Refd vs Lens

In-depth architectural comparison of the Refd and Lens 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.

Which MCP Server Should You Choose?

R

Choose Refd when:

• You need dedicated capabilities in the Research domain.
• You prefer local stdio subprocess transport architecture.
• Your security boundary fits: No auth required (Free / Open Source).

Explore Refd Details

Choose Lens when:

• You need dedicated capabilities in the Research domain.
• You prefer remote streaming HTTP/SSE transport architecture.
• Your security boundary fits: No auth required (Free / Open Source).
• Primary tools included: create_digital_twin_lens, add_lens_knowledge, get_lens_status.

Explore Lens Details

Feature & Specification Comparison

Specification	R Refd Research	Lens Research
Summary	Read AI search visibility, competitors, citations, prompts, and answer evidence from refd.	Build an AI chatbot from your own content that answers with citations: FAQ, docs, coach, support.
Category & Scope	Research	Research
Quality signal

Tools & Capabilities Breakdown

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).

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "refd": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "refd"
      ]
    }
  }
}

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "lens-2": {
      "url": "https://mindola.ai/me/your-name"
    }
  }
}

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