Plos vs Zenodo
A side-by-side look at the Plos and Zenodo MCP servers: transport, auth, tools, quality signals, and the config to install either one in Claude, Cursor, Windsurf or VS Code.
Verdict: choose Plos for research work as a local process; choose Zenodo for research as a local process. You can also run both side by side in one mcpServers block.
Which MCP server should you choose?
Choose Plos when
- You need dedicated capabilities in the Research domain.
- You prefer a local stdio subprocess transport.
- You want tools like
search, article, search_authored_by.
Choose Zenodo when
- You need dedicated capabilities in the Research domain.
- You prefer a local stdio subprocess transport.
- You want tools like
search, record, record_files.
Feature & specification comparison
Rows where the two servers differ are marked.
| Spec | ||
|---|---|---|
| Category | Research | Research |
| Quality signal | 59/100 · Good | 57/100 · Good |
| Install command | Confirmed | Confirmed |
| Transport | Local subprocess (stdio) | Local subprocess (stdio) |
| Auth | Not declared | Not declared |
| Pricing | Not declared | Not declared |
| Required env vars | None listed | None listed |
| Verified owner | Community listing | Community listing |
| GitHub stars | 0 | 0 |
| Directory activity | 1 views 0 installs 0 upvotes | 2 views 0 installs 0 upvotes |
| Tools | 4 | 5 |
| Full listing | View Plos | View Zenodo |
Tools & capabilities
Plos tools 4
searchSolr-powered full-text search across all PLOS open-access journals; supports field-qualified queries (e.g. abstract:CRISPR AND title:gene), pagination, sorting, and custom field selection. Returns title, authors, journal, date, and abstract by default.articleFetch a single PLOS article record by DOI (e.g. 10.1371/journal.pone.0153207), returning title, authors, publication date, journal, and abstract.search_authored_byArticles by author name.recentMost recent publications across PLOS.
Zenodo tools 5
searchSearch Zenodo open-research repository for datasets, publications, software, and other research outputs by keyword query. Filterable by type, community, and sort order (mostrecent/bestmatch/mostviewed); returns metadata, DOI, and file links.recordSingle record by Zenodo id.record_filesList files attached to a Zenodo record by its numeric id. Returns file names, sizes, checksums, and direct download URLs.communitiesList or search Zenodo communities (thematic collections of records) by optional keyword query; returns community id, title, description, and record count.community_recordsFetch paginated records belonging to a Zenodo community by its slug id (e.g. "openaire"). Returns record metadata, DOIs, and file links for all items in the community.
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.
Plos
{
"mcpServers": {
"plos": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"@pipeworx/mcp-plos"
]
}
}
}
Zenodo
{
"mcpServers": {
"zenodo": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"@pipeworx/mcp-zenodo"
]
}
}
}
Frequently asked questions
Plos is categorized under Research and uses a local stdio subprocess. Zenodo belongs to Research and uses a local stdio subprocess. Pick Plos for research work and Zenodo for research.
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.
Plos has no declared pricing — check the project's own site. Zenodo has no declared pricing — check the project's own site. 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 plos and zenodo as separate keys in the same mcpServers object, and your assistant will call tools from either one.
On AllMCPs, Plos has a quality signal of 59/100 (Good) with 1 views, 0 installs and 0 GitHub stars. Zenodo has 57/100 (Good) with 2 views, 0 installs and 0 GitHub stars.