main functional difference between PDF Reader MCP and Zactonz?

How do I install PDF Reader MCP or Zactonz in Claude Desktop, Cursor, or Windsurf?

Are PDF Reader MCP and Zactonz free to use, or do they require API keys?

Can I run both PDF Reader MCP and Zactonz at the same time in my AI client?

Which MCP server has higher directory engagement and quality ratings?

Popular comparisons with PDF Reader MCP

Popular comparisons with Zactonz

Z
Choose Zactonz when